Club Umpire Developer

The role of Club Umpire Developer is vital. In many respects it is the foundation of officiating. Not only do Club Umpire developers find and encourage potential new umpires within their clubs - they also encourage the development of all club umpires by providing support, education and opportunities..

Tips and Suggestions

Knowledge:

A ‘Club Umpire Developer’ Course is run online by England Hockey (search inside the Hockey Hub). You can sign up for this course via the England Hockey website. If you are new to umpire development, it is a good idea to start by enrolling on the course. It will give you the confidence to know that you are doing things the right way.

Further support and assistance is provided by South Central Officiating in a variety of ways.

South Central has its own umpire development website: https://umpiredev.co.uk/. A handy source of information and important documents etc.

There is a weekly forum for Umpires in South Central managed by Ginette Tessier - the South Central Lead Developer for umpires. It is called The ‘Monday Mixer’  and it is for all umpires in South Central. You can bring queries, ask for advice or just listen to the points that other umpires raise. The link for the mixer is at the top right of this website.

The South Central ‘hit squad’ - comprises South Central umpires and umpire developers. The squad will come to ‘your’ club and provide a coaching session for all the club umpires. Obviously this needs a bit of organisation beforehand - for example arranging a suitable match and ensuring sufficient numbers of participants.

You could also ask any of the South Central officiating committee members for advice or assistance.

Finding and Encouraging club umpires :

It is not quick or easy to persuade people to become umpires. You have to work at it and think about how you could introduce people to umpiring at your club. A classic start is to persuade volunteers to umpire very junior hockey matches. For example, you could encourage parents to try - under your support and guidance - to officiate on under 12 matches. You could also try to persuade more senior  hockey players to officiate for younger players or on lower league matches.

You can encourage volunteers by offering financial incentives eg. a reduced/no match fee for umpires.

It is important to give all club umpires recognition and status by, for example, providing a distinctive Club Umpiring Shirt.  Every opportunity should be taken to emphasise the important contribution club umpires make with mentions in weekly round ups, newsletters, annual awards etc

Creating a team spirit among your club umpires is also supportive. Setting up a ‘WhatsApp’ group or something similar gives umpires their own forum. It could be used to discuss ‘issues’ or tricky points, make the weekly appointments, send out useful information or offer praise etc etc.

Developing and Encouraging:

It is supportive for a new or nervous umpire to have a mentor who they can turn to for advice and help. Similarly, every umpire has had a nightmare match that needs post match discussion. So you might consider arranging mentors / supportive partners for every club umpire.

Alongside finding and developing new umpires, your existing experienced club umpires need encouragement and development opportunities. (Obviously, some club umpires might be very happy to stay where they are.) Your club umpires might benefit from a club umpire coaching session. You could consider asking the Hit Squad to your club or use their template to run your own umpire coaching sessions.

It can be helpful to set up a spreadsheet or similar to keep yourself organised. Essentially, you need to list every club umpire  - together with their status - and the type / level of match they are happy to umpire. By doing that you have created a base line of umpiring in your club. The next step - is to think about who could move ‘up’ - or find out who wants to develop - and then think about how to help them. For example, you could do this by appointing an umpire to a slightly harder match while supporting them with a strong colleague. You might also suggest they consider developing their umpiring by taking neutral appointments.

It is also a good idea to make contact with umpire developers at other clubs. You can share ideas, pick their brains and possibly find out something useful to put into action in your club.

If you have found something that worked really well at your club - please do share with the wider community. You can do this by sending the details to the lead club liaison officer.

LeadClubLiaison.Officiating@SouthCentral.Hockey

Remember, if you need support or advice please get in touch with South Central Officiating.