Post-game assisting

[GraemeS]

After my match last night where I was acting as Junior AR, we were discussing a few of the key incidents. And when explaining one of his decisions the ref said something along the lines of "well I did that because if I had done X instead, then I would have had to do Y as a result" (being deliberately vague here)

I didn't think that was correct, so queried it and both the ref and Senior AR doubled down and agreed that the ref would have been obliged to do Y, so I accepted and we moved on. But I've checked the LOTG today and I was correct - if he had done X then he wouldn't have been obliged to do Y as a result, instead he should have done Z.

We were talking in hypotheticals so it isn't the case that anything wrong in law happened last night - but if he was to do X in future and then do Y as a result, I think that would be a potential replay match and suspend referee level of mistake. And of course, it's possible I misunderstood the issue completely, although I don't think so.

So with all that in mind, I'm struggling this morning with the question of if I should drop him an email with a screenshot of the relevant section of LOTG and a polite correction. Or does the ref/AR relationship effectively end when we shake hands and get in our cars at the end of the night, and doing this would come across badly? Appreciate everyone's thoughts on how they would feel if an AR came back to you after a match to "correct" your law understanding!

 

[JamesL]

After my match last night where I was acting as Junior AR, we were discussing a few of the key incidents. And when explaining one of his decisions the ref said something along the lines of "well I did that because if I had done X instead, then I would have had to do Y as a result" (being deliberately vague here)

I didn't think that was correct, so queried it and both the ref and Senior AR doubled down and agreed that the ref would have been obliged to do Y, so I accepted and we moved on. But I've checked the LOTG today and I was correct - if he had done X then he wouldn't have been obliged to do Y as a result, instead he should have done Z.

We were talking in hypotheticals so it isn't the case that anything wrong in law happened last night - but if he was to do X in future and then do Y as a result, I think that would be a potential replay match and suspend referee level of mistake. And of course, it's possible I misunderstood the issue completely, although I don't think so.

So with all that in mind, I'm struggling this morning with the question of if I should drop him an email with a screenshot of the relevant section of LOTG and a polite correction. Or does the ref/AR relationship effectively end when we shake hands and get in our cars at the end of the night, and doing this would come across badly? Appreciate everyone's thoughts on how they would feel if an AR came back to you after a match to "correct" your law understanding!

I can't answer the poll, because the answer I would give isn't an option.

I think it really depends on your relationship with that referee. For example if I was working with someone I work with regularly, or had a closer relationship with through training events etc I'd be minded to carry that conversation forward, for sure. Maybe not so much if I didn't have the relationship with them or had built up a relationship across that game that made me feel I could do that.

I suppose the other question is can it be delivered in a not so holier than thou attitude. If you can present it in the right way, without coming across a pr*ck then yes, we have an opportunity to really help out a colleague.

At the end of the day, either way you've taken learning away from it... Be that only consolidation of knowledge.

I think I lean towards yes, wherever possible but I wouldn't put myself out or jeopardise a relationship because of it. At the end of the day they could be on your line in the future and the last thing you want is to have a bad experience with them as that had the potential to damage the team before the game even starts.

 

[GraemeS]

I did wonder if I should include that kind of context, but worried the original post was getting too long!

The ref in question is L4 (i.e. 1 level above me) and this is the first time we'd met. He's also not super-local to me, so I'm not likely to run into him loads. I think he was happy enough with my performance as AR, but there was definitely a bit of a clash of styles - my preference is to be quiet and low-profile where possible, he started off loud and involved and only increased his profile from there!

 

[es1]

i'd definitely drop them a line, i'd want to know i'd actually gone wrong

 

[Macca]

What are you hoping to achieve from going back to the ref?
Chances are that whatever your motivation, the ref has likely forgotten about incident, or realised they were mistaken. Either way, it's quite likely they'll not see it in a positive way and it could come back on you later.
I'd suggest you move on.

 

[ChasObserverRefDeveloper]

I would consider an e-mail along the lines of:
Good to work with you yesterday. After the game we discussed X/Y, and I just wanted to check that I had understood the sequence you had in mind if you had gone X, as I have always understood Z. Just need to clear my head on this one!
Many thanks in advance. Enjoy the rest of the season.

 

[RustyRef]

I also think it depends on your relationship with the referee. Thankfully very small in number, but there have been some referees that I would have no interest in helping, and if anything would like to see them get their comeuppance. If it was someone that I worked with regularly, or even someone that I'd only done a couple of games with and got on well, I'd pick up the phone the next day and have a chat with them. For anyone between those scenarios I'd take a guess as to how they would react to it, as there is a fine line between appearing to be trying to help and coming across as a smart @rse.

 

[george.g]

I assist L5s, many of whom have either come down from 3/4, or are going for 4.

I think across the whole season, I've encountered 1 I'd feel comfortable mentioning it to after the game. To me, I'd feel like I was overstepping, especially given 4/7 I've been Junior AR, second to someone with a much better relationship with the R.

Feeling comfortable, and as mentioned, relationship, is key