Referee Coachng

[pearce]

I was refereeing a B grade match and called a free ball. The player asked me what the rule was and I said he could nominate any ball as the object ball but couldn't snooker his opponent behind the free ball. His opponent accused me of coaching. Is he right or wrong. I said if either player asked me to explain a rule,I would. Am I right or wrong.

[Souwester]

Wrong, I'm afraid.

Referees should only answer questions specifically covered in the rules, eg "is the ball touching?" (where the cue ball is touching/close to a ball not on), "what balls are you going to replace?" (after F&M has been called)...

Answering other questions is generally deemed to be coaching and is forbidden. If a player doesn't know the rule and asks for an explanation, the best thing is to respond by saying "I'll explain it after the match".

However, there are sometimes situations where neither player knows the rule, and if both players consent then a referee may explain the rule.

1. The Referee
(a) The referee shall
(i) be the sole judge of fair and unfair play,
(ii) be free to make a decision in the interests of fair play for any situation not covered adequately by Rule,
(iii) be responsible for the proper conduct of the game under these Rules
(iv) intervene if he sees any infringement of these Rules
(v) tell a player the colour of a ball if requested, and
(vi) clean any ball upon reasonable request by a player.

(b) The referee shall not
(i) answer any question not authorised in these Rules,
(ii) give any indication that a player is about to make a foul stroke,
(iii) give any advice or opinion on points affecting play, nor
(iv) answer any question regarding the difference in scores.

(c) If the referee has failed to notice any incident, he may take the evidence of the marker or other officials or spectators best placed for the observation to assist his decision.

[APK]

It's an easy trap for an inexperienced referee to fall into.
Sometimes you get into the habit of telling the players that you cannot give them advice.
Mostly, you can consider that a statement of fact is OK to advise.
The Rules do not give an opinion on all questions.
"Whats the time Ref" is not an authorised question. but it is a statement of fact to answer and it will not give the player an unfair advantage. So why not tell him?

On the other hand, I have had a situation with younger players where one has asked a question in front of his opponent and they have both asked for an explanation. In this instance I see no problem giving a quick overview of the Rule in question to both players simultaneously as long as it does not give one player an immediate advantage.

[Souwester]

Mostly, you can consider that a statement of fact is OK to advise.

"Does the black go back on its spot if I pot it?" or, having been put back to the original position after F&M on a colour: "am I on a colour still?"... these answers would be factual answers, but the referee shouldn't answer them. Should a referee answer the question "am I in hand?".

It's quite a fine line as to what a referee should and shouldn't answer.

[Kyra]

"Does the black go back on its spot if I pot it?" or, having been put back to the original position after F&M on a colour: "am I on a colour still?"... these answers would be factual answers, but the referee shouldn't answer them. Should a referee answer the question "am I in hand?".

It's quite a fine line as to what a referee should and shouldn't answer.

In a league match recently (I was head referee) I was called to one of the tables to clarify a situation. One player was in hand and asked the ref what he can do now. The ref explained it and that caused a protest from the opponent. He said that the ref is now allowed to explain the rules to a player. He was right and I confirmed it. To answer a question about his options when in hand is not allowed. But what about "am I in hand" ? Most people would say that the player should know the rules (at least the basics) and therefore the question should not be answered. Indeed a very fine line.

[The Statman]

... Should a referee answer the question "am I in hand?".

If I were the player, I would request the cue-ball to be cleaned.

The referee would only use his ball marker if the ball was in play; if in hand he would just pick up the white!

[Kyra]

If I were the player, I would request the cue-ball to be cleaned.

The referee would only use his ball marker if the ball was in play; if in hand he would just pick up the white!

Very clever. Haven't thought about his one

[Souwester]

The referee would only use his ball marker if the ball was in play; if in hand he would just pick up the white!

Sorry, which ball would the referee pick up? Would it be the cue ball perchance? ;-)

[vmax4steve]

It's the same when I'm refereeing and I'm asked what the difference is in the scores, I call out, say 43 to 24, either the strikers score called first or spot or plain on the scoreboard. The difference is 19 but that is for the players themselves to work out. If their maths is bad that's just tough, it's part of the game and so is knowing the rules.
The biggest bug bear for me is the split ball decision when a red and a colour or two different colours are hit simultaneously in a non free ball situation. When I call foul and the player concerned argues that it was a split ball so it must be legal, I explain that it was a foul as the ball on must be hit first and if another ball that is not on is also hit first, simultaneously, then it must be a foul because it was hit first, albeit at the same time as the ball on.
This argument goes on and on and on and on and on until in the end I start to raise my voice and I have a Basil Fawlty moment,
" Listen buddy, pink and black are left on the table so you have to hit the pink first o.k. not the black first, not the pink and black at the SAME BLOODY TIME BUT THE PINK FIRST O.K. NOW PLEASE TRY TO UNDERSTAND BEFORE ONE OF US DIES "

[DawRef]

spot or plain

When I first started to referee, I was taught NEVER to use this when giving out the scores.
I always call, for example, "43-26. Player (or team) on 17 (if player or team is on a break).
It is then up to the player to work out the difference in scores and to how many more he needs to secure a frame (and possibly match) win.