FHumpires.com
An interview with Craig Madden, Umpire’s Manager from Scotland.
March 02 2010
When I was recently at the Eurohockey Indoor Club Champion’s Trophy in Vienna, Austria, I had the great pleasure to sit down with Craig Madden of Scotland. I asked him about his role as Umpire’s Manager as well as the unique challenges that face umpires in the indoor game.
John: Craig, my first question for you is for the many umpires out there who have never been to a tournament with an Umpire’s Manager. What is your role at this particular tournament?
Craig: My role here is to provide support to the umpire team which takes on many facets. There is obviously a management role to ensure that the umpires are comfortable with transport arrangements, meals, hotel etc so that they can concentrate on their games and not worry about how they are going to get to the pitch, for instance. My role is also to provide support to the umpires on their games, to watch all the games and to discuss related issues with the umpires at the debrief sessions. This is extremely important as the umpiring will only improve if there is an open and frank discussion on performance and an agreement on what needs to be worked on. Finally, I need work with the TD on areas like appointments to games, marks, feedback forms and any recommendations for promotion.
As you will gather there is a lot of work here if the UM is to do the job properly in the interests of the umpire team, and in a tournament of this intensity that presents a time management issue for the UM.
JH: How is indoor hockey different for umpires and what kinds of adjustments should we try to make?
CM: As an umpire in a top European tournament you have to cope with the pace of the game and the fact that a lot of the action occurs in and around the circle – far more than outdoor. So therefore umpires have to be sharp and mentally alert to make the correct decisions in the circle so that the result is not affected by umpiring decisions. That means that the umpire must be constantly on the move, firstly to support his colleague in his area, but also be in place to make the correct decisions in your own circle. Also you have constantly to adjust your positioning to see the action as the play moves quickly from one spot to the next. It is very important that all the members of the umpire team work to the agreed briefing so that there is maximum consistency. Total concentration is a must when umpiring indoor as the play is constant and flows from end to end.
JH: What do you see as the biggest change in the indoor game over the past 10 years?
CM: I think the game is much more tactical than it used to be, perhaps that has resulted in less goals in a game. In the past players perhaps had more freedom to express themselves and consequently it was more exciting, more goals, but also contained more mistakes. Also the game is closer to outdoor now as many of the rules and interpretations are shared by both games with the exception of the lifted ball, the use of boards and now the new time-outs. Also the game is moving away from being a European sport, it is now growing in popularity in the other continents and that has to be good for the game. But perhaps the biggest change is the conception of the Indoor World Cups, Leipzig - Vienna and now Poland next year – that has given the indoor game status within the FIH.
JH: Where do you see the game of indoor hockey going in the future?
CM: I believe there is a tremendous future for the indoor game as it is expanding into a world sport. It has many advantages – its fast and exciting, it`s played indoors so not affected by weather patterns, it only requires six players a team to have a game and the kids like it. Recently, I have seen indoor hockey played with enthusiasm in places like Peru, Iran and Serbia, and I`m sure that will also apply to a host of other nations, that is the life-blood of the sport. However, I would like to see still more changes to the game in order to make it more exciting still and understandable to non-hockey spectators – for example,I would advocate boards along the back-lines to keep the game in motion, I would allow players to lift the ball over the stick as I believe that is a skill and it reduces the amount of umpire whistle and be more lenient with accidental obstruction, body contact and stick contact that actually doesn`t affect the game and keeps it flowing better.
Comments
- DeToro
04:52pm, 03/23/2010
A most interesting interview. I see that the indoor sport will only grow with such leadership and incite.
If the CAP, fits wear it! - field_hockeyer
11:49am, 03/31/2010
That is a great interview.
I believe indoor is great, but I personally believe outdoor will grow more compared to indoor around the world
