Play the whistle: a practical guide to rugby refereeing

Refereeing a Rugby game is an art which requires many years of experience and application before a good standard is developed. There are numerous publications and papers which explore its many special facets in great detail, but mostly these are written for those who have some experience. What about the prospective referee who has been involved in some other aspect of Rugby and must reorientate his thinking? How does he start?

This book is an introduction to the practical side of refereeing. It is intended primarily to give the newcomer a starting point in his approach to the different phases of piay he will called on to control. It is assumed that he has a general understanding of the game from playing or watching and that he has a good theoretical knowledge of the laws of the game. Here it should be emphasised that any person who wishes to become a Rugby referee MUST first learn as much about the laws as he can. He is to be warned also that he must never stop learning.