Ladies Hockey and Umpiring

On open letter to all those involved in the West Women’s Hockey League. Please read it, make any comments you want, and take our poll. Here goes . . . .

From Jamie (President DHA) & Paddy (President (DCHUA)

“I am writing to gain some information from the West Women’s League on the current position regarding rules relating to umpire appointments. As you will know Devon County Hockey Umpires’ Association (DCHUA) is working extremely hard to develop the pool and standard of umpires in the county. This approach has the full support of Devon Hockey Association (DHA) with whom a strong partnership continues to be developed to support the development of the game at all levels.

Currently the differences between the men’s and womens’ leagues with regards to rules relating to the appointment of umpires is causing some serious problems, which will get worse in the coming years. I know that the concerns of DCHUA have been raised on a number of occasions but they have not received any response on the situation as promised regarding their paper ‘UMPIRING – A JOINT APPROACH’.

Here are the concerns from DCHUA and DHA - which will have a major impact on the Women’s game in the county and region in the coming seasons if the current position remains.
As DCHUA moves forward with their ‘Reinvigorating Devon Umpiring’ Campaign, now in its 3rd year, all the umpires the ladies teams used to call on will be used within the men’s games (as DCHUA offer these umpires mentoring and support). Therefore DCHUA will start to appoint to lower men’s leagues and hopefully in a few years time all the men’s games will have DCHUA appointed umpires. The consequence of this is that the ladies teams will struggle even more than they struggle now to get umpires. The West can’t even appoint to Ladies Premier 1 & 2 at the minute as they are extremely short; they have to ask DCHUA to help out!!! So the ladies teams in Devon will struggle wither and die. If there are no qualified umpires available of a suitable standard it will cause major problems for the league, and clubs will get fined under the current rules! This cycle of events will cause major problems for the development of the game in the region.

There is no way DCHUA can appoint umpires to ladies games when at the last minute they can be overridden; it’s not as if DCHUA (or other County HUAs) have lots of spare umpires lying round twiddling their thumbs!!! And another problem is that some ladies clubs don’t actually have any umpires associated with them. And after DCHUA culls all the inactive umpires on 1st September the situation will get worse. The ladies clubs also need to start getting club umpires qualified. Apart from the student sides there are very few ladies doing Level One umpire courses.

DCHUA & DHA REALLY WANT to support ladies clubs in Devon with the appointment and development of umpiring.

Please can you update me on the current position relating to the issues raised above in order for DHA and DCHUA to support its member clubs and umpires?”

A point that is often made on this issue was made in a reply from an interested party . . . .

“I'm confused by this email as there is nothing in the Women's League rules about appointed umpires.”

> Start – Ladies Umpire Rules
8.a.i) that umpires for all matches in the Premier and Area Divisions and Divisions 1 of each Regional League shall be currently listed on either the EH Level One Register of Umpires or on a higher EH Umpiring Register.
ii) Umpires for matches in Division 2 and below of each Regional League shall preferably hold a qualification as in i), and if not, shall be a probationer (Level One Candidate) umpire who has passed the written umpiring exam........
b) Umpires for matches in the Premier Divisions shall be appointed by the WHA sub committee where possible. ALL other teams shall be responsible for arranging for an umpire of the correct standard...
> End – Ladies Umpire Rules

“There is nothing in the League Rules that states that Counties cannot appoint umpires (as they do in Cornwall)...the problem is more that the Devon Women's Clubs are not 'buying in' to the appointment of umpires and therefore the question should be addressed to Women's Clubs and not the League.”

A reply from Paddy (President DCHUA) . . . .

“Perhaps I can clarify the points I am trying, and have been trying for over 2 years, to make.

The point often made (and it is valid and correct), “There is nothing in the League Rules that states that Counties cannot appoint umpires” is actually the problem. What I am saying is that “There SHOULD be something in the League Rules that states that Counties CAN (if they wish) appoint umpires in priority to clubs”.

League:
Men & Ladies; Premier 1 & 2; West HUA
Men; Below Premier 1 & 2; County HUA then Clubs
Ladies; Below Premier 1 & 2; Clubs

“Now where is the County HUA mentioned in the Ladies League Umpire rules? Well, er, nowhere!!!

