The Ref Stop

Coin toss

zarathustra said:
It's all about confidence and control. You don't want to toss too softly, but neither do you want to toss too aggressively. You need to get the toss just right, so that all participants feel valued and included.

As for blowing, it's all about the tongue action.
Click to expand...
I thought you were Army not Navy? ❤️
 
The Ref Stop
afronaut81 said:
During my training I was told to never let the coin fall to the floor - or if you did to get one of the captain's to pick it up. The reason given that it makes it appear that you are bowing to them when you bend down
Click to expand...
Of course. A king should never bow to commoners . But I think as long as you remove your crown it should be ok. Seriously, couldn't they think of better things to teach. There are more practical reasons for catching the coin but if you are more comfortable with letting it drop then go for it.
 
My course was told not to let the coin drop to the floor because when you bent down to get it, one of the captains could knee you in the head. Yes, he was serious. I’m almost certain it’s never ever happened.
 
Eddie said:
My course was told not to let the coin drop to the floor because when you bent down to get it, one of the captains could knee you in the head. Yes, he was serious. I’m almost certain it’s never ever happened.
Click to expand...

Our course was told this as well. If this has ever happened then OMG.
 
afronaut81 said:
Our course was told this as well. If this has ever happened then OMG.
Click to expand...

No chance. Not sure why they bother making up such rubbish.

The more I think back to the course the more I realise what little it gave you in terms of preparation etc.
 
Eddie said:
No chance. Not sure why they bother making up such rubbish.

The more I think back to the course the more I realise what little it gave you in terms of preparation etc.
Click to expand...

They probably don't make it up as such, but rather it is passed down so they probably heard it on their course, and the person who taught them heard it on their course etc.

I agree that the course doesn't prepare you for the realities of refereeing. A good analogy ive heard is comparing it to learning to drive.

The lessons tell you how to drive, and the test says yo're allowed to drive, but you don't learn to drive properly until you're out driving on your own.
 
afronaut81 said:
Our course was told this as well. If this has ever happened then OMG.
Click to expand...

Ours said not to let the coin hit the floor, but for more realistic reasons; Bending down to check the coin means you're not watching the players/pitch and you could miss something kicking off, as it happens. Very rare that something would boil over at that stage though, but it's to try and guide you not to get into bad habits of looking away from the players/action.
 
RobOda said:
Ours said not to let the coin hit the floor, but for more realistic reasons; Bending down to check the coin means you're not watching the players/pitch and you could miss something kicking off, as it happens. Very rare that something would boil over at that stage though, but it's to try and guide you not to get into bad habits of looking away from the players/action.
Click to expand...
Miss something kicking off between players standing in their own halves? OK!

I think the best argument for letting it drop is, if you catch it, particularly in difficult conditions, it might appear that you are trying to catch it one way on purpose, which would lead to complaint. That, for me, is a better argument than any bowing nonsense - YMMV though and is geographically specific;)
 
We should have a poll, who tries to catch it, half tosser, and who lets it fall, full tosser.... which one sums you up?
 
TSHudson said:
I don't think I'd ever do heads home tails away, as it's always good fun when the captain gets slated for losing the toss "again", when most of the time it is totally meaningless (unless there is terrible sun or a huge slope).
Click to expand...

Except now you can choose to kick off rather than ends anyway, of course.
 
zarathustra said:
I remember being told something similar on my course, but i think the reasoning given was more along the lines that it could undermine your authority to be seen running around trying to find the coin etc.

Having thought about it more, I think the reason given for telling the teams home team heads away team tails was because you are asserting some authority from the start by telling the captain what is going on.
Click to expand...
FFS. It's a coin flip. Really not something that needs overthinking. The concerns about the horrors of bending over is silly.

FWIW, I use a big coin (old-style American silver dollar) and let it fall to the ground. 9 times out of 10 a player picks it up and hands it to me.
 
I just do what I do. Sometimes I ask home to call it - sometimes the away team.
I always toss and catch it myself though.
Don't do the "let it fall" option. Too much chance of it landing upright in the mud and making a farce of something that is very simple.
 
I got told on my course to let the home team call. No idea why, never questioned it.
 
Over the years I have seen some strange tossers. Flipping of the coin I mean. I work with a referee frequently who holds the front edge of the coin with his thumb and index finger and then flips it. Had one that puts the coin on the front end of a flat palm and flips it like a pan cake. The worse one was one that couldn't toss or flip. Just throw it very high in the air hoping that the distance is long enough to give it a couple of spins.
 
Last edited:
On hot air advise with strange reasons behind it. I had always trusted players when I wasn't sure about
something and they told me the outcome which benefited their opponent. Like "it came of me ref" when the ball goes out. In my early years I had a game when after signalling an unsure goal kick, a defender said it came off me so I changed my decision to a corner kick and we got on with it. I was being assessed and the assessor told me I should have stayed with goal kick because "the defender could be a criminal or a compulsive liar".

I tried his advise in a couple of games but I went back to my own way after I was left red faced a couple of time. The opponents put the ball in play but then deliberately put it out to give it back and get a fair outcome.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top