A&H

Fitness = Credibility?

J

Jtpetherick1

Well-Known Member
I think we've all discussed a certain SG1 referee (who may be on TV as I write) in relation to match fitness before. Clearly, the referee passes the necessary PGMOL fitness tests each season so I'm not really keen on rehashing that discussion but I'm curious...

Do you think (apart from the obvious advantages of being fit in terms of keeping up with play/being in the right positions etc) fitness affects your refereeing in terms of your self-confidence and the confidence that it gives to those involved with the game. Clearly, the PGMOL feel that the SG1 referee I mention is fit enough as to referee 'well' but I wonder what we make of it in terms of the mindset of those on the pitch?

Do the players give you/your decisions more credibility if you're fitter, or is it a case of they'd only notice if you're unfit?

Again, not interested in discussing the SG1 referee, but it did prompt my thinking in terms of the wider issues of being fit. (Hence the forum its in.)
 
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No, I'm quite sure that fitness does inspire respect and it often helps that the fitter you are the closer you are to a decision.
 
My own personal experience, albeit at grass roots level is that not having a double chin and a projecting midriff goes some way towards establishing a base-level degree of respect before the K.O whistle is even blown.

What takes place afterwards is largely down to the ability of the referee but any shortfall in the skill of a referee's decision-making process is only ever exacerbated by his physical fitness/appearance in the eyes of the players. :)
 
Kes said:
What takes place afterwards is largely down to the ability of the referee but any shortfall in the skill of a referee's decision-making process is only ever exacerbated by his physical fitness/appearance in the eyes of the players. :)
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I think that's a good point - fitness won't necessarily help with the 'well done ref' comments but looking unfit can damage you further after a poor game.
 
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I think it is more that lack of fitness damages your credibility, in part because it damages your ability to be in the right place to make the call.

(Though I've worked with a couple of older guys in 16U and 19U games where I thought, wow, he's never going to be able to keep up. But some of those old dudes can read the game so well that they end up where they need to be with a lot less running than I have to do, and have mastered moving while making a call to look like they were closer to the play than they actually were.)
 
Kes said:
My own personal experience, albeit at grass roots level is that not having a double chin and a projecting midriff goes some way towards establishing a base-level degree of respect before the K.O whistle is even blown.
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Based on your photo, I HIGHLY doubt anyone's going to mess with you on any issues related to fitness. :)
 
There's too much emphasis on fitness. Most referees beyond level 5 would blow away if Beaufort Scale 5 was ever breached
Don't get me wrong, beer bellies ain't gonna wash it, but a lot of referees are gonna big up the ability to run way over 3K in 12 minutes, simply because they have that in their repertoire
Andre Mariner has always interested me. I'm sure he clocks the same mileage as anyone else, but I've been hard pressed to see him do anything other than stroll around the park
Ability to make sound decisions under pressure and fatigue is itself a function of fitness, but there are other traits that likely hold extra 'weight'. I've started out too late, so I'm not bothered; but there won't be too many refs in the top 10% with a BMI over 20 because their face (or silhouette won't fit)
 
Big Cat said:
There's too much emphasis on fitness. Most referees beyond level 5 would blow away if Beaufort Scale 5 was ever breached
Don't get me wrong, beer bellies ain't gonna wash it, but a lot of referees are gonna big up the ability to run way over 3K in 12 minutes, simply because they have that in their repertoire
Andre Mariner has always interested me. I'm sure he clocks the same mileage as anyone else, but I've been hard pressed to see him do anything other than stroll around the park
Ability to make sound decisions under pressure and fatigue is itself a function of fitness, but there are other traits that likely hold extra 'weight'. I've started out too late, so I'm not bothered; but there won't be too many refs in the top 10% with a BMI over 20 because their face (or silhouette won't fit)
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This was what I was wondering - is it fitness for appearance (credibility) sake or because you need it?
 
Jtpetherick1 said:
This was what I was wondering - is it fitness for appearance (credibility) sake or because you need it?
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Both really. I often get positive comments from players post-game about keeping up with play, so think it’s appreciated at that level when maybe some referees may not be able to...not that it necessarily means you aren’t capable of being a good referee mind.

In relation to needing to be fit; fatigue plays a major part in your ability to think. I’ve been pushed to my physical limit a few times and can testify to the effect it can have....I genuinely had trouble recalling my name on one occasion!

In a role where you need to be as switched on as possible, fitness is definitely your friend.
 
