Ballarat Referees gain selection to Southern Cross Challenge and the Australian Country Junior Basketball Cup. This is a fantastic and noteworthy achievement for all junior referees as it highlights the advancement on the referee pathway throughout Country and Metro Victoria and onwards.
Also participating in the Cup will be a number of experienced Referee Educators who continue to put back into the sport and to officials throughout the country.
The Australian Country Junior Basketball Cup will be held in Albury-Wodonga from 11-18 January 2020 whilst the Southern Cross Challenge will be held at the State Basketball Centre, Wantirna South, from 17-20 January 2020.
Congratulations to the following Ballarat referees and Referee Educator.
- Fletcher Martin (Southern Cross Challenge)
- Issac Martin (Southern Cross Challenge)
- Hannah Blythman (ACJBC)
- Erin Bluthman (ACJBC)
- Neil Black
We had the chance to sit down and hear from each referee about how it all began, what they love and their experience in the SBC & ACJBC.
Fletcher Martin
“I’ve been reffing in Ballarat for 4 years and officially will be 5 years in October this year.
My decision on starting reffing was to see other perspectives of the game and to learn more about the rules and gameplay.
The thing I enjoy about reffing is the friendship connections that I’ve made through BVC which has also given me the opportunities to ref at very high levels across the state and country.
SCC involved some of the best players in the under 14 and 15’s competitions across each state or territory. To get to this level of reffing took me a lot of participation in small-town tournaments like Bendigo and Ballarat and also being involved in many BVC championship events as possible to show that I’ve got the ability to ref at this high standard.
My favourite part of the challenge was having the ability to learn not just from Victorian ref coach’s but all over the country and also meeting new people and making a connection with them that will live forever.
The things I learnt from SCC were mostly about practising pre game chats more often, making better judgements on jump ball situations and watching for the initial travel on a drive to the basket.”
Issac Martin
” I have been refereeing for 3 years. I have also been playing basketball since I was 6yrs old.
I started umpiring to see another aspect of the game and also to give back to the game I love.
The main reason I started refereeing was to learn more about the game and to meet new people.
The SCC is a development tournament for chosen players, coaches and referees to enhance their skills. I feel I was chosen to attend the SCC as I am trying really hard to continue to improve my skills each and every time I go on court.
My favourite part of the SCC was meeting different referees from around the country and getting feedback about how I referee my games so I can continue to improve.
Two things I learnt were – not to call a charge signal across my body and not to get straight-lined to the play.”
Hannah Blythman
“I have been refereeing for 4 years. I began reffing for some extra cash and to gain rule knowledge. I have grown to really enjoy reffing at Ballarat and state tournaments. I absolutely loved going to the cup as I was able to learn current refereeing techniques and rules. I loved meeting many new people and making heaps of new friends. I was lucky enough to referee the u14 boys gold medal grand final which has also lead to me gaining my level 1 accreditation.”
Erin Blythman
“I have been refereeing for three years because I enjoyed the game basketball. The most enjoyable part about refereeing is going to tournaments and continuing to develop while making new friends across the state and country. My favourite part about the cup was meeting new people and being able to develop. I also learnt cause and effect, strong signals and teamwork with the other referees on the court.”
