We Support
First things first, you get a pay bump. Depending on the league, this is generally two or three dollars per game – which really adds up over a fifty-game season!
You also get national recognition. Level 1 accreditation is recognised all over the country, and will allow you to apply for some tournaments, and get higher quality games, that aren’t available to you as a greenshirt.
You get to wear the blue shirt. Wearing a blue shirt on the diamond says to everyone concerned that you know what you’re doing, that you’ve got a certain level of experience and have demonstrated that you meet the required competencies. It says you can be trusted out there!
Finally, you fulfil a promise you made to yourself. Whether you’re consciously aware of it or not, when you first started umpiring – you made a commitment to give it a go, and try to get good at it. Reaching Level 1 is a way of proving that you’ve lived up to that commitment. The blue shirt is a fitting reward for that!
Firstly, you have to tell us you want it! We aim to provide as much mentoring as possible across all leagues, but there’s only so many of us, so we’re going to give most of our attention to the people who told us they wanted it.
You have to pass the online “basic” rules exam. You can sign up for the online exam through the Softball Australia website.
You have to know your stuff. For us, this means knowing the Level 1 manual, which you can find at the Softball Australia Level 1 Introduction page. This manual covers everything that we talk about in the Introductory Clinic, and is what we look for during competency assessments.
You have to umpire. We require at least two plates and three bases (softball, not teeball!).
You have to sign the umpires’ code of ethics and email it to this email address. The code of ethics can also be found at the Softball Australia Level 1 Introduction page.
You have to pass the Play-by-the-Rules courses. Register at www.playbytherules.net.au and take the “Officials” course.
That's okay! You'll find it gets easier as you get more experience umpiring, but even if you want to spend your career as a greenshirt, we'll still support you. The important thing is to have fun!