No point expanding the competition if you haven't got the refs to fill the positions.Alot of refs are doing back to back games.Bloody hardwork!!!

Well, ^anon has some points in there among the colourful descriptive tones that I believe the VBRA are aware of and possibly trying to change. Maybe it is time to get serious about where they want to go and how they can go about doing what they obviously are out to achieve.

To change the culture and therefore the behaviour of people involved in basketball (everyone, including parents) is not easily done, certainly not an overnight job.

It will take some real direction and leadership with cooperation of all Associations.

It will also take a more proactive and hands on approach at that grass roots level we all go on about.

Associations need to be supported and shown the way by the powers to be, to foster a better understanding of what is acceptable and how poor behaviour affects young officials.

We do clinics for juniour basketball all the time, where new parents get involved at grass roots level, why not run a parents clinic adjacent to this to cover things such as cultural change, behaviour, social media and the impacts on young people today?

There are things we can do, but rarely do we see evidence of a think tank on this and great ideas or common sense acted upon...

Dont say anything about Big V or a fine will come your way, just ask a couple of clubs already.

Bear you hit the nail on the head. All junior football clubs have a code of conduct which parents have to sign. If you dont wish to abide by the rules your asked to leave the club.Executives enforce the code of conduct and an independant tribunal also reinforces a strong culture. Most leagues also run campaigns around player and spectator behaviour which highlights the cause.Umpiring is surging again in numbers due to the improved image of the leagues and the amount of money on offer. Top local leagues pay $185 a game for field umpires. Do an under 18's game and you earn another $95.Nice little earner for a few hours work.

"All junior football clubs have a code of conduct which parents have to sign."

They do, but enforcement varies greatly from club to club and league to league and from what I've seen footy has much bigger issues with parents than basketball.

I would agree with you Paul in previous years but the changes we have put in place in our leagues have made a significant difference. Of our 3 junior leagues: one has had no tribunal hearings, another has had one hearing and the other has had two plus an investigation. Not bad going for nearly half way through the season.

Boys the biggest problem with the referees system with in the Big V is that there is no planning, it's all wing and a prey stuff because that's they way we have always done it. There's an old saying; You Don't Plan to Fail, but We Fail to Plan.

And in this case there is NO Plan,

That's good progress Happy Days, but assaults on umpires and fights between umpires still occur around various junior leagues, something I haven't heard much of in junior basketball.

That was meant to be "fights between parents".

Interesting BOB911 - Have you been on the inside with BigV or BV seeing them try and plan out the refereeing rosters? Saying that there is NO plan is a bit hard to believe.

Your right Paul, not all leagues have cleaned up as i know there having alot of problems in Tassie and the Sunraysia leagues this year.

Yes Chook, i have been exposed to both and yes there is no plan. Yes they except more teams, and they have less referees. Why because there is no plan. There is no plan to how they will develop referees, there is no plan as to where they want Big V in 3 years, or 5 years. If they had this then they would be able to address these issues and start to put the planning infrastructure around it to make it happen. Unfortunately the sports industry in this country has to many ex-players, volunteers trying to run our professional and semi professional leagues where we expect more. People from the corporate environment are slowly starting to pilfer in but we are still a long way away, to that of other sporting countries.

Good to see your spelling is top notch BOB911. So you must have been a referee or league employee in the past? You sound like a quiet disgruntled one at that. Poor BOB

BOB911, I accept that there are exceptions to what you are trying to explain, but you make no sense, except to maybe yourself and will have to accept that!

Bob and others, whose responsibility is it to develop the referees? is it the BigV's? Or does it sit with the referees body?

Eddie, I think you may have just blown BOB911's mind

Chook, clearly your part of the problem and have never has a real job, in business. The reason why corporations succeed, and sport (basketball) is because they plan, in simple terms it's called strategic planning. Our sporting organisation still don't know how to do this as they don't have the skilled employees, hence they go off and increase the numbers in their competition without the thought of the follow on effects. i'd love to provide you with the analysis to support this but my spelling isn't up to it. I didn't know i was being graded by academic genuineness Chook?