first game(s)

[MD Longhorn]

Originally Posted by pzebra

I was way too timid on blowing the whistle. Had a lot of jump balls the probably should have been fouls. Missed double dribbles that my partner called, but I clearly should have been in position for.

My son's first game was 2 weeks ago. He was working with me. And he had EXACTLY these three issues. Don't sweat it. With the little ones, you're going to have those scrums where you can't see foul/jump/neither as well as you'd like. You're going to have DD's where they simply put two hands on the ball while dribbling (as opposed to the more normal DD's you see at higher levels) - just be ready for them.

And as silly as it sounds, practice blowing your whistle. A light whistle can cause injuries as some people stop and others don't. Keep that in mind. Also keep in mind that you're blowing the whistle for a reason. Be definitive, not timid or wishywashy.

You're fine. Don't worry that you're not cut out for it. First games are tough, and even tougher when they start as shaky as your first one did, minus a partner adn all. I'm sure you're 3rd week official who carried you felt exactly the same in his first game, and I'm sure you'll be ready to carry a newbie after a couple of weeks of games.