> Start – Mens Umpire Rules
8.1 Qualified umpires
a) No League match shall be played without two qualified umpires, save as provided in Rule 8.1(b).
b) Umpires must be members of an appropriate Regional Umpires' Association and be qualified to at least Level 1, however, in the District Divisions, one umpire is allowed to be in the process of obtaining his/her Level 1 qualification.
8.2 Appointed umpires
a) An “appointed” umpire is an umpire appointed to a League match by the WHUC, the SWHUA or a County HUA who may require a qualification above Level 1.
b) It is the responsibility of clubs to request appointments of the appropriate body, notify appointed umpires of the match arrangements under Rule 5.1(b) and make payment of any fees for appointed umpires.
8.3 Where not both umpires are appointed, the following shall apply:
a) 1 appointed umpire: Home club provides the other qualified umpire.
b) No appointed umpire: Home club provides two qualified umpires unless, at least 7 days’ prior to the match, agreement has been reached with the away side that they will provide one or both qualified umpires. The away club may also elect to provide one qualified umpire provided it gives the Home side at least 3 days notice
8.4 If an appointed or club umpire fails to arrive by the start time or a club umpire is not provided under Rule 8.3 the following shall apply:
a) Appointed umpire is absent: Start may be delayed by 15 minutes; if still absent, a “temporary” umpire qualified to at least Level 1 may take his place with the agreement of the other umpire and the two captains. If no such agreement is possible or no suitably qualified person available, the match shall not count as a League match. If a “temporary” umpire is a player from one of the teams, which thereby reduces the number of players available to it on the pitch, the other team shall withdraw one of its own players from the pitch, otherwise the player shall withdraw from the squad. Both the “temporary” umpire and withdrawn player may resume playing at the same time as soon as the absent umpire arrives and takes over from the “temporary” umpire.
b) Club umpire is absent: The absent umpire’s club’s team shall withdraw a player who is qualified within Rule 8.1 to act as “temporary” umpire. The opposing team shall not have to withdraw a player. The “temporary” umpire may resume playing as soon as the absent umpire arrives and takes over from him.
c) A “temporary” umpire must not be part of rolling substitutions with players and must not be replaced at half-time by a player who has participated in the first half of the game.
8.5 Penalties for breach of Rule 8
a) The lack of an appointed, or club, umpire is not grounds for postponement. Clubs are expected to have sufficient umpires to support their teams. If appointed umpires are withdrawn at short notice, then the Area Secretary MUST be consulted immediately if this causes a problem.
b) If a match is not played for lack of an appointed or club umpire and either club is found to be at fault, the Area Secretary may, inter alia, impose a fine, award the match, deduct points or order the match replayed under such conditions as he/she may deem appropriate.
c) If a match is played with a “temporary” umpire and either club is found at fault for the absence of an appointed or club umpire, the Area Secretary may impose a fine on the offending club.
> End – Mens Umpire Rules

So the ladies’ clubs can, if they want, ask the County HUA to appoint. So Plymouth Ladies’ 3rds are playing at home to Bristol Ladies’ 3rds. So who appoints? The club but Plymouth asks DCHUA for 2 umpires. DCHUA appoint, with a mentor in support, for the game in 2 weeks’ time. Everyone is set. The night before the game Bristol turns round and says, “Oh, by the way we’re bringing one of our own umpires down as per the league rules.” DCHUA has to remove an umpire at the last minute (as the league rules do not give us authority to override the club’s appointment). It is then too late to reappoint them elsewhere – what a waste of a valuable umpiring resource (but then we have loads of spare umpires just lying around anyway)! So Bristol comes down with their ‘pet’ umpire. They may be brilliant (if so why aren’t they umpiring up in Bristol where they could do 2 games perhaps), or they may be atrocious (claims of bias are levelled, tempers flare, etc.). So who wins out of this? Plymouth (unlikely), Bristol (probably), DCHUA (definitely not), hockey (unlikely). The reverse is equally true, just in case Bristol think I have it in for them!

I could go on but why bother? Hockey has common rules so why can’t the leagues have common rules (especially in relation to umpires)?

Devon Ladies’ clubs had better get their act together otherwise there won’t be any ladies’ league hockey in Devon. The Ladies League needs to gets their act together also. Take a look at the DCHUA website and observe how many Men are umpiring for the Ladies (in percentage terms quite a few). How many Ladies in the Men’s (hardly any). The following are the facts (of course some umpires are on both Men’s and Ladies panels so the figures should be read in that context):”

Panel:
West (Men’s Panel); 3 Men; 1 Lady
West (Ladies Panel); 4 Men; 2 Ladies
Total; 7 Men; 3 Ladies
“So, we have more Men umpiring Ladies hockey than Women!!! So to paraphrase Bonny Tyler’s hit song ‘Holding out for a Hero’, ‘Where have all the good women gone?’”

