Head Referee

For all games:

• Contact the other assigned referee(s) prior to the game - discuss decorum, participating teams, points of focus.

• If an incident occurs, submit (or assist the involved official in submitting) the Incident Reporting Form at the completion of the game. These incidents would include a red card administered to a player or coach, yellow cards, misconducts, serious injuries and protests. If in doubt about reporting an incident, err on the conservative side and notify the supervisor of officials.

• A protest can be filed any time during a game by a team’s coach. A protest that is filed during a game should be resolved immediately. A coach may also file a protest any time within 5 minutes of the conclusion of a game. Protests are resolved by a referees, with consultation from the Head of Officials. As the head referee for the games/tournament, you should be available to participate in and/or arbitrate (if necessary) the decisions regarding any protest(s).

• Before the initial game, verify the presence of a site director - head coach, aquatic/pool director, etc. - who can be a primary contact for correcting facility issues and for ensuring crowd decorum and verify with the site director that there is appropriate medical staff (e.g. school athletic trainer) present.

• Be a resource for less experienced referees to help develop the refereeing quality.

For tournaments:

• Contact the referees assigned to the tournament to find out their availability. Notify conference assigner immediately if a referee is unable to attend a tournament.

• Once you receive a copy of the game schedule, make the referees’ game schedule. Send the information to the referees and copy the supervisor of officials and host team head coach on this email.

• Absent extraordinary circumstances, you should be present for all games played during a tournament. As the head referee, you should be available at all times to coordinate any protests and clarify any interpretations of the rules.

• At the conclusion of the tournament, determine what each referee should be paid for the tournament — including “travel” if appropriate. Information on game fees and travel compensation can be found on the compensation page. Forward this information to the tournament host (i.e. head coach or athletic director) and copy the Supervisor of Officials.

• Report immediately by phone to the supervisor of officials any serious incidents that occur during a game. Additionally, the Incident Reporting Form should be completed immediately. These incidents would include a red card administered to a player or coach, yellow cards, misconducts, serious injuries and protests. If in doubt about reporting an incident, err on the conservative side and notify the supervisor of officials.