As you may have heard by now, OSAA announced that the fall 2020 high school soccer season will be played Feb 22 thru April 11, 2021. Yes, a SPRING SOCCER SEASON for Oregon high schools - that is different! Since soccer is played outdoors we anticipate games will be played and not delayed due to the pandemic like indoor sports might be. Time to get ready to work some games!

• Part of being ready is getting registered, taking the test and becoming familiar again with the high school soccer rules book. Pay particular attention to the differences between NFHS, IFAB/FIFA/USSF and NCAA rules.

• It is also critical for you, as a referee, to be physically ready. We do not want referees to start the season with and injury that takes them out for the remainder of the season, we need you!

If you have not done so already, please register on the OSAA/Arbiter website so you will receive a packet with your rulebook, badge and other information. Refs are required to pass the NFHS online test and completed the OSAA concussion training each year, you can access both from the OSAA website links. Your local association may have other requirements, please check with your commissioner if you have questions. See the RESOURCES section below for links you need.

The OSAA Pre-Season Rules Clinic will be presented on ZOOM several times in January and February so everyone has an opportunity to become familiar with the NFHS Rules and OSAA Procedures without even leaving home!

• All sessions are the same, please attend one before you take your NFHS test
• No cost to attend
  
• ADVANCED registration required
• Class limited to 100 people
  
• Commissioners will receive attendance list
• Officials will receive a certificate of attendance

The dates for ENGLISH instruction on ZOOM are as follows:

• Thursday, Jan 21st - 7pm
• Saturday, Jan 30 - 2pm
• Thursday, Feb 4th - 7pm
• Saturday, Feb 20th - 10am
• Wednesday, Feb 24th - 7pm
• Click here to register for the session you plan to attend

The details for instruction in SPANISH are still be working out... stay tuned.

Many of us have not refereed a game (or worked out) in almost a year or perhaps even since the end of the 2019 season. We still have 6 weeks before the first games so... even if you haven’t been working out regularly up to now, there is enough time before the first games to be in shape. We do have some challenges. As of this writing, gyms, public and private, are closed, by order of Governor Brown. And it’s still winter in Oregon, which means that it will be cold outside.

• What resources and life restrictions do you have? Do you have a treadmill? Is there a track near you that is open?

• If you don’t have a treadmill or an available track, you will have to run on the streets and sidewalks. That’s not ideal, but, for many of us, it is all that is available.

• In any case, you can supplement your running with weights, if you have them available, and/or various exercises that can be done indoors, such as pushups, plank, and so forth.

• Some of us wear watches that do more than tell the time. Garmin, Fitbit, etc. These can be very helpful in your workout management. At the very least, you should use a watch with stopwatch timing capabilities. This is particularly important if you do not have a track or a treadmill available to you and you have to run on the sidewalk/street.
  

Running is essential to your officiating job. Run before work, run after work, run in the evening, whatever works for your schedule, but run.

Before you start, do an honest evaluation of yourself. Remember that running is not just about your waist size. It’s also about your heart and lung capacity, so you can make that run when the players just kick it long. Many of us have put on a few pounds/inches the last few months (they call it the Covid 10, or maybe 15-20?). Please be careful not to overdo it, the more weight you need to lose, the more careful you need to be, especially in the beginning.

Click on the links below to review three suggested options and choose the best one for you.