[Law] Recovering from Bad performancs

[FatherFlipper]

Ok, been chewing this over for a few days.

Had a game on Saturday - Surrey 4, last day of season - that was a try-fest, but I personally felt I had a rather sub-standard performance. No reasons or excuses for it - just had a game where I got muddled in my thinking, didn't really have control, scrums were a mess, seen things, gave decisions and then instantly second-guessed myself. Captain's would ask questions, and I'd get utterly tongue-tied and just burble nonsense at them. Wasn't a particularly fast game, but I felt my calf go "pop" with about ten minutes gone in the second half, which meant I was then slower (and slower and slower...) to breakdowns which just made things worse. As soon as that spiral started, it's hard to get back. Was following an up-and-under at one stage, and the players collided in mid-air (fair contest), all the while managing not to be aware of half the players involved in a mass brawl behind me.

Got my report card from the home captain after and it was without question the worst I've had, and I felt rightly so. It was completely constructive (and the captain was a great bloke and we spoke afterwards about it at length, so I got a lot out of it). Interestingly, he did say I was the most authoritative and approachable ref they had all season, so even though the game was unraveling, I didn't show it. Had a pint, wished them well for the following week, went home, went to bed, pulled the duvet over my head and sulked for the rest of the night.

So, question is: how do you get over a bad performance? A game when you know it's going away from you (and worse, the teams know it). I've already completed my self-assessment form that I do after the game (I did do it Sunday morning once I'd stopped sulking tbf), mentally parked it, but what do you guys do in such circumstances (due to my calf going, I don't have the option of getting right back on the horse and going again)?

 

[SimonSmith]

In your circumstances?

Go watch another referee at your level and 'coach' him - dissecting someone else's performance helps the self analysis process.

During the game? I don't know that there is a technique for 'in the moment' match recovery. I think one of the things that separates the higher level refs is the ability to just move on and not get caught in a feedback loop in the middle of the game. I think CJ is on record as saying that once he makes a decision, it's forgotten and we move on. Easier said than done, mind.

When I was starting out, at about those levels, I made the reappointments guy my best friend. My weekend would look like a match on Saturday, and then Colts on Saturday. Off to Basingstoke or Winch for a really fast, and usually enjoyable game, with a good informal chat with the ever present referees/referee coaches soon restored any faith that might have been lost on the Saturday.
Over here, College Women tend to be a good cure for what ails you. They aren't dicks like the guys and just want to play and have fun.

 

[leaguerefaus]

If we're talking about just one bad performance it can be best to just let it go and not over analyse it.

If, however, this type of performance happens regularly or happens every time you have a specific "type" of game, that's the time to start looking for reasons it occurs.

If it's just a bad day, it happens, just get back out on the paddock and put it behind you.

 

[crossref]

this is Steve Walsh's in the moment tool for match recovery.

a bit OTT for many.

I went to a ref talk once where the speaker spoke about having an elastic band round your wrist which you snap, to literally snap out of circualr thoughts. Or a wristband with a very powerful smell (like deep heat, not lilies-of-the-valley)

apparently that sort of artificial trigger works really well - but the trick is it you use it every game, as a specific re-focussing tool, when things get close, or when you enter the last fifteen mins.. so it becomes an instinctive re-focus moment. Once it's a routine then it works when you're upset. Apparently.

 

[Pegleg]

I think you've done it all right!

Always do a self assessment whether you think the game was good or bad. Doing this will show you that good games still have learning points and bad games have some good points.

Talk to captains, players etc. Listen and think about it. Some of the advise can be ignored much will have merit.

Get up the next day and see the sun shining and all the good things in life and move on.

All easier to say than do. Of course.

Regarding the re-focusing during a game. That is hard to achieve. We all (probably been there) one error and the game goes downhill faster than Franz Klammer.

 

[chbg]

What did you do when you had a shocker as a player? Why should your reaction now be any different (other than being x years more mature)? As Crossref stated: the sun still rose the following morning on 30+ players, 2+ coaches etc etc and you.

 

[Rushforth]

What did you do when you had a shocker as a player? Why should your reaction now be any different (other than being x years more mature)? As Crossref stated: the sun still rose the following morning on 30+ players, 2+ coaches etc etc and you.

I reconsidered posting a longish reply earlier. You've hit the head on the nail (or vice versa).

We (players, referees, even supporters) generally give what we can. We cannot give more than 100%. Players can have silly "dick of the day" rituals; referees cannot.

You (OP) did everything you could to the best of your ability. The captain knew that, even if the report thingy looked rubbish, but... it happened. With the leg going "pop"... you did what you could, and stayed calm in the face of adversity. Thumbs up.

 

[Not Kurt Weaver]

FF,

What the hell is duvet?

 

[FlipFlop]

For me. Take what you can from it, and then forget the rest.

