Shepp News |
Umpiring really is everyone’s business this weekend.
Goulburn Valley Football Umpires’ Association will be in the limelight this week for all the right reasons, with the GVFL dedicating round nine to the Umpiring Is Everyone’s Business campaign.
With the umpire’s association struggling for numbers this season, president Darren Meek said the round was a fantastic opportunity for umpiring to be cast in a positive light.
‘‘It’s really important for our association and all our members to get this recognition,’’ Meek said.
‘‘The game isn’t about us, it’s about the players, but it’s important that umpires are recognised and appreciated for the job they do.
‘‘More importantly, though, it’s important to put umpiring in the spotlight in a positive way.’’
Meek has been glad to see the clubs also express their support for the campaign and said he hoped the attention would encourage those interested in umpiring to start thinking about it more seriously.
‘‘We’ve had a couple of clubs invite umpires to attend club training sessions and functions,’’ Meek said.
‘‘We always encourage every umpire to mix with club people and players after games to show our faces and support the clubs.’’
GVFL general manager Keith Wellman said the round was a big statement of the league’s support for the umpires.
‘‘They’re a very important part of football,’’ Wellman said.
‘‘We can’t have football without them.
‘‘We’ve always had a good relationship with the umpires, we had a meeting a couple of weeks ago and we understand they’re under stress with numbers and we’re doing what we can to help them.’’
Meek said while the umpires appreciated the publicity and the recognition for their work, this was a message that had to be reiterated during the season.
‘‘I think that’s very important,’’ Meek said.
‘‘People need to see that there is good harmony between the umpires and the clubs and the players.
‘‘We need to keep building that relationship.’’
Meek said the league had been helpful and commended it for the active role it was playing in supporting the umpires.
‘‘We had a really positive meeting and they’re doing their utmost to support the umpires,’’ Meek said.
‘‘They give us feedback from the clubs, so we can make sure we’re doing the right thing by them as well as providing the clubs with a voice to us.’’
Meek encouraged anyone interested in umpiring to contact the association.
‘‘Whether they’re interested in boundary umpiring, goal umpiring or field umpiring, they’d get a lot of support from us,’’ Meek said.
‘‘You get a lot of satisfaction out of it and you meet a lot of fantastic people around country footy.’’
