On Jan 5, 12:30, Jeremy D Hall wrote:
>On other thing from the SIT:  does anyone on this list besides me have a
>problem when a referee who is working the tournament, but not a specific
>game, actively cheer on one team over the other in that game knowing full
>well that he will have to work a game in which one of those two teams
>will play in the next night?  Specifically, Harry Ammian was sitting a
>few rows in front of me, cheering on Minn-Duluth against Clarkson.  He
>did the same thing the next night, backing Niagara (again, to beat
>Clarkson).  BTW, Ammian worked the championship game between Colgate &
>UMD.
>
>Has anybody seen this happen at other tournaments?  Or does Ammian just
>hate Clarkson?
 
I would rather not see a referee from a league more or less actively rooting
against a team from that league.  But as far as having a problem with it,
c'mon! Ammian was sitting in the stands, acting as a fan, not wearing his
black-and- whites or officiating a game.  I don't know what Harry's feelings
about Clarkson are, but given that he more than likely is aware of the low
opinion that most Golden Knight fans (and probably players and coaches) have of
him, I can see how he might be less than inclined to cheer the Clarkson team on
when he has the opportunity to watch them from the stands.  Keep in mind that
officials ARE human, just like the rest of us, and as such can be expected to
have likes and dislikes like any other fan.  As long as an official's apparent
dislike of a team when he's in the stands as a fan doesn't translate into
actively hampering a team (or aiding its opponent) when he's "on duty" on the
ice, I have no problem with it.  We fans can demand neutrality from the
officials when they're working a game.  To demand the same from them when they
are acting as fans themselves seems ridiculous.  And for those who will
inevitably use Ammian's apparent "hatred" of the Golden Knights as proof of
bias the next time he does a Clarkson game... part of being a good official (in
any sport) is the ability to put aside your personal feelings and call what's
actually happening on the ice/court/field.  Officials who can't do that don't
stay officials long, and I believe Ammian has been an official for quite a
while... at levels other than the NCAA as well.
 
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Bill Fenwick
Cornell '86 and '95                                             DJF  5/27/94
LET'S GO RED!!                                                  JCF  12/2/97
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