Marissa: Sophomore Marissa Miller started refereeing soccer, inspired by her experience as a current player
Then-eighth-grader Marissa Miller’s left arm was tense, holding her yellow flag at a 45-degree angle.
She was nervous. Nervous that she would do something wrong, make a call too late or get yelled at from the sidelines.
This was Miller’s first time refereeing a children’s soccer game through the Heartland Soccer Association.
Since that first seven v seven game in eighth grade, she’s refereed consistently every weekend during the spring and fall seasons, as often as her soccer schedule allows.
Now a sophomore, Miller is an AR — assistant referee — and is on the sidelines with her yellow flag, signaling to the referee in the middle of the field what kind of call it is or which team has possession of the ball.
Originally inspired to start refereeing because she played club soccer for Kansas City Athletics and wanted to know the rules better, Miller completed an online course and in-person training to get certified. Now, the flexibility, “fun of it” and the pay — $21 to $28 per game — have kept her on the field, or rather the sidelines, for three years.
“I just played soccer so much to where I was like, ‘I might as well get to know the rules of soccer a bit more,’” Miller said. “They pay so well, and I was looking for a job, and so that's why [I was interested].”
Leaving the field with a sunburned face after a hot, four-to eight-hour day is one of Miller’s least favorite types of days. As are the cold days, when it’s windy, raining and she can hardly move. But still, she keeps responding to the Google Form every Thursday with her availability and preferences for the coming weekend.
“I love having a flexible schedule because when I have soccer on the weekends, if I had a different job, I wouldn't be able to work on the weekends while also having soccer at the same time,” Miller said.
Clayton: Senior Clayton Hanner referees competitive and young adult soccer games
Senior Clayton Hanner was getting yelled at again for marking what the parents in the stand consider a bad call.
It was almost a weekly occurrence, but he’d come to expect it. After all, it was part of his job as a referee for the Heartland Soccer Association. The level at which he liked to referee —players ages 15 to 18 — had very competitive parents, players and coaches.
Though Hanner hasn’t played soccer since he was in elementary school, his friend’s dad — a referee — inspired Hanner to take the referee training course during his freshman year.
Though older age groups involve being cussed out or yelled at by parents and players, Hanner enjoys refereeing them because it keeps him focused and moving, especially on cold days. Hanner referees up to 15 games a week, usually five on Friday, Saturday and Sunday during both fall and spring seasons.
“It's a mental challenge,” Hanner said. “Parents and coaches and players can harp at you at any moment for any call that they believe you made wrong. [I] have that mental note in [my] head that [I need] to be making the right call through the laws of the game.”
To avoid an argument over a call or having to eject a coach or player from a game, Hanner does his best to communicate clearly. He would rather have a conversation with a coach than an altercation with a player.
Along with refereeing teams with players aged 15 to18, Hanner occasionally referees state tournaments and the under-30 age group.
“[The adults] definitely know they're there for fun [and] they're a little more friendly with referees,” Hanner said. “They'll talk to [referees] during the game and not talk to players during the game.”
While Hanner spends a lot of his free time refereeing, he enjoys the nice pay. Sometimes he’ll have the opportunity to work on his homework while he’s on standby in case they need another referee. He’s always learning more about the game and assisting his boss, so the job feels more like a hobby that he gets paid for.
During breaks, or while he’s on standby — at a soccer facility on-call in case a referee is a no-show or they need more people — Hanner finds time to work on his homework, study the laws of the game or assist his boss
“The pay is really good,” Hanner said. “Also, it's just the experience. It's really been good to help with problem-solving and conflict resolution with people with heated tempers.”
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