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Was It A Bad Call Or A Close Play?
As a long-time
player, coach, and umpire I have often heard players complain about a supposed
bad call by an official made during a game.
Often the player blames the official and the bad call for costing his
team the game, or at least hurting their chances of winning.
As I thought of this I began to realize how “off the mark” this idea
was, and how much it was hurting people’s growth in the sport and in their
Christian testimony. Discovering
that there are no bad calls, only close plays, has helped many overcome the
temptation to blame the official and gain an opportunity for growth at the same
time.
Thinking in
terms of good calls and bad calls, forces the player to put his attention on the
referee and how the official has “robbed” his team. This causes him to
become unforgiving and bitter toward the official after every “bad” call.
Ultimately it takes the player’s focus off the game and places it on
the official. Of course if you must
“blame” the referee, you can help yourself and the team by practicing this
simple formula. If you think the
call was bad, you can do one of two things.
One, just assume that the ref is right and you are wrong.
Accept the call as being right, after all he was closer to the play and
he has been trained to make calls. Or
second, just assume that the ump was wrong, forgive him, forget it and move on.
Playing and living like this will not only help you play better, but help
you in your everyday life. A
team should aim to play at such a level that it can absorb two or three close
plays that go against them and still win the game.