Andy Mair had umpired international hockey matches for years but just ahead of the London Olympics in 2012 he reached the game’s official ‘retirement’ age. Mair, a Scot, wanted to remain actively involved in the top-level game and retrained as a video umpire. He is no longer found on the pitch, but behind the screens.
“It was very difficult to stop refereeing, but what is great about this job is that I still feel I am contributing to improving the level of umpiring,” he says. “I should add that I do rely extensively on the cameramen and the director. They are my eyes during the match.”
Mair is in constant contact with the umpires on the pitch. “It is very tempting to say something to the umpires but that can only distract them,” he says. “I keep it clean and only contribute when an appeal is made. I am a real part of the umpiring team. There is a lot of trust between us. The people on the field understand that I am only there to help them. I might be a former umpire but it is not as if I consider myself to be better than them. I am there solely to assist and to take the right decision.”
Fair game
Sometimes those decisions can take minutes. But do not think the video umpire is delaying his ruling just to build up the tension. “Sometimes you can take a decision quickly but the next time it is as if the world has stopped turning. In cases like that, the view has been blocked and it can take the director next to me a while to find the right footage. The footage is shown to me in slow motion and repeated. Having a camera focused on me is not a problem. I got used to that as an umpire and it shows the public that we are looking for the answer or are communicating with those on the pitch.”
Responsibility for the decisions rests with Mair alone. “Sometimes I would like to have someone confirm that I have seen it properly, but this is how things are and I am pleased to take responsibility. It is good that as a video umpire I can help make the right decision at crucial moments. That makes the game more fair.”
With four video umpires and six World Cup matches a day, Mair is a busy man. How does he remain sharp and keep his concentration. “When a tournament is under way, it is important to relax in between times,” he says. “I take pictures and process them on my computer. I’m still sitting on the edge of the pitch watching hockey, but in a very different and more relaxed manner.”