13 Mar 2008

The 2008 National Officiating Scholarship Program (NOSP) kicked off in February with an induction and professional development camp for the 16 identified high performance officials.

The 2008 scholarship holders from 12 sports were announced recently by the Minister for Sport, Kate Ellis. Assistance of up to $10,000 has been provided through the official’s national sporting organisation for them to upgrade, update and professionally develop their skills in officiating.

The 2008 induction camp has been expanded to provide additional services for the officials to operate in a high performance environment. The camp offered support in the areas of:

• Psychology - individual sessions were held with psychologist Michael Lloyd
• Recovery - Angie Calder assisted the group with recovery strategies specifically for officials
• Nutrition - nutritionist Sally Anderson provided advice for officials with differing physical requirements
• Sports vision - Pat Gerry a sports vision expert conducted sight testing and tips
• Media training - Sharon Phillips assisted the officials in their dealings with the media.

A key part of the scholarship program is the mentoring, provided by top officials within each sport. Some of Australia’s best were at the camp to assist including NRL referee Steve Clark, AFL umpire Bryan Sheehan, A-League Football referee Matthew Cream and Commonwealth Bank Trophy netball umpire Jacqui Jashari.