1 game is nothing to be worried about. A string of them - yes. But 1 bad game (And it doesn't even sound like a proper train crash at that) - move on. Forget it. Stop worrying.

 

[Blackberry]

Every player who comes into the game understands (or needs to understand) that we will have a bad day, sometimes its the ref, sometimes its the player, but either way everyone accepts (or needs to accept) it.
There is some excellent learning on this short thread; develop a strategy to move on, and to move on straight away, within seconds. If you truly want to give of your best...you will not do so if you dwell for even a moment, seriously..even a moment, on a decision. You have the guts to stand up and manage a game like rugby, you are entitled to get things wrong every so often and not to be distracted by it.

Let's look at the other side now. If a ref has got something wrong (in the same way as a player knocks on, passes forward) and a player goes on about it, the ref's mistake is not the issue anymore, the player or players are breaking the contract of acceptance. So, no matter what I (the ref) have done, I now need to ask/warn/penalise the player. The fact I made a mistake is not the issue, its the player's non-acceptance of the contract we are all proud to be part of.

 

[didds]

If we're talking about just one bad performance it can be best to just let it go and not over analyse it.

If, however, this type of performance happens regularly or happens every time you have a specific "type" of game, that's the time to start looking for reasons it occurs.

yeah - I'd say try and look at other factors that may have affected your pefrformance. Enough sleep? Too much/not enough (!) wine the night before? what did you have for breakfast that you maybe normally don;t? Enough water in the last 24 hours? etc

didds

 

[menace]

FF,

What the hell is duvet?

Pronounced 'Doo-vay': (redneck it's 'dove-it') and it's a middle eastern like headwear, similar to a burqa, for males to hide cry baby tears.
(Others call it a doona or featherdown blanket):wink::biggrin:

 

[FatherFlipper]

Hi all, many thanks for the responses. I will look at adding some of them to my armory over the next few weeks/months.

I think one of the things I do after the game is look purely at the game itself, and NOT factors surrounding it (as leaguerefaus and didds mention above). I've always sort of looked as that as looking for excuses, when what I realise I should be doing is actually forming a steady routine to get into - what works the night/morning/hour before kick-off and what doesn't - so logging what I've done is actually a good thing (so long as I don't get superstitious about it - "Ahhhh, I had a good game that day, so I must now always have Rice Krispies for breakfast, but ONLY if I've previously run over a cat first").

Thanks again chaps, good luck this weekend y'all....

 

[crossref]

I don't have the time/space to create a whole Fri night to Sat afternoon routine.

But I do listen to the same playlist every week in the car on the way, the idea is that it helps to get into focus, starting from the moment I set out from home.

Who knows whether it works!

 

[didds]

Its more about identifying anything that contributed towards a poor performace with a view to not repeating that another week, not necessarily adopting a specific 24/48 hour process.

That said... a good friend that does a lot of am-dram told me yesterday as I sniffed towards the opening night of "Fiddler On The Roof" in my first ever principal part (Lazar Wolf the butcher FTR) that when she has a major role i.e a major lead her lead in for MONTHS will avoid dairy products and will include lots of Majo-wotsit honey etc...

So I guess it comes down to how much paranoia/OCD you have I suppose

didds

 

[Phil E]

Wear your lucky pants :biggrin:

 

[Dixie]

FatherFlipper, becoming a referee was one of the steepest (in fact, probably the steepest) learning curve of my entire life. One thing that became clear when talking to other refs both in my Society and especially on here is ... shit happens. There will be times (probably many more than you would like) in your early career when the pace of decision-making (yes- even in slowly unfolding low-level games) overwhelms your ability to process the necessary information. As you get better, patterns imprint themselves on your subconscious mind so that the arm goes out and the whistle moves even before you have consciously realised why it's happening. The difficulty in the early days is that you have to think each decision through. You are making multiple decisions per second - was that pass level or forward? Was the tackle late or just OK? Was the tackler offside? Does my calf require me to quit or can I hobble on for a while? Once a single decision is delayed a fraction of a second and the new ref is playing catch-up with himself and the game, it doesn't[ take too many of these decisions to overwhelm him.

The good news is that every game will get you closer to the objective of pattern imprinting. For myself, I kept a log of each game, identifying 3 key areas (and no more, no matter how bad the game) where I was falling short. I'd then set about imagining scenarios covering those issues for the rest of the week - posting questions here, rolling the scenario through in my mind's eye, figuring out what clues to look for, identifying key aspects of each issue I was dealing with.

Ultimately, however, there's no substitute for getting out there and watching the scenarios unfold during games. You need to hang in there until you get better, putting in the hours each week to help you to do so. If you can do that, I'm confident you'll become a valuable referee operating at a respectable level.

Good luck

 

[Daftmedic]

Ok. I am going to let you into a secret. With a video.

http://youtu.be/QCnfAzAIhVw

http://youtu.be/R-KI1D5NPJs

ok two. I am feeling generous