A discussion piece =

What do you think makes a player of the game? What should umpires be looking for?

We look forward to your thoughts!

Umpires should be looking for players who shine from the rest of the team who are always available in the right position within their position role. Players that are always supporting the players/team on court. I know as an umpire myself umpires just randomly pick a player on the back of the card with no thought whatsoever. I always give a lot of thought when choosing. Perhaps umpires should get together to discuss this topic further so it would be fair at the end of the season. for example, Just because a shooter may not miss the goals it doesnt mean she played best. The ball still needs to get to her first!!

I think that it's difficult for umpires to pick player of the game as they don't really know the players of the team. The person who gets it has not necessarily had the best game for them, but other players may have played their socks of but get no credit for it.

I agree with Charlotte, the umpire should think about which player has made a positive contribution to their team through the whole match. Player of the match should be awarded to the most consistent player and not specifc individuals who play perfect all the time. Some players put their ultimate effort in a game sometimes and this should be rewarded and the umpire should take all aspects of play into consideration. As an umpire myself it can be a tough call but if you are on the ballyou can usually pick that player. x

Good idea to have some time for all umpires to discuss what makes a good player of the game. We are planning next season's fixtures at the moment and have scheduled in an umpire's training night, so possibly this could be brought up. Personally I think it is a huge compliment to be picked for player of the game, but often players on court have a different perception of who in their team made player of the game on that instance. As you say, a GS or GA may have scored on every opportunity but that doesn't necessarily make them player of the game, just as a player who handles the ball a lot may just be someone who covers the whole court thereby preventing other team mates from getting the ball when they are in position. It's a difficult call for an umpire if the award of Player of the game is to be meaningful.

It is nothing to do with knowing the players, umpires are qualified enough to know the game and postions and what is involved within the positions. So they should be able to pick a player on the basis of my previous statement. Umpires should not find it difficult. Like I said I think they find it difficult if they are knewly qualified and havn't had much to do with picking players. It is also more difficult if you get a team with 7 players at the same standard therefore umpires cannot even choose the player that stood out over the other 6.