From time to time I leave my happy world of ITA officiating to venture out into the real world of "grass roots tennis"--and boy is it exciting!
Yesterday I had the privilege of working the North Richland Hills Champs tournament and I had the 12 year old girls at my site....
About midway through the afternoon a petite little 12 year old came and found me to ask me to come to her court because her opponent was cheating her. As I stood between two courts mediating the constant flux of bad calls (according to the 12 year olds and their Mothers), I noticed an interesting paradox...
It seems that of the four girls playing on the two courts, three of them were crying every time they would lose a point.
What a great day of officiating junior tennis!
16 comments:
I blame it on the officials. LOL
Btw, what about the parents fighting at Arlington yesterday and the police coming. I bet the officials are to blame there too
Randy, by now you should know never to work anything with participants younger than 16. Maybe 17. No...18. I did the San Antonio Tennis Association Super Champs tournament this weekend and we had the girls 18s and 16s today. Guess what. Crying girls and shrieking mothers... The boys just threw up and cramped. Why would anyone, even a teenage old boy wear all black in a tournament in Texas in July? Oh, right! Teenage boy!
Hopefully Chad Loup will do his thing and ban those parents for at least a year. I'll have to check with him tomorrow...
I've decided from now on I won't do a tournament unless the players DON'T HAVE A MOTHER.
There were 5 ZAT's in Texas this weekend. I worked one of them.
At my site we had 2 age groups. I issued 2 codes for racket abuse. I was never called to court to call lines. There were no scoring disputes. I went on court by choice a couple of times just to "teach" a couple of small points of the rules to players. We issued two lateness penalties and used both as teaching moments for the parents. I met a number of very nice and cordial parents. I met a number of very nice players. A very pleasant day.
These days do still exist in juniors' events.
Personally I would think 2 codes for racket abuse at a ZAT is quite a bit. But then I may not know what I'm talking about...
I too worked a ZAT this weekend... Awesome Parents and Awesome kids - it was fun and MOST IMPORTANT - WE GOT LUNCH!
Randy,
As I have said in the past, I don't mind the kids, it is dealing with the "parents" of the little darlings. I would like a cage, with barbwire to contain them in, till the offspring finish their match.
PS tell Chad, we missed him at the ZAT in Austin.
Nancy Ebersole was our referee this past weekend and she did a great job. She kept us all well-appraised during the rains and most of all--lunch was there right on time! She is to be commended.
Who turned you loose on a bunch of 12 year old girls. We all know how exciting you think women's tennis is.
I might take a tear or two from a 12 year old, but not from a 16 or 18 year old. You could suggest that it was a form of gamesmenship especially if it is delaying the match. Explain the penalty. I bet it would stop. Or my favorite: I have two daughters, tears don't work on me, dry up and play.
As for the shrieking mom. If it is effecting the players, I would explain to mom and both players that shrieker has two choices. Sit down and be quiet or leave the area. Any further shrieking would cause her player a penalty for each time. Do this in a very calm voice explaining that you would prefer the points be played on the court and not coded by the official. I have yet to have a parent either not leave the area or shut their mouths. Be sure to write down the details of the match, so when the parents complain to the Ref, you have the details for Chad. If we all work on this we can educate the parents on how to behave.
I have more problems with dads than moms. Could be because I'm female.
Normally I see more problems from the Mothers. Of course, the last match on Saturday had two dads arguing with each other...
It just makes my Saturday complete.
At my ZAT this weekend, I actually saw opposing parents shaking hands and congratulating each other after their children had completed their match. And then, as if that wasn't enough, I personally witnessed parents congratulating the player who beat their own child! Can you imagine?
What type of message does this send to today's players about sportsmanship? I can't wait for the next ITF event where this type of mushy stuff would never happen.
I did get called to a court two different times with two 12 year old girls playing. I could hear the fathers jawing back and forth in the crowd and after the match they stood and argued with each other. One insisting that the other's daughter was a cheat. At least they didn't start fighting and we didn't have to call the police.
Kind of a sad thing for the kids to witness. The most vocal of the father's (and father of the one who lost) kept muttering loudly on his way out of the site...
I was at the ATC ZAT and saw a boy crying after every point he lost. It wasn't all that loud or bothersome but should we say something to the player in that situation?
RE: crying player
I agree that we do quite a bit of teaching at ZAT's. However, our role is to enforce the rules of tennis. There is nothing in FAC that says a player cannot cry on the court. While it would certainly help the crying player to get this feedback, I'm afraid we become a parent or coach when we do this. Yes, I'm sure its possible for the crying to become a hinderance and in that case we respond accordingly.
I always hesitate to get too involved with a player when they are crying since they probably have a parent in the crowd. Our job is not to deal with crying (unless they are physically injured)so I tend to leave it way way alone...
I get the joys of doing the National 12's in a few weeks, what a joy the sweet little pumpkins can be all the while their parent's eyes turn red.
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