Eye-opening is the first word that comes to mind when describing my experience as football official for a day.
The idea behind this project was to learn more about the job of an official: who the men and women in stripes are, and why they do it.
As I learned by talking to them, it’s about a passion for football and – especially at the grassroots level – giving back to the game.
Everyone is quick to point out mistakes throughout the course of a game, but how many people are willing to actually do the job?
I was willing, and I can tell you – it’s not easy!
My role was the line judge on a four-man crew for a bantam football game at Shouldice Park.
There are so many things you have to be thinking about every single down: know down and distance, gates up/gates down, am I held official or free official? Is there an eligible end? Watch for movement prior to snap, is everyone on side? etc.
That’s before the ball is even snapped — after that, you’re trying to keep an eye on everything.
The first and easiest mistake to make is staring at the ball. It’s the only way you watch the game as a fan, but as an official, it’s a big no-no.
Luckily, our game was a blowout, so any of my mistakes – and there were a few – wouldn’t change the outcome of the game.
You quickly appreciate how difficult it is to catch every offence, or be in the right position to see them.
Since that one game on the sideline, I certainly view the game a little differently now; not just the way I watch it, but with a much greater appreciation for the job officials have to do.
Sure, they make mistakes. But we all do! And remember, no matter what level of football you’re watching, this is a part-time job and these officials invest a lot of their time to do it.
I want to give a big thanks to Glenn Saunders, Doug French, Lance Campbell and the all the guys at the Calgary Football Officials Association for taking the time to train me, and work with me on the sideline.
If you are a man or woman interested in becoming an official in Calgary, you can visit the association’s website here and follow the links.
Locally, it’s great group of guys and it was a lot of fun! But…I also haven’t been yelled at yet.
If you missed it, check out Part I of Brendan Parker’s ‘Making the call’ series below:
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