New Umpires Learn the Ropes Ahead of 2023 SeasonTuesday, February 14, 2023 - 3:56 PM

Displaying “rock solid character” is a key theme for WAFL umpires heading into a new season.

The West Australian Football Commission hosted the 2023 Hay Symons Connection Camp Day at Ernest Johnson Reserve in South Perth last weekend.

It featured 180 WAFL Umpires, Coaches, Support Staff and WANFLUA Life Members, with 37 new whistle-blowers joining the team in 2023.

Special guest speaker at the camp was former Gold Coast Suns Football Manager and Leadership expert Jon Haines, who held everyone’s attention with his address to umpires.

Dean Margetts, WAFL & WAFLW Umpiring Operations Manager at the West Australian Football Commission, thought Haines delivered a message which resonated with the group.

“Having Jon Haines deliver a 90 min presentation really was the perfect way for our season to launch with the messaging around being a rock-solid character.

I am really confident we have those character traits in all our umpires,” Margetts said.

WAFC Employees Troy Kirkham, Ceri Writer, Dehammi Matthew, Clayton Anderson, Nicole Bolton and Tim Marley all presented to the umpires on a range of topics to assist in their knowledge and preparation for the season ahead.

Executive Manager of Football Operations Scott Baker and Head of Competitions Luke Sanders also attended the camp.

All umpires spent quality time with their respective coaches to map out a plan for the season, while Grand Final umpire Ryan Shelton closed the camp with his thoughts and observations.

The final activity was a Quiz Day where 16 teams went head-to-head.

Lead by Captain Chad Smith, the “Duncan Delights” were declared 2023 “Camp Champs”.

“The Hal Symons Connection Camp is the first time all umpires come together as a collective for the season.

For the previous two weeks our Talent Academy Umpires and Development Squad umpires have been training with the senior team.

The camp day is when High Performance Umpires re-connect with the team.

There was plenty of content for the umpires to consume and once again I was super proud of the elite behaviours our umpires deliver on these days.

They are respectful of all our guest speakers.

We have umpires ranging from the ages of 16 to 66, so our saying is, we’re about the stage you’re at, not the age you’re at,” according to Margetts.