Panel:
DCHUA Neutral Pool (Men’s Panel); 43 Men; 0 Ladies
DCHUA Neutral Pool (Ladies Panel); 20 Men; 3 Ladies
Total; 63 Men; 3 Ladies
“On dear, not many ladies umpiring in the Neutral Pool so no-one to go up into the West! Now we can see why the West Ladies appointments are in ‘a spot of bother’!!! Poor Peter Lovell (don’t know if he has any hair but I imagine it’s all on the floor by now)!”

Panel:
Level One Candidates; 25 Men; 27 Ladies
Active Qualified Club; 89 Men; 53 Ladies
Total; 114 Men; 80 Ladies
“Some good news at last! There are more ladies than men in a category. But actually the good news isn’t quite that for the ladies. Most of these are students from the University of Plymouth & Exeter. They are here for 3 years and then they go away again. Strip out the students and, oh dear, the women are struggling once more. The ‘strip’ wasn’t a pun by the way.”

Overall Numbers:
180 Men; 86 Ladies
“As previously stated there is some cross over in terms of numbers but I think we can see a pattern?"

"So, is the West able to appoint to Premier 1 & 2 games as per the league rules? For the men mostly. On the women’s side they are really struggling. DCHUA were asked on several occasions to help out the men and the ladies last season and we did (we helped the ladies 5 times and the men once I believe). So the ladies clubs (and the league I imagine) are happy for DCHUA to help out when the West can’t provide umpires but they don’t want to be bothered at the lower levels. What if DCHUA turned round and told the West to get stuffed? Or we said yes and charged £20 per umpire instead of £7.50 (our rate for 2007/2008). Maybe then we would see some action in relation to the league rules. Is that what DCHUA has to do? I hope not.

And so to the lady club umpire (let’s call her Pippa), umpiring her club team week in, week out. Pippa isn’t getting any mentoring or support. Pippa is stagnating away. There is no-one to push Pippa up into the West (if that what Pippa wants). No one to help Pippa improve her umpiring skills and confidence (even if all she wants to do is umpire for her club). Pippa lets her friend Rachael get away with those occasional bad stickles tackles every now and again because they are best mates and go clubbing every Saturday night. Pippa won’t even dare give a decision against Rose who has a bit of a lip on her (Rose scares Pippa who only wants an easy life). Rose knows that she can influence/bully Pippa with a few choice words, influencing Pippa’s umpiring decisions and even getting Pippa to reverse a few decisions every now and again (especially the ones that lead to goals for the opposition). And to cap it all the clubs don’t even seem to be putting players through the Level One Umpire Courses (well apart for the Universities). Did you know that one Devon Ladies Hockey Club doesn’t have ANY qualified affiliated umpires? They do, however, have two Level One Candidates who did the Level One Umpire Course in May 2005 and still haven’t qualified in the 2 years since! On 1st September these so called ‘umpires’ will be removed from their association with this Devon Ladies Club and then they won’t have anyone at all. Will they be asking DCHUA for umpires?”

It’s an old NLP adage but “If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got.”

“So what has Devon Ladies Hockey ‘got’ and what is the future? I want to solve the problem by working with all interested parties. DHA and DCHUA are both committed to supporting the ladies teams in Devon. In 2007/2008 our Umpire Course Co-ordinator will be working on new umpire courses and our Chief Coach on mentoring. In particular we want to target the ladies and young umpires (if they’re interested).

It would be nice if those involved in the ladies game (inside and outside Devon) could get off the fence, think about the good of hockey and help DHA and DCHUA in a similar way. However if no-one in the ladies side can see past the end of their own nose, then they won’t be able to see the brick wall that, I believe, ladies’ hockey is hurtling towards at breakneck speed (it’s a BIG wall and boy is it going to hurt bad when you all hit it).

So why don’t we all meet up for a drink and toast the demise of ladies hockey in Devon. We could dig a hole and bury all those who can’t be bothered to do anything concrete, including some of the ladies clubs in Devon. Finally we could put a headstone on the grave with the inscription, ‘Here lies Devon Ladies Hockey. Killed by self-interest, apathy and a lack of vision (and a BIG wall)!”’

There, I feel better now!”

I welcome any comments you want to make. Take our poll.

Plymouth Mixed Summer League – Success or Failure?

