2022 Referee of the Year Awards!
Jordan Fetterman - Adult Referee of the Year
Jordan is a second year referee who has been progressing quicker than anyone I have seen. After his first season, he did High School games and made a ton of progress. This year he has been doing many high level ECNL games. He is a true student of the game. He attends learning sessions, works with mentors and asks lots of questions to more experienced referees. He spends the time to review his work from after game videos of his ECNL games. He drives conversations on challenging calls to make sure he learns something from every game. He truly lives up to our motto!
Learn about Jordan:
"I’ve been refereeing for a little over a year now (got my grassroots license in July 2021 and did my field training with Mustang). Through Mustang’s Referee program, community, and mentorship, I’ve been able to get many opportunities in the club and CNRA to grow in my Referee development. Additionally, through refereeing, I’ve been able to make connections with fellow referees, coaches, and admin that have been fantastic! I initially got into refereeing when I moved back to the Bay Area post-college. As an athlete in college, I was looking for ways to say active when I got back. I always had a love for the game, so I thought it would be a fantastic activity to get into! The best part of refereeing is the challenge to administer the Laws of the Game as well as I can to keep the integrity of the game. By doing so, I’m able to see the game take shape to the sport we love to witness as players, coaches, referees, and spectators."
Brenda Kuehnle - Adult Referee of the Year
This was a big year for Brenda. She had the opportunity to work with some very experienced referees during our Stampede tournament and she started to challenge herself on games she had not done in previous years. Many weeks, we would have a Monday call about something that happened over the weekend. Every time, she did everything correct. Her confidence has grown immensely as she would apply learnings from previous games, conversations with mentors, and learnings from training sessions. She has been a model of the Mustang motto!
Learn more about Brenda:
"I started reffing about 3 years after my daughter started. She told me that I should do that with her. Although she has always been much better than I am, it is fun to do this together when she is home. I like reffing because of the camaraderie with other refs and to be a good role model for the kids. The kids are so cute!"
​
_edited.jpg)
Ethan Klets - Youth Referee of the Year
Ethan is a first year referee who has developed quickly. His mentors in the Jamboree shared how he was ready to do comp games in the middle right from the beginning. He has a great personality and truly has fun when he is refereeing. He even sent me a video his dad made of him facilitating kicks from the mark that went to 10 kicks and the team erupted when there was a winner. He had a blast and was so excited about this experience. Many of the experienced referees who have worked with him share how thoughtful his questions are.
Learn more about Ethan:
"My name is Ethan Klets and I was nominated to be the referee of the year. I was told to email you a picture and some information about myself and my refereeing.
I have been playing soccer since I was 2 and always loved the game. I currently play for Mustang 08 Elite/Gold. I began refereeing because I wanted to experience the game from a different perspective. My favorite part of refereeing is taking charge of the game, as well as refereeing with my friends and making difficult calls."
Teagan Iranitalab - Youth Referee of the Year
Teagan is a second year referee who has been progressing extremely well. She has worked her way into developing some strong game management skills. She was seen in the center on a pre-ECNL match and she diffused a situation with a coach arguing a call by simple giving him a stern look. She learns something from every game and has a mentor she can call with specific questions. She has been a student of the game and applies everything she learns. Another excellent example of living the Mustang motto!
More about Teagan:
"My name is Teagan Iranitalab. I'm 14 years old and I started reffing a little more than a year ago right after I turned 13. I wanted to start reffing after watching a soccer game with my teammate, and we agreed it would be fun to ref together! I went home and researched how to sign up for a referee course and just went for it! I like refereeing because it allows me to meet new people and have a great time working together. I've had many helpful mentors with me along the way as well. I've learned a lot about the game, and I've learned a lot of new strategies which really help me when I play soccer. Reffing has really enhanced my leadership skills and ability to collaborate with others. I'm really grateful for all the experiences I've had over the past year through refereeing. My favorite memory so far is a game I signed up for that had only two refs instead of three, so my dad offered to help and took on the role of an AR. It was so funny to watch all the different ways he would hold his flag. My personal favorite was when he crossed his arms and the flag was pointed at the sky. And then there was an exciting play and he got so excited to make a call that he dropped the flag! This is why it's important to be trained! I really did enjoy getting to work with my dad. I'm still trying to talk him into being a real ref with me because reffing is so much fun!"
