FHumpires.com
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Revised FIH Outdoor Umpires Briefing Released
June 17 2011
Along with the major overhaul to the FIH website, the Umpiring Committee has released “V2” of the 2011 FIH Outdoor Umpires Briefing.
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Day Five at the 2011 Indoor World Cup
February 13 2011
I finished up my 2011 Indoor World Cup in Poznan with the classification match for 11th and 12th place between the United States and Namibia. My colleague Roel van Eert of the Netherlands and I were at the pitch very early for a 9:30 start. This was made all the more difficult from a late night reception we attended hosted by the Mayor of Poznan and the local sport and hockey officials.
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Day Four at the 2011 Indoor World Cup
February 13 2011
The match I saw on day 4 was between Australia and Namibia, again on pitch 2. The treat would be paired with a long time friend of mine, Gus Soteriades of the United States. Gus and I were roomed together for the very first tournament I ever left Canada for in Jamaica in 1999. We became fast friends and look forward to meeting up at tournaments when the opportunity arises.
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Day Three at the 2011 IWC
February 11 2011
On the third day of competition the pools start to take their shape. Results, while always important, lead teams either to the semi-finals or classification. Every inch of ground, every penalty corner and every decision becomes more crucial. The challenge for the umpire is to maintain the level of consistency and not get caught up in the emotions of the moment.
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Day Two at the 2011 IWC
February 11 2011
On day two I had just the one appointment: Namibia vs. The Netherlands. My game plan going in was to take the comments from Ray the day before and put them into action. Being more proactive and anticipating play rather than reacting to it.
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Day One at the Indoor World Cup
February 09 2011
My first match of the Indoor World Cup was between European Champions Austria and upstart Iran. The grand scale of this tournament is evident in the enormous hall that will be our host for the next 6 days. Despite what could become an overwhelming situation I was feeling very confident and calm going down to the pitch surface.
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Congratulations, Nov. Upgrades!
December 02 2010
A hearty congratulations to all of the November FIH Upgrades:
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We Know Turf Hurts - Now There’s Proof
November 30 2010
We’ve all felt that umpiring (and obviously playing) on turf is harder on our joints that old-school natural grass, but now you can point to a study to prove it. A former college football wide receiver and now orthopedic surgeon is studying the comparative strain put on knee joints by different shoes and surfaces and found that Astroturf puts 80% more strain on the knee than grass, and “next-gen surfaces” are 45% more stressful.
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16th Asian Games in Guangzhou, China
November 15 2010
This is my fourth international tournament of 2010; definitely my busiest year as an umpire. It seems fitting that the last tournament is the most grand. The Asian Games are second in size and sports only to the Olympic Games, and the opening ceremonies were a vivid reminder of that.
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Finishing Strong
October 13 2010
With the games almost over and the final appointments handed out I reflect on my first world level event and the things that made it the experience of a life time.
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Getting It Right
October 09 2010
One of the most difficult things anybody can do is bounce back after a sub-par performance. When you are able to accomplish it, however, the sense of relief is liberating.
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When Things Don’t Go As Planned
October 06 2010
When I write for this site the articles are generally very positive. This is not one of those entries. I am posting it so that those who read it can learn from a very painful and personal experience from my time at the Commonwealth Games.
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CWG: 5 tips that helped me travel to Delhi
October 05 2010
Travelling to tournaments is part and parcel when you are an umpire. If you travel abroad the trip can have adverse affects on your performance. Here are just a few tips to help you be ready for your matches that have been useful to me here in Delhi.
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The Commonwealth Games: Career Highlight
October 03 2010
When you umpire hockey as long as I have you dream of umpiring top level hockey; to be on the pitch for something really big and important to everyone involved. I have had the good fortune to umpire some fairly big games, at least for those playing in them.
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Pan Am Indoor Cup - Day 7: The Finals
August 15 2010
When you travel to tournaments as an umpire you want to do as many games as you can, do a good job and have fun (on and off the pitch). There are always challenges, and if you’ve been reading my posts from Venezuela you will be aware of them.
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Pan Am Indoor Cup - Day 6
August 14 2010
Day 6 was the longest day of the tournament with semi-final and qualification matches on both the men’s and women’s sides. When all was said and done 11 straight hours of hockey was played. Let’s just say I don’t envy the Umpire’s Manager his job, especially when he is on his own.
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Pan Am Indoor Cup - Day 5
August 13 2010
Last day of pool play can bring some interesting challenges to the umpiring crew of any tournament. This can be particularly so if the teams in any pool are too close to call. The last day can be the deciding day of who plays who in the semi-finals.
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Pan Am Indoor Cup - Day 4
August 13 2010
Today’s entry begins with a recap of last night’s meeting where we discussed how things were going and what to be wary of going into the final days of the tournament. It was agreed that our management of drilling had improved but still had a way to go, more so on the women’s side than the mens. There were also two points raised about players running behind the goal when defending a penalty corner as well as on offence, and kicking backs using a goalkeeper’s glove when defending penalty corners.
