For the next iteration of Athlete Profiles, we take a closer look at one of Nova Scotia's Senior officials, Scott McMullen. Scott has been involved in the lacrosse community in many roles and will be refereeing the FIL Men's Lacrosse Championships in Israel this week. We wish all the best to Scott in his travels and representing our country as well as our province. Check out the Tournament website at
http://worldlacrosse2018.com/canada/
Q. How long have you been involved with lacrosse and where did you first pickup the game?
A. I have been involved with lacrosse since I was 12 or 13 years old.We had an opportunity in Jr. High to start playing inter-crosse and from there I started to play box lacrosse and then transitioned into field lacrosse.I started officiating box and field lacrosse in my early 20’s.
Q. What is your fondest memory of the sport?
A.I have a lot of great memories from lacrosse which includes playing and officiating in National Championships and officiating in Wold Championships but I think one of the most exciting moments for me was being the official to signal goal when my son Dylan scored his first goal in field lacrosse.
Q. To what or whom do you owe some of your success as a referee?
A. I owe a lot of my success to our NS officials; we spend a lot of time together traveling to games while talking about situations that we had encountered and how we handled them, spending 4 hours in a car with someone just to get to a game means you will talk a lot. And even more is my wife who has always supported me in being an official.
Q. What would your advice be for younger players looking to get involved with refereeing?
A. For younger players looking to become officials, I encourage them to get involved as an official.The knowledge and experience that you get as an official will help you as a player to see the field/floor better as well as a greater understanding of the rules.
Q. How has being a referee assisted you in other facets of your life?
A. Being a referee has helped me on a daily basis from being able to make a quick decisive decision to being able to handle conflict.Being a senior referee I also have the privilege to support and mentor our younger officials and provide feedback to them about their game; this helps me in my day to day job as I often need to give feedback to members of my team.
Q. Have you been able to travel around the world because of lacrosse? And if so where?
A. As an official in lacrosse you are always needed in any part of the world and Canadian officials are some of the best.Because of lacrosse I have been able to see all but two provinces in Canada, traveled to Finland and also to Denver for past world championships. I am very excited to be part of the upcoming wold championships as they are going to be the biggest ever held, as well this will be an opportunity for me to see friends that I have made from all over the world.
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