NY Metro ISOA News

Welcome Back, Kambiz Riazi NISOA National Assessor

Kami Riazi

The NY Metro ISOA is pleased to welcome NISOA National Assessor, Kambiz Riazi back to our chapter.

Kambiz has made himself available for local NISOA National Referees and National Referee Candidates to assist with their assessment renewal requirements. Welcome back, Kambiz.

Ejected Player, Coach or Bench Personnel

During Saturday’s Rules Interpretation meeting, there was a discussion about management of ejected players, coaches and bench personnel. NCAA Soccer Rule 5.6.4 states:

An ejected player, coach or other bench personnel shall leave the premises of the field of play to the point that the individual, in the referee’s opinion, shall not be a disruptive influence on the further progress of the game. This means out of sight and sound of the field of play.

I recommend the following procedure:

• During the pre-game field inspection, the referee crew should discuss how they will manage ejections so it will conform to Rule 5.6.4 and ensure the ejected player or bench personnel are properly supervised while they are away from the premises of the field of play.
• During the pre-game meeting with the home team institutional representative, discuss the desired ejection procedure and ask for assistance to implement the procedure. Assistance should include, but not be limited to, having a staff member available to escort and supervise the ejected player or bench personnel. Ask the home team institutional representative to coordinate with both coaches to ensure adequate ejected player or bench personnel supervision.

Ejections are a highly emotional and often match critical event. The officiating crew must be prepared before the ejection to properly manage the situation.

NCAA Soccer Rules; Leaving the Field for Religious Reasons

The NCAA Soccer Secretary Rules Editor, Ken Andres has ruled on the issue of a player requesting to leave the field for religious reasons as follows:

As the Soccer Secretary Rules Editor, I am issuing a ruling that a player is permitted to leave the field of play for religious reasons and may re-enter the game when beckoned by the referee. If the player is not substituted for, the team shall play short. However, if the player is substituted for, the re-entry provisions of R. 3.5 apply.

I suggest that you provide the involved institution with a copy of this ruling for future reference.

Lastly, I recommend the involved institution advise the referee crew and the opposing team of this issue and my ruling prior to the start of any game.

Kenneth G. Andres, Jr.
NCAA Soccer Secretary Rules Editor

In summary, if the player is a field player, leaves the field in the first half (or overtime periods) for religious reasons and is substituted for, that player may not re-enter in that period.

Proposed NISOA Fitness Test Changes for 2015

NISOA’s Director of Physical Fitness, Dr. Ken Kaylor is recommending modifications to the NISOA Physical Fitness Test. Key highlights of the modifications include:

• Eliminating the point system. Officials must pass each event.
• Eliminating the Pro 40 Box event and reduces the number of events to three.
• Replacing the 30M shuttle (7 x 30 meters) with a 6 x 40 meter sprint repeat test similar to the one used by US Soccer.

The significant issues driving the proposed modifications are:

• Safety. There are too many reports of officials falling during the Pro 40 box event.
• Better alignment with US Soccer while still not burdening chapter administrators.
• Simplify the test to pass/fail.
• Use gender-based scoring.

The proposed fitness test is available for review/download and is on the agenda for action at the upcoming NISOA Convention/Annual General Meeting in Buffalo, New York on July 18, 2014. We are looking for feedback and comments from members to help shape our direction on this initiative. Please comment here.

Updated August 9, 2014 – Some significant changes to the proposed test were approved by the NISOA Membership at the Annual General Meeting in July 2014. Details are available on the NISOA web site.

2014 NY Metro ISOA Awards Dinner Date Changed

Due to a conflict, the NY Metro ISOA Annual Awards Dinner has been rescheduled to November 17, 2014.

2014 NCAA Soccer Rules / NISOA Refresher Test Now Available

Once again, the NISOA Refresher Test will be administered on the Testing Tab at the NCAA Soccer Hub on ArbiterSports.com. The test is now available and must be taken online. The NCAA requires officials who wish to be considered for all post-season assignments to take the test and correctly answer 90 percent of the questions. NCAA allows the test to be taken twice before their imposed September 2, 2014 deadline.

Please be aware that 2014 is a rules change year for NCAA Soccer. This year’s rules test contains multiple questions about the new and changed rules. Since the NCAA Soccer Rules book has not been distributed as of today, we recommend waiting until you receive the new rules book via U.S. Mail (please be sure your mailing address is correct on your ArbiterSports profile) to take the test. In the meantime, you can use this summary of the 2014-2015 NCAA Soccer Rules changes to prepare for the test.

NY Metro ISOA members (including new members) must complete the refresher test (no pass/fail) as a condition of maintaining their “member in good standing” status. All active and probationary members must submit proof of completing the test by forwarding the email confirmation you receive from ArbiterSports.com after you submit the refresher test to [email protected]. Make sure you forward the confirmation email from the email address you have on record with our chapter.

If you are having problems accessing the test,  please make sure to fill out your annual registration form on the Registration tab of the NCAA Soccer Hub. You must register every year with ArbiterSports. The NCAA registration fee ($100 for non-NISOA members) is paid by NISOA as part of your NISOA dues. If you are having trouble accessing your ArbiterSports account, please contact Arbiter Sports Technical Support.

NCAA Soccer Support Contact Information

Phone:
801/702-8022

Email: [email protected]

Hours: Monday-Thursday — 7:00 am to 7:00 pm
Mountain TimeFriday — 7:00 am to 5:00 pm Mountain Time
Saturday — 8:00 am to 2:00 pm Mountain Time

The Ivy League Soccer Moves to ZebraWeb for Match Assignments

The Ivy League has moved their soccer assigning software platform from ArbiterSports to ZebraWeb for the upcoming season. Current Ivy League officials will be receiving a “welcome” email from ZebraWeb.org soon.