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Pan Am Indoor Cup 2010 - Day 2 & 3
August 11 2010
Drilling and the Danger that results
Day 2 was a short day with only 3 men’s games being played. The good thing about that was that anything we discussed at our first day meeting could easily be implemented and monitored. The main area we wanted to be better on was the drilled ball (in a previous post I described drilling as a dangerous play whereby the player with the ball pushes it with considerable force into an opponent at close range, either to relieve pressure or cause the opponent to commit a foul).
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Pan Am Indoor Cup - Day One
August 10 2010
The start of any tournament is eagerly anticipated by everyone, and for the umpires I think doubly so. Players like to play but umpires want to make sure they do a great job right out of the gate. There is an added challenge when you are umpiring teams you have never seen before on a surface you are not accustomed to. This was the case for us on day one of the Pan Am Indoor Cup 2010.
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Pan Am Indoor Cup 2010 - the Umpire’s Briefing
August 10 2010
The umpire’s briefing for this tournament was a lengthy one. With the exception of one umpire (Gus Soteriades of the US) none of the umpires had done any indoor matches since February or March, so it was good to discuss the subtle nuances of the indoor game.
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WCQ Kazan Day 8: Third Game
April 23 2010
Third game, yet again the first match of the day. I think there may be a pattern here. This time I was lucky enough to draw Lisa Roach as a colleague.
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WCQ Kazan Day 7: Rest Day #2
April 22 2010
Wednesday has brought about our second rest day of the tournament. It seems like we’re having a lot of rest here, but it’s a function of the structure of a qualifying event like this. With only 6 teams competing and FIH rules which limit consecutive days of games to two, there’s going to be a lot of time off.
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WCQ Kazan Day 6: Second Game
April 21 2010
For the second consecutive time, I was on the first game of the day. Keeping in mind my feedback from the first game, I was determined to sort out the positioning errors and at least get that part together properly. I was also very excited to umpire for the first time with Kang who I’d been at the JWC with last summer.
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WCQ Kazan Day 5: Rest Day #1
April 20 2010
Rest days are such a conundrum. We’ve been resting, meeting, preparing, eating and sleeping so much between the games over the last two days, we’re so anxious to get out into the world that we find ways to earn air quotes around “rest day”.
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WCQ Kazan Day 4: First Game
April 19 2010
It’s been stressed to me countless times by UMs and other mentors: you must have a great first game at a tournament. It’s your first impression with your UM, TD and the teams. That game will largely dictate how the rest of your tournament will go in terms of appointments and whether you’ll get further chances to show what you can do in big games.
This was not the start I was looking for.
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WCQ Kazan Day 3: Opening Day
April 18 2010
The appointments were handed out on Thursday afternoon so I knew early that I wasn’t on the first day of matches, just reserving the middle game of the three. For some umpires, this can be tough to deal with, especially after the Great Wait that we experience at these events. For me, I’ve learned to make the best of it and I just had recent experience where it worked out very well, so I felt good today watching the teams take the pitch for the first time.
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WCQ Kazan Days 1-2: The Great Wait
April 17 2010
Tournaments are a mental grind. Sometimes I wonder if umpiring the games is actually the easiest part - after all, we all have a lot of practise and preparation in doing that - but everything else is more of a challenge.
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An interview with Craig Madden, Umpire’s Manager from Scotland.
March 02 2010
When I was recently at the Eurohockey Indoor Club Champion’s Trophy in Vienna, Austria, I had the great pleasure to sit down with Craig Madden of Scotland. I asked him about his role as Umpire’s Manager as well as the unique challenges that face umpires in the indoor game.
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Why I Umpire
February 18 2010
As I write this my flight to Vienna has just crossed the English Channel and the sun is rising on the horizon racing to meet us. The villages and cities of France pass below with the criss-cross of their street lights marking them. The tournament is two days away and I feel a surge of emotion as I get closer to my destination that compels me to pull out my lap top and write these words. There is something ever so humbling seeing the world from 12,000 meters, and I am reminded how small I am in the grand scheme of things. I think of all the places I’ve seen as a direct result of traveling to tournaments and the effect it has had on me.
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How to have fun umpiring: 5 tips to enjoy the toughest job in sports.
February 06 2010
We’ve all been there. No matter how hard you try, the players are on your back, each decision is being questioned by both sides and you are not having fun. By the end of the match you just want to sign the game sheet and leave the pitch as quickly as possible and without incident. You then spend the rest of the evening going over in your mind what you should have done, what you’d like to have said, and how much you dislike umpiring those types of games.
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Welcome to Playing Advantage!
February 01 2010
It is here.
Today is the day we officially launch our website and the inaugural episode of Playing Advantage, the podcast for umpires, by umpires.
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Canada vs. India, the latest chapter in my umpiring career
January 31 2010
This blog post was originally published on John’s Random Thoughts Blog in the fall of 2009.
The day was perfect for hockey. The rain that had fallen steadily for 4 days let off in the morning, and though the skies were overcast the temperature was comfortable. A tempest looked to be brewing to the west and the north, reflecting the serious mood of the participants but staying away so as not to mar the game.
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Hamish Jamson Back on the World Panel
January 29 2010
Via England’s NPUA website, great news that Hamish Jamson has been promoted to the World Panel.
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FIH Umpire Managers Seminar in New Delhi
January 28 2010
From WorldHockey, news that an FIH UM seminar will be held at the Hero Honda FIH Men’s World Cup in March.