Brody Anand - Youth Referee of the Year
Brody is a first year referee who has progressed quickly as a referee. Even during the Jamboree, all the mentors were saying he would go far. In most of the games he has refereed he has been in the center. He is extremely fit and has excellent positioning. He also absorbs feedback from other referees and applies it quickly.
Learn more about Brody:
Brody moved from Tampa, Florida last summer. Becoming a referee was a way for him to get more involved with the local soccer community. Brody had been a youth coach in Florida and refereeing gave him a chance to continue working with younger players. Brody has enjoyed learning another aspect of the soccer game and has found it has made him more strategic as a player, especially with automatic calls. Refereeing keeps Brody active on weekends, allowing him to still be out on the soccer field and he gets to hang out with friends, teammate and other people who enjoy soccer.
2021 Referee of the Year Awards!
Devin was a new referee this year. He really picked up this new skill and has been learning from everybody. He lives our motto and has exceeded my expectations on all the requirements. I have observed him a few times and he is a very strong referee. He called a goal that only an AR could see if they were in the perfect position in one of the games I observed.
Comments from Peers:
• Devin has a good attitude, professionalism, mechanics and positioning are good. He wants to do a good job and he is a good listener. I could see him as one the best referees.
• He comes to the field with a positive attitude. He is very decisive in making calls on the field.
• During the first few games I did with him, he would often ask questions about the calls he made during the breaks. This was mainly to ensure his understanding of the rules and to build confidence that he was making the right calls. To me, this showed his desire to improve his referee skills.
• He makes sure he runs the full line during the game, which helps confirms goals. Today, he took the initiative to confirm a goal that I couldn't tell.
Amanda Kayari - Female Youth Referee of the Year 2021
Amanda was a new referee this year. She is very impressive. Everyone she has worked with has told me she knows the game very well and applies what she learns. We have moved her up to higher level games very quickly and she is learning fast. She lives our motto and has exceeded my expectations on all the requirements. She also shows up looking professional with a positive attitude. Congratulations Amanda!
Comments from Peers:
• Amanda would be a fantastic recipient of the youth referee of the year. Being a player, Amanda knows the game. Amanda’s mechanics are excellent (direction for throw-ins, offsides, corner & goal kicks, etc.). She understands offside. She keeps up with the second to the last defender (she had no problem in this area because she was faster than anyone on the field). She was prompt and presented herself professionally.
• Yes she has been amazing to work with. She is always smiling and always with a positive attitude when given feedback. By far the most advanced new referee I worked with this summer/fall in Mustang.
• I watched her last weekend center a comp game and I thought she did a really good job.
Devin Neville - Male Youth Referee of the Year 2021
_JPG.jpg)
Larry Keil - Adult Referee of the Year 2021
Larry has done so much this year that he needs to be publicly recognized. When thinking about the Adult Referee of the Year, I think about a lot of different factors: Number of games, referee ability, referee knowledge, referee coaching, and the Mustang Referee Motto. Larry has exceeded my expectations in all the factors I look at. Larry set the tone for the entire season by setting up such a great Jamboree. He prepared tirelessly and recruited mentors way ahead of time. His guidance made it possible for all our new referees to start off their referee careers in the right way. Larry has been exceeding my expectations by observing and coaching referees nearly every weekend, even with a broken foot. Mustang has been able to field nearly full crews all season and I believe much of this is because of Larry's leadership and guidance helping our new referees to learn/practice something every game. Thank you Larry and congratulations!