FHumpires.com
Day Four at the 2011 Indoor World Cup
February 13 2011
The match I saw on day 4 was between Australia and Namibia, again on pitch 2. The treat would be paired with a long time friend of mine, Gus Soteriades of the United States. Gus and I were roomed together for the very first tournament I ever left Canada for in Jamaica in 1999. We became fast friends and look forward to meeting up at tournaments when the opportunity arises.
Old Friends
Gus and I don’t get to umpire much together and I thought that a warm-up game last Sunday would be our only chance to work together. Thankfully I was wrong and we got set to umpire what could potentially be a problematic match. There was nothing really on the line for either team, but I’m sure Namibia would like to have earned at least one win for their World Cup experience. Australia are a decent team but nowhere near as dominant as their outdoor team.
One of the trends that Namibia showed was that as soon as they gave up a goal they slowed the game down to a crawl. Every 9 metre push or free hit took forever to set up and take, and it leant itself to a very boring spectacle. One of our goals was to keep play moving, encouraging them to keep some pace in the game. Another challenge would be that for one umpire there would be significantly less action in the first half, so staying engaged could prove difficult. Gus and I planned our strategy around being much closer to one another and helping significantly more on the far side of each others circle. We did have to keep in mind that Namibia were very capable of a one man counter attack, which came very early in the first half.
Change of Plans
I was ready for the break and making my way along with the streaking players when the Aussie goal keeper took out the Namibian forward. Like most decisions at this level there is little thinking going on; decisions are gut feelings and the result of scenarios we process in our minds as play develops. The penalty stroke was very easy to call and no one disputed it. After 5 minutes it was Namibia 1-0 over Australia. We were officially off the game plan.
The Aussies re-grouped and it wasn’t long before the score was drawn and we were back to our original plan. I stayed in the game by narrowing my focus to the ball every time more than one person was around it. You keep asking yourself the question, “what can possibly go wrong in this situation if they continue in the direction they are going?” Plan for the worst and hope for the best.
In the second half the Australians continued to apply pressure and generate more offence. This put the Namibians on the back foot and they started making mistakes. I wanted to use all my tools and awarded a penalty corner against the defence for drilling just on the edge of my circle. The left back commented he felt that was a bit harsh, and a flash of anger went through my mind. I felt like replying that this was the World Cup and their play had to come up not everyone else’s come down, but I kept my mouth shut and just shrugged my shoulders as if there could be no other possible outcome.
Nobody Expects Everything
This was the first of about three decisions that were unpopular with the Namibians. I have absolutely no doubt they were correct and I felt I was doing everything I could to manage the players. Sometimes when they lose confidence in your decisions there is not much you can do to mollify them. After another unpopular penalty corner the goalkeeper protested. I let him have the first outburst, but when he turned around and shouted in protest in my direction a second time I didn’t hesitate; I pulled out my cards.
When all your cards carry a suspension, it is wise to know what this can mean in every situation. I have no regret in giving the keeper a card, I only wish I had had the courage to give a yellow instead of a green. I stood waiting for the back-up keeper to enter the pitch, but there was considerable confusion not only from the bench but from the table as well. First he was allowed to come on, then they needed a kicking back, and finally they were told they could substitute a suspended goalkeeper. The entire process took about 4 minutes.
This is a rare occurrence, but just because it is does not mean you don’t card keepers; it just means you need to be aware of what needs to go on when you do. I should have been more insistent that they substitute the keeper. Even if it wasn’t in the rules the FIH would never want us to remove a player with protection only to have him replaced by someone without it. We would be endangering a player to penalize another, and that is against one of our primary tenants: keep players safe.
Needless to say it was not the situation I wanted to really show what I could do at the World Cup. When you look at the top guys umpiring here there is little, if any, controversy. Their decisions might be unpopular with a few people, but they recover very quickly. For the fifth time in the tournament, what I did was technically correct but not necessarily the right management of the players and the situation. It is a tricky business that only experience can cure.
The appointments were handed out and I will umpire my 6th match at the Indoor World Cup on day 5.
