Officials' Corner

What is Officials' Corner?

LABL wanted to provide an area in which current and aspiring basketball officials can access common materials such as existing and recently introduced FIBA Rules, Rule Interpretations, England Basketball National Officiating Conference material and much more.  We also wanted to make sure our officials were aware of upcoming courses, workshops, fitness tests, etc to aid in progress their officiating career.
 
We believe that access to this information is crucial in the understanding and application of basketball rules on the court in league games.

Getting Involved

Passionate about basketball?  Want to get even more involved in the game? Keen to develop confidence, interpersonal skills and game management? Ready to learn the rules of basketball and apply them to real-life game scenarios?  If the answer to all those questions is a resounding "Yes", then read on!

Perhaps you're an active player in the sport and fancy getting more involved? Maybe you're a coach who just wants to understand how the referee sees the game?  Maybe you used to play, and just want to give something back to the sport?  

It really doesn't matter about your background.  From former players to coaches, our pool of referees is diverse.  Whatever your level... perhaps you've never even blown a whistle before!  Perhaps you've never seen a scoresheet in your life.  If you've got the patience and dedication to push yourself, are willing to get involved and are receptive to feedback, then this may be right up your street.

Whether you're keen to blow that whistle or score that match for EB this coming season 2012/13, then officiating LABL is a great way to start your development.




What Can LABL Offer You?

The League is committed to developing basketball officials for the games in which we appoint and providing a high standard of service to those who use us.  LABL boast a wide range of ways to help its officials develop themselves as referees or table officials.  Theses include:
  • Running EB Level 1 Table Officials' Course;
  • Running EB Level 1 & 2 Referees' Course;
  • Running our own Development Programme;
  • Running our own technical workshops with written exams and fitness tests for all basketball officials;
  • Opportunities to officiate League games using 2-person and 3-person mechanics;
  • Informal observer feedback sessions for those who request it;
  • Providing recommendations to EB for Senior League appointments (where appropriate) to enable officials to officiate more challenging games.


Our Appointments Criteria

LABL are particularly keen to help develop and encourage those who are wishing to progress their refereeing career and acumen of basketball officiating. We are therefore wanting to appoint officials to league games in the following descending order of preference:

1. Senior National League referees who have passed both Fitness and Rules test at the National Officiating Conference; however, this does not mean we are going to give all our games to them;

2. Local League Referees who have completed their Level 2 / 3 qualification (ie having passed their written exam and successfully completed the 2 or 3 assessments, confirmed by Simon Unsworth or Alan Richardson);

3. Referees of other status or level although having not attended the National Officiating Conference, or having attended have failed the fitness test or/and rules test, have made efforts to attend our workshop(s) and pass the Fitness and Rules test.


Eligibility to Officiate in LABL

To be eligible to officiate in LABL, the following must apply:

An official must:

    1. hold a valid EB Licence to officiate in Local or National Leagues for that season;
 
    2. not officiate in other basketball leagues in which its players or the league itself is unregistered with EB;   
 
    3. be able to demonstrate a reasonable level of fitness required for all league games appointed;
 
    4. be able to demonstrate an understanding of both the rules of the game and 2-person mechanics.

An official should:

    1. complete their Online Availability Form if they have access to the Internet;

    2. be willing to travel (within reasonable distance) to the venue;

    3. wear the correct uniform (note that the latest EB uniform is not required for Junior EB games);

    3. always arrive on time for all games;

    4. always let the Appointments Officer know immediately if they are unable to officiate in a confirmed game;

    5. regularly check this website for any latest changes or updates to future appointments. 


 
Feedback

We hope you find this area useful - we are happy to receive feedback on what you would like to see here, so if you have any comments or suggestions then please contact us.