What is the purpose of yelling at refs?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I honestly don’t get it. Are the parents/players/coaches hoping to notify the ref of a rule they may be unaware of? Hoping the ref becomes more lenient to your team on future calls? Trying to distract them from reffing the game? Just generally need a target to take out frustration?

I watch people shouting at refs and I seriously don’t understand what good they can think might possibly come of it. I feel like I’m missing something here.

this is the stupidest question i've read on these boards and that's saying something

The yeller at refs has entered the thread!

No, all parents know they shouldn't be yelling at the refs and it accomplishes absolutely nothing - anyone trying to justify it is just lying to themselves...case in point this is the stupidest question on these boards.

[Anonymous]

I thought it was kind of a signal to the team/other fans that you thought the team was doing well and through no fault of their own had some tough luck.

[Anonymous]

I often joke that I took up reffing as penance for things I yelled as a coach or parent. But I really didn't do much, and I think I can defend three things I recall doing:

1. The opposing coach kept yelling at the ref, and he finally swayed her decision on a call that could've gone either way. I objected.

2. The ref let play continue after a player went down, having been bonked in the head. As a ref now, I have no problem with parents yelling to alert me to an injured player. And if I were to see an injured player (head injury, anyway) and just shrug, I really wouldn't blame coaches and parents for yelling a bit.

3. After I started reffing but was still coaching, I chatted not so amiably with an arrogant ref mentor after he made a mess of a game I was coaching. In that case, it was less about the calls and more about him being completely full of himself.

I do tend to cut parents some slack. But seriously, folks -- at U9 and U10 (and in some cases U11 and U12), we have no ARs, and you're going to have a better view of the sideline than we do quite often. We're going to miss the occasional throw-in call. BFD. If a team scores almost directly off a throw-in, the opposing defense is really bad.

Also, you'd be surprised how many situations are just really tough to call. Two players start contesting possession. They're both trying to shield the ball. They bump into each other. Sometimes, one kid falls down. It seems obvious when you're a parent or a coach -- the foul was on the other team. As a ref, you often think, "OK, maybe a foul, but which way?"

And for the last freaking time -- it wasn't a handball. Ninety percent of the time you think it's a handball, it's not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I honestly don’t get it. Are the parents/players/coaches hoping to notify the ref of a rule they may be unaware of? Hoping the ref becomes more lenient to your team on future calls? Trying to distract them from reffing the game? Just generally need a target to take out frustration?

I watch people shouting at refs and I seriously don’t understand what good they can think might possibly come of it. I feel like I’m missing something here.

It's a part of sports culture and tradition.

[Anonymous]

The entitlement of these people is OFF THE CHARTS. There are much, much, bigger problems in the world.

[Anonymous]

My DS was in a tournament a couple of years ago and the parents of the teams in a game before DS's were SO AWFUL the ref kicked them all out, they had to go to the parking lot. It was glorious to see.

Eventually there will be no youth sport refs/umps/etc. They don't get paid much, they got into because of the love of the sport and parents have absolutely RUINED it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I honestly don’t get it. Are the parents/players/coaches hoping to notify the ref of a rule they may be unaware of? Hoping the ref becomes more lenient to your team on future calls? Trying to distract them from reffing the game? Just generally need a target to take out frustration?

I watch people shouting at refs and I seriously don’t understand what good they can think might possibly come of it. I feel like I’m missing something here.

It's a part of sports culture and tradition.

No. Were you born in a barn?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son is a ref. He said that people yelling at him does not influence his calls, but that one time, at halftime, a parent talked to him calmly and said he felt my son was failing to call fouls on smaller players and only calling them on bigger ones. Since the guy was calm, my son listened and agreed.

It is so beyond inapproproate for a parent to approach a ref before, during or after a game, unless it's to say good job.
Don't do this under any circumstance.

Ignore this person.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son is a ref. He said that people yelling at him does not influence his calls, but that one time, at halftime, a parent talked to him calmly and said he felt my son was failing to call fouls on smaller players and only calling them on bigger ones. Since the guy was calm, my son listened and agreed.

It is so beyond inapproproate for a parent to approach a ref before, during or after a game, unless it's to say good job.
Don't do this under any circumstance.

Ignore this person.

Which to ignore? The parent should NOT approach a ref. If they have an issue they should message the league with their concerns? If no response, then elevate it. But do not approach a ref, regardless of age.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I honestly don’t get it. Are the parents/players/coaches hoping to notify the ref of a rule they may be unaware of? Hoping the ref becomes more lenient to your team on future calls? Trying to distract them from reffing the game? Just generally need a target to take out frustration?

I watch people shouting at refs and I seriously don’t understand what good they can think might possibly come of it. I feel like I’m missing something here.

Because you can’t tell at coach! Ref is classic scapegoat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I honestly don’t get it. Are the parents/players/coaches hoping to notify the ref of a rule they may be unaware of? Hoping the ref becomes more lenient to your team on future calls? Trying to distract them from reffing the game? Just generally need a target to take out frustration?

I watch people shouting at refs and I seriously don’t understand what good they can think might possibly come of it. I feel like I’m missing something here.

Because you can’t tell at coach! Ref is classic scapegoat.

*yell

[Anonymous]

My kid refs early grade rec league and he still has to deal with parents, coaches, and players shouting at him. It is crazy.

In a recent game a coach went ballistic at him because he wouldn’t stop and hold game play so one of the players could re-tie their shoe. The other team’s coach eventually had to intervene because the coach was so out of control about it.

For safety reasons we won’t let our kid center ref without a parent there, which is not a great sign for the future of reffing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I honestly don’t get it. Are the parents/players/coaches hoping to notify the ref of a rule they may be unaware of? Hoping the ref becomes more lenient to your team on future calls? Trying to distract them from reffing the game? Just generally need a target to take out frustration?

I watch people shouting at refs and I seriously don’t understand what good they can think might possibly come of it. I feel like I’m missing something here.

It's a part of sports culture and tradition.

No. Were you born in a barn?

Refs at all level of sports get yelled at during games. Even in tennis, fans will whistle at judges and players. It is absolutely a part of sports culture. If you want to watch a game in silence, watch at home or move to Japan. In 'Merica, we let refs and players know what we are thinking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I honestly don’t get it. Are the parents/players/coaches hoping to notify the ref of a rule they may be unaware of? Hoping the ref becomes more lenient to your team on future calls? Trying to distract them from reffing the game? Just generally need a target to take out frustration?

I watch people shouting at refs and I seriously don’t understand what good they can think might possibly come of it. I feel like I’m missing something here.

It's a part of sports culture and tradition.

No. Were you born in a barn?

Well, it was more of a stable. Long story short, my folks were on this trip while my mom was pregnant and all the inns were full. Turns out the guy that raised me wasn't really my dad. Things kind of spiraled from there. I'm working my way back though. Thanks for asking about me, not many people do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DS was in a tournament a couple of years ago and the parents of the teams in a game before DS's were SO AWFUL the ref kicked them all out, they had to go to the parking lot. It was glorious to see.

Eventually there will be no youth sport refs/umps/etc. They don't get paid much, they got into because of the love of the sport and parents have absolutely RUINED it.

This. There is already a referee shortage, exacerbated by many older ones retiring after Covid, but parents are the worst. There are some new young refs in our kids league, but how are they going to develop and grow if they quit due to parent harassment?