Youthful whistle blowers

Bryce Alderton

Several soccer players in Costa Mesa and Newport Beach are getting to

view the game they love from a different perspective these days: that

of an official.

Ten players, ages 10-14, spent the weekend of Dec. 27-29

officiating more than 90 games of the Costa Mesa Classic, an AYSO

Region 120 tournament held at TeWinkle School and the Farm Complex.

Mike Gordon, a Newport Beach resident and volunteer referee

trainer for Region 97, mentored the students and hopes to increase

the interest among Newport-Mesa’s soccer aficionados to grab a

whistle.

“In this area [similar attempts to begin programs like this]

haven’t been successful,” Gordon said. “The goal is to get a group of

kids who want to learn to do it and to motivate them.”

Some do it for community service hours required by high schools.

Others patrol the sidelines to try something different and get a

better appreciation of the game. AYSO is a nonprofit organization run

by volunteers.

“Since I started playing soccer [four years ago] I got kind of

interested in how the [referees] do it,” said Otoniel Garcia, who

officiated 14 games of the Costa Mesa Classic. “A lot of people I

know began telling me about it and wanted to see me doing it.”

Garcia, 14, a freshman at Newport Harbor High, plays defense for

his club team. He noticed the responsibility level rise a notch when

he officiated his first game three months ago.

“It’s weird to see the field from side-to-side,” Garcia said.

“When I play defense, I only see the side I’m on. It’s amazing how I

can see the whole field.”

Garcia referees boys and girls under-10 games when needed and said

he receives community service hours for the work.

“I try to focus on what I’m doing and don’t get distracted,”

Garcia said. “It gets difficult because the parents are screaming at

you. But it doesn’t really matter what they think. I ignore it if it

comes.”

Robby Gordon, Mike’s 14-year-old son, called his first soccer game

in the Pilot Cup -- the annual youth soccer tournament held at the

Farm Complex -- two years ago. A defender on his club team, he said

knowing the rules helped make the transition to refereeing a little

easier.

“My friends started doing it and it was fun to do something for

the community,” Robby Gordon said. “I know what it feels like when

you have been cheated by the ref.”

Other players who officiated tournament games include Jhovany

Hernandez, Noe Gonzales, Andrew Dinh, Will Reichenstein, Julian

Hernandez, Jeremy Anish and Adrian Buonanoce.

Whatever the motivation, Mike Gordon, who referees more than 200

AYSO, high school and club games a year, took it upon himself to

prepare these soccer students for refereeing games.

Mike Gordon, 42, never played soccer, but began refereeing seven

years ago. He said there is always a shortage of officials for games.

“One day I showed up and there were no referees and two or three

games had started,” he said.

Mike Gordon trains both adults and children in groups as small as

three or four to as large as 20.

Eight to 10 hours of classroom instruction is followed by a 50- to

100-question, multiple-choice test and, finally, the field exam,

where students rotate in-and-out of a game.

“The referees get to position themselves on the field and see how

to work with an assistant,” Mike Gordon said. “It also gets them

running the field in proper diagonal patterns. By the end of the

game, they are much better than they were at the beginning. They have

to want to be there.”

They meet at a convenient time and place -- usually weekends at

places such as the park at Mariners Library. Other times Mike Gordon

has trained students at his home.

“The kids tend to have less apprehension than the grown-ups,” he

said. “They know the game and can see it from the ref’s point of

view. Hopefully, we will get to a better level of [officiating] and

they will pick it up really quick.”

Once the students complete the training, they receive a regional

badge. Mike Gordon said other training is offered for those who want

to officiate on the national level.

“It’s a job a lot of people don’t want to do,” he said. “These

guys could be as experienced as I am by their young 20s and

[refereeing Los Angeles] Galaxy games. They have youthful legs. We

need more experienced refs. There is always a shortage of refs.”