By Tylah
Growing up with a family so heavily into netball, becoming an umpire was always a goal of mine. I began my training as an umpire at 13 years old, completing my level 1 online course to enable me to begin training to become a C badge umpire.
I was badged by the time I turned 14 which is quite unusual, as it is more common to be a trainee for a year and then move on to becoming an assistant for about 6 months before working towards your badge.
Being badged at such a young age took a lot of commitment and hard work. I was umpiring two nights inside at FDNA as well as on Saturdays before and after I played. When I was told one Friday that I was going to be tested for my C badge on the next Monday night, It is fair to say that I was extremely nervous. Gaining my C-Badge required me to umpire 2 A grade games in a row. Before the games I ensured I read over my notes that I had received from supervisors over the past year to make sure that was as prepared as possible. After the second game when I received my badge, I was very happy and proud of myself and a little bit relieved).
One of the things that I wish I knew before starting umpiring was the size of the commitment required. I certainly needed to push myself and listen to every bit of feedback from supervisors. Umpiring seemed so easy when I was a player, and I was not quite prepared for and aware of what I was walking in to. However, my mindset quickly switched over to working hard to improve my skills and committing to receive my C badge so I could umpire with confidence and earn some money being around the sport I love.
The best part about umpiring is the opportunity to umpire high standard games such as the Peninsula Waves Championship selections. Being able to umpire such talented players makes your job so much more enjoyable. I also really enjoy umpiring younger kids like the under 9’s and 11’s because you become a mentor for them while they are learning the game. Being able to teach young kids the game of netball and watching them improve over the years is very rewarding, and also teaches them that umpires aren’t the bad guys, and they need them to play.
Some of my tips when umpiring is to make sure you watch players once they land with the ball from the feet and work up (not watching the ball like a player would). This way you are able to pick up stepping, obstructions and most often contact due to their body shape being changed. Another tip is if you are hesitant with a call, just call it. if its’ wrong, its wrong, but after the game you can speak with your co-umpire or supervisor and confirm the rule or the issue that you may have questioned. Always use your court supervisors to confirm any rules or questions, that’s what they are there for so utilise them!
The best advice I could give from being an umpire would be that while training you must listen to everything your supervisor and supporting umpires are feeding back to you and always back up your co-umpires and support them through the game.
While it is inevitable, and unfortunate is that you will be exposed to some bad behaviour and inappropriate comments and/or language during some games. The most important thing you can do is not take it to heart and realise that without you the game could not have gone on. If anything like this happens remain affirmative and strong and fall back on your knowledge and rulebook. At the end of the day, it’s a game of netball and you are human. Humans make mistakes, and any mistake is not the end of the world so keep your chin up, brush it off and go on with your day.