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TALENT GROUP REFEREES VISIT WARWICK

Thirteen Talent Group Referees were invited to Warwick for the recent Select Group meeting

Thirteen Talent Group Referees were invited to Warwick for the recent Select Group meeting, the group was made up of eight national list and five panel list referees.

Once the introductions were over it was time for a Speed and Agility training session with Matt Weston and sports scientist Simon Breivik.

After lunch the group were introduced to Sports Psychologist Professor Ian Maynard, of Sheffield University for a session on Communication and Teamwork. The Talent Group referees were encouraged to speak up and join in the discussion and debate and their opinions were respectfully received by their senior colleagues.

Next up was a session presented by Lee Probert, who himself was part of the Talent Group until his elevation to the Select Group at the start of last season. Lee used DVD clips from ProZone to illustrate the thinking and processes senior referees go through when determining whether a challenge is careless (free kick only), reckless (caution) or endangering the safety of an opponent (sending off).

The Select Group referees were willing to explain in detail how the decisions were determined and attention was also drawn to the body language adopted by the Referee to assist in selling his decision. Both groups of referees constructively evaluated the decisions made in the clips offering opinion on alternative options.

The Talent Group then had the benefit of a session dedicated specifically to them by Ian Maynard concentrating on how the referee can refocus and maintain his concentration after a major event in a game i.e. a mass confrontation or a sending off. This proved interesting as the younger referees in the group were able to listen to the more experienced referees describing the methods that they utilise.

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