Not to be misunderstood... I've seen my self ref (in my dreams) and my fitness would hinder thinking ability, if I were to progress. Anyone ever tried to convert kph into minute mile pace (when blowing out their bum bums) will know what I mean
 
Jtpetherick1 said:
This was what I was wondering - is it fitness for appearance (credibility) sake or because you need it?
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As @Big Cat noted, one of the reasons for fitness is to not be fatigued at the end of a game. Fatigue impairs the brain. We see exhausted players make mental mistakes toward the games in a wide variety of sports due to that fatigue. We don't want to be the one with impaired thought process at the end of the game. (I have seen refs clearly struggling this way.) And we want, even at the end of the game, to be fit enough to get into the position we need to be in. Being the fastest ref who can run the longest doesn't make you the best ref. But being unable to get into the position you need or being too tired to think your best are very real problems.
 
Looking fit is about starting out with giving the appearance you can do the job. Being fit is about being in the right place to make the right decision AND THEN selling that decision.

Many older and less fit referees substitute that requirement with experience, skill (game/player management) and personality to achieve the same thing.
 
Appearance definitely plays a part. But that can be overridden by what you actually do once the game starts, you can still be close to play and in credible positions and change those initial perceptions, equally you can look the part but then be in the wrong positions.

As a level 3 I wasn't the youngest, perhaps didn't look the most athletic, and will readily admit I was sometimes carrying a bit of a beer belly, albeit a fairly small one. But fitness and positioning was by far the strongest point of my game and it drew a lot of positive comments and was always the highest marked competency. One observer said in the debrief that he was worried when he saw me but that I was the best he had seen all season for fitness and positioning, wasn't too sure what to make of that but I took it as a thinly veiled compliment.

Even now as a level 5 getting close to the big five o I still get compliments from players as to how close I am to decisions.

The argument is a bit pointless at professional level as those referees have all passed the fitness test, and I can assure you that if you aren't very fit you do not pass that test.
 
RustyRef said:
Even now as a level 5 getting close to the big five o I still get compliments from players as to how close I am to decisions.
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I'm on the other side of the big five o. One of my favorite moments was a racing with a counter attack in a B19 game and hearing the coach say. "C'mon, the ref is running faster than we are!" :)
 
RustyRef said:
The argument is a bit pointless at professional level as those referees have all passed the fitness test, and I can assure you that if you aren't very fit you do not pass that test.
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Don't fully agree with this. I can see professtiinal referees on TV who don't look fit enough for the game, hardly close to play and their overall running and top speed sprint is not what the level of games demands, yet they pass the fitness test.

That can only be for a couple of reasons. They get fit for the test only and then they let go, they don't put the effort in for games, the fitness test tests for general fitness and not the football specific fitness.

I suspect it is the latter. You can be very fit by some standards but still struggle to keep up with play in a professiinal standard game.
 
Credibility, absolutely, and not just with players, with coaches before, during and after... with fans... with colleagues... and with you organisation/refsec etc.

Especially if you are an older ref starting out, weak fitness will be used against you by all of the above (in my exp, they will all try).

Yes, some refs can mask fitness issues with smarts, of course, to a degree, at some levels.

If you want to get noticed, get promoted, join development schemes etc. of course weak fitnesd is going to be a barrier.

My personal exp, after a couple of years at this I felt my 35+ colleagues fell into two camps: those fit/fast enough to be able/credible (at all levels up to nudging elite youth and highest mens - so around UK equiv 4-3-even 2), and those that were faking it at level 5 (even hanging on around 4).

I was like, no way I want to be in the later group! One day when I was just getting serious a coach said to me ”it’s great to have a ref that can keep up with the players” and that sealed it for me. TBH though I am reliant to some degree on movement and I am fearful that I won’t want to ref when it goes :(

Plus don’t underestimate the mental aspect. I keep seeing colleagues that are physically able but lose games because they are not able to combine that with mental strength across a difficult game - typically because of poor pre-match, no warm up, overconfidence that they can just walk on and switch on.
 
Whilst being fit doesn't make you a good referee, there can be no doubt that being fit makes you a better referee than if you're not. In fact, being fit is just better for you in all aspects of your life.

Its certainly one of my stronger points as a referee and in my observation last week it was marked as a positive. I had to get from one side of the pitch to the other following a break and give a ball over the line decision (goal). I couldn't have given that decision if I wasn't fit.
 
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