Youth, Senior Officials Take Part in Referee Workshop

Youth, Senior Officials Take Part in Referee Workshop

[December 23, 2019 – Harmon, Guam] Close to three-dozen youth and senior referees took part in a year-ending workshop to take the first step in developing a new, long-term strategic plan for referee development in Guam at the Guam Football Association National Training Center Saturday.

Referees were split into four groups to create lists of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in local referee development and later to prioritize each listed item based on importance. Five of the top items were selected to brainstorm short-term, mid-term, or long-term strategies to continue improving the state of Guam-based officials.

Particularly with youth referee development, supported in large part by Japan Football Association, improvements requested include increasing the current number of practical referee training courses at GFA and also to work more closely with senior referees to gain experience.

In 2019, over 3,300 matches were officiated by 75 referees. While the number of matches continues to grow with the introduction of additional leagues and tournaments, the number of referees had decreased from the year before. Discussions about probable reasons for the disproportion include not enough referees staying in the program due to verbal abuse and attacks from spectators, coaches, and players, and other issues, including out-of-pocket expenses for transportation and other equipment required.

At the conclusion of the workshop, the most active male and female referees at the senior and youth levels in 2019 were recognized with $150 each in gift certificate prizes from East Island Tinting and Paradise Auto Spa.

The most active male and female referees at the senior level were James Oh and Royanne Salas, respectively. The most active male and female referees at the youth level were Joshua Bamba and Autumn Yatar, respectively.

All other referees at the workshop received $50 gift certificates from either East Island Tinting or Paradise Auto Spa.

Additionally, top center referees and top potential center referees selected by the GFA Referees Department were presented with new Macron referee flags for use during matches.

Results from the workshop will be presented to the GFA Executive and Referee Committee.

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James Oh, the most active senior level male referee of 2019, receives East Island Tinting and Paradise Auto Spa gift certificates from East Island Tinting and North Island Tinting General Manager Tom Roberto during the 2019 Year-End Referees Seminar held Saturday at the Guam Football Association National Training Center Lecture Hall. Photo by Jill Espiritu/GFA.

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Royanne Salas, the most active senior level female referee of 2019, receives East Island Tinting and Paradise Auto Spa gift certificates from East Island Tinting and North Island Tinting General Manager Tom Roberto during the 2019 Year-End Referees Seminar held Saturday at the Guam Football Association National Training Center Lecture Hall. Photo by Jill Espiritu/GFA.

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Joshua Bamba, the most active youth male referee of 2019, receives East Island Tinting and Paradise Auto Spa gift certificates from East Island Tinting and North Island Tinting General Manager Tom Roberto during the 2019 Year-End Referees Seminar held Saturday at the Guam Football Association National Training Center Lecture Hall. Photo by Jill Espiritu/GFA.

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Aya Cathey, center, in red, leads a group discussion during the 2019 Year-End Referees Seminar held Saturday at the Guam Football Association National Training Center Lecture Hall. Photo by Jill Espiritu/GFA.

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Jack Kido, in white, listens in a group discussion during the 2019 Year-End Referees Seminar held Saturday at the Guam Football Association National Training Center Lecture Hall. Photo by Jill Espiritu/GFA.

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Guam Football Association Director of Referees George Stewart speaks to referees during the 2019 Year-End Referees Seminar held Saturday at the GFA National Training Center Lecture Hall. Photo by Jill Espiritu/GFA.

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Cason Jackson, center, leads a group brainstorming session during the 2019 Year-End Referees Seminar held Saturday at the Guam Football Association National Training Center Lecture Hall. Photo by Jill Espiritu/GFA.

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Guam Football Association Executive Director Cheri Stewart distributes Macron flags to selected youth center referees and potential center referees during the 2019 Year-End Referees Seminar held Saturday at the GFA National Training Center Lecture Hall. Photo by Jill Espiritu/GFA.