The PMSL is now over and is slowly slipping into the annals of history. Thanks Tina for all your efforts, but what about the experiment of DCHUA appointing umpires for the first time.

Yes there was 1 Red (persistent dissent - see Blog on 'Umpire Abuse') and 21 Yellow cards out of over 110 games. But 5 Level One Candidates qualified so congratulations to them. Also a massive amount of umpire mentoring went on with existing Level One ‘Club’ Umpires and other Level One Candidate umpires.

So was it a success or a failure? I want to hear from you. If you played for a team or umpired or just have an opinion then Blog your feelings and let me know what you REALLY think.

Paddy

Umpire Abuse

DCHUA introduced a zero tolerance approach to ‘Umpire Abuse’ when I became President in May 2005. At first the levels of abuse dropped (as the yellow card count increased) but there is some anecdotal evidence to suggest that it is slowly returning. But is ‘umpire abuse’ just part of the game? Would it be tolerated in the work place? Is it legitimate or inexcusable? Should it be tolerated or stamped on? Opinions please? In this instance anonymous posts will not be allowed (Ed; should that not be ‘tolerated’). If you’ve something to say then at least have the courage to put your name to it and your position in the game (e.g. player, umpire, spectator, etc.).

Paddy

Inactive Umpire Update

Inactive umpires are starting to be removed from the public areas of the association website. If inactive, for what ever reason (e.g. retired from umpiring, moved away from Devon, haven’t done the required games with a valid reason, etc.) then the umpires name is no longer listed on any of the public pages. Once an ‘inactive’ umpire has been ‘reactivated’ then their name will be listed once more. On being made inactive any association with a club is also removed meaning the club involved has one less associated umpire.

To date 22 umpires have been removed from the website.

This is likely to RISE SUBSTANTIALLY on 1st September, our deadline day for all remaining inactive umpires and umpires who have failed to be assessed for Level One within 12 months of passing their examination (currently about 30/40 overall).

Remember, leagues rules state that BOTH umpires for league games must be qualified (certain exemptions apply for a few lower leagues where 1 qualified and 1 awaiting assessment umpire is allowed).

I know that this year we will see an even tougher attitude from the leagues, possibly leading to bigger fines and point deductions in extreme cases.

If you want to comment then please do so here . . .

Paddy

New Joint Devon Website

DCHUA has found the interactive website, designed by David ‘Tex’ Lane of Tex Solutions (http://www.texsolutions.ltd.uk/), to be absolutely invaluable in the efficient running and administration of the umpire association. The website has been up and running for a year now and it a vital part of the ‘Reinvigorating Devon Umpiring' (RDU) campaign.

Now Devon Hockey Association (DHA) has also invested in a Tex Solutions website and for 2007/8 both DCHUA and DHA will be totally integrated on the web. This is in the process of being implemented and tested now and will be fully operational within the next few weeks. This will have massive benefits to the administration of both associations but will also help clubs and umpires manage their information better.

The whole aim of the joint Devon Hockey Website is to allow the clubs and umpires to take responsibility for their own information, keeping it up to date as their circumstances change. This allows one central information store instead of there being lots of different and conflicting sources of information. Information updated on the new joint website will be reflected across both associations.

Clubs can link into the information on the Devon website and reduce duplication on their own websites. Why reinvent the egg! The moment information is entered on the Devon Hockey website it is instantly updated.

The joint website is just another piece in the new Devon Hockey jigsaw that will see Devon Hockey move forward over the next few years.

Paddy

The New Season Approaches

DCHUA has its committee meeting next Monday and we are getting ready for the 2007/8 season. The aim this forthcoming season is to concentrate on providing club umpires with mentoring support to improve their skills and hence provide higher standards of umpiring in Devon (and beyond).

To date DCHUA has identified 21 ‘Inactive’ umpires, with a further 65 level One Candidates undergoing training.

A deadline of 1st September 2007 was set some time ago (extended from 30th April 2007) for inactive umpires to get qualified. Several have used the summer leagues to do. Some candidate umpires have also used these leagues to get qualified.

However, on 1st September the number of inactive umpires is going to jump dramatically. In future years on 30th April all Level One Umpires who have failed to umpire the required number of games and record them with DCHUA, as required by England Hockey, will be automatically marked as INACTIVE.

It is the responsibility of the Level One Umpire to prove their activity and notify DCHUA and not the duty of DCHUA to chase umpires who have failed to maintain their active status.

I hope you all have a good season.



Paddy


Games Not Recorded = Inactive = Removal of Active Level One Status