Quote:
Originally Posted by EricH
(Snip)
But the answer to your question is both yes and no. Many events try to have one extra ref "on staff" so they can carry on with a full on-field crew if someone has to drop out, or more usually to give refs a break every so often. Some head refs would put that "extra" ref on-field for key matches like playoffs. That "extra" position is now an official one, and with a full crew can be manned and still have a ref taking a break.
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Ok, so I take it the number of "regularly-staffed ref positions" is the same between 2015 and 2016 (and my take away from your entire post is that it may have been the same even longer). The fact there is an "extra" ref to allow for breaks who can be pulled in for eliminations is a possibly recent addition that doesn't affect qualifications.
The point I'm inclined to make is that the issue of missed calls (as opposed to flat-out errors) clearly has a "difficulty of game" component to it. Perhaps not a 1:1 correlation, but a strong causation nonetheless. Taking this further, these kinds of situations are, I'd argue to a large degree, a result of the GDC game design, either in referee difficulty, or in failing to allocate more resources (refs/video) to compensate.
Our competition is this coming week, so I have no first-hand experience to base this on, yet... But I understand it can be difficult to find an extra referee, or a volunteer to sit and work video all day for several days. I also have the utmost respect for the referees, and all the volunteers, and the time they invest and volunteer to do what can be a thankless job.
I think, however, with this complicated a game, another set of eyes would have been a wise investment. Perhaps it would be easier to fill a "Video Replay Official" position rather than an additional referee.