What’s the Point? #1

The broad objective of this series of What’s the Point? articles is to improve the standard of refereeing at both a competitive and social level. Content will focus on providing clear explanations on areas of the rules that are generally poorly understood and those areas that are of particular contention. It will look at the two fundamental areas of knowledge of and application of the rules, in the context of correctly judging the situation on court.

Launch Issue – Misplaced frustration and why players should have knowledge of the rules
Its 9 all in the 5th in the semi-finals at SA Nationals. The dreaded interference occurs and Wappo turns around, sure that his opponent will only get a “Yes, Let”. “Stroke to Adrian” is the call that sounds from the referee’s ‘podium of power’. Wappo is so outraged at the decision that he loses his concentration, the game and the match.
Imagine again that it is 9 all in the 5th, but this time its 9am in Pofaddersfontein and Roy and Victor (they’ve played each other every Sunday for the last 8 years) encounter the same situation and resulting frustration as Wappo. For top players, the implications are titles, rankings and prize money whereas to Victor and Roy what’s at stake is pride and competitive social victory (and maybe the round of drinks). Either way, the outcome is important to the players.
“I think you enjoy the game more if you don’t know the rules. Anyway, you’re on the same wavelength as the referees.” Anonymous quote
You would be hard-pressed to find a player who cannot identify with the feelings of helplessness and frustration that arise from what are (often erroneously) perceived as incorrect refereeing decisions. Squash is unique in that it is one of the only sports with two players in a confined space, moving to and from the ball at a fast pace – inevitably resulting in interference. It is this element of interference that causes the frustration and debate. Unfortunately because most players have not read and do not understand the rules (what about you?), they often apply the ‘folk rules’ of squash. These ‘folk rules’ are the result of decades of informal conversations, as opposed to a study of the rules and their interpretation. Also, the reality is that most top players are not good referees and it needs to be understood that the ability to referee does not flow automatically from an ability to play the game – whether socially, at a league or at an advanced level.
How often is the referee’s call ‘wrong’? At Jarvis Cup this year, the 3 referee system was employed with two players as the side referees and a qualified referee as the central referee. The following is a summary of four matches with SA top 15 players as side referees:
 100 decisions were made
 60 calls had all 3 in agreement with each other
 10 calls were made where the referee disagreed with both players
 30 calls were made where the players disagreed with each other
Food for thought!
So, why is it critical that players should know the rules? Knowledge of the rules will have a positive impact on your performance. If you are losing several points per match due to ignorance of the rules, this can be avoided simply by spending some time learning the rules. That’s quick and simple game improvement!
The next issue will give feedback from the World Squash Federation International Referee’s conference in Germany in mid-August that I am attending with Craig Sadler, Lee Pearson and Sven and Cecile van Rie.
I hope you will find this series useful and I look forward to any feedback or suggestions regarding the content of future articles. You can reach me at squash.referee@gmail.com

Cheers, Alex