Angus will be running the referee workshop on the day, and I asked him to elaborate on how he go into reffing and his thoughts on training with girls.
Here's what he had to say:
So Angus, you're obviously not a girl, what are you going to be doing at this Day Camp?
Jess gave me call and told me about her idea for a day camp for the girls of Australian BJJ and that she'd like to see more girls involved in refereeing in the future. Obviously, a good understanding of the rules is imperative to being a referee, but besides that it can help your competition game too. In our one hour session we are hoping to go over some of the "grey" areas in the rules and hopefully make clearer how the rules can be applied as a ref, and how the rules can work for you in a match.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself, your training background and how you came to be involved in refereeing?
I've been training seven years now and haven't missed a Vics, Aus Cup or Pan Pacs in that time! I train as often as I can and if I'm known for anything it's my simple yet effective game plan. I am (like many BJJ-ers) a touch obsessive and when I started to compete I felt like I had to know everything about the rules and used to read them at night just so I could be sure in my own head about what was happening during my fights at tournaments, and of course, not give away silly points during those fights. At events I worked as table staff, a marshal, and when I had the confidence, offered myself to referee. It's a lot of pressure at first - that's why you need the confidence of repeated study and comp exposure.
What do you think of girls doing BJJ? Can you tell us a bit about your experiences training with girls?
Girls in BJJ can only be a good thing, can't it? No matter who my training partner is, I always try to take something for myself. Most often, I'm stronger than the girls I train with which gives me chance to turn off the strength and focus purely on technique. I have recommended a few of my female friends to jiu jitsu, as well as my sister. If I ever have a daughter, I'll encourage her to train.
Girls who lack strength compared to their male training partners invariably become more technical, ultimately to their advantage. When I first started training I was repeatedly tapped by a 50kg girl called Valerie. It went on for months and I will never forget it!
How do you think the Australian women are going in BJJ at the moment?
Jiu jitsu as a whole is just breaking out of its infancy in Australia. We still don't have much depth at the higher belts in the male categories, and proportionally it carries that there are even less in the female categories. We have a good core of female competitors who are dedicated and technical, but it is not enough. I think the key to expansion is to get BJJ in schools and create a whole generation of juniors - female and male.
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