As part of the efforts to provide the best match officials to League1 Ontario, OUA and OCAA in 2015, the OSA Referee Development Department has proposed a financial and resource partnership for a two-day training camp in March 2015. The First Annual Match Officials Development Training Camp will take place March 28-29, 2015 in Vaughan at The Soccer Centre and the Element Hotel.

The three leagues are official partners with the OSA in providing this weekend of theory and practical education for the 80 match officials selected to attend.

"Thank you for forwarding this to is, it is definitely a great initiative and we are interested in supporting it. Going forward we will make this part of our agreement so that the funding will be in place long term,"  Bryan Crawford, OUA Executive Director said. 
 
Instructors will include FIFA Futuro Instructors Amato DeLuca, Isaac Raymond and Phil Moore, National Instructors Tony Camacho and Joe Audi, FIFA assistant referee Joe Fletcher, and a few surprise guests as well.

Just as coaches do not coach via email, because practical and team learning environments are crucial to player and team success, so too do match officials need this kind of training.

The OSA believes it is imperative to bring these officials together to learn, to build the team environment and demonstrate their areas of strength, and also the areas of development.

"Provincial leagues tell us they want the best match officials possible, and now these leagues have stepped up to help us ensure that every resource has been provided to the officials that are assigned to their leagues, as well as bringing them into the Training Camp weekend to speak directly to the officials, something that is not normally done. This provides value to all parties. I am looking forward to continuing to work closely with these leagues," Nicky Pearson, OSA Manager of Referee Development said.

Tony Camacho, Director of Officials League1 Ontario echoed that statement,

"This is best for the game, and for the development of these officials. Each league has time on the agenda to speak to the officials about their program and the differences in their rules of competition; and 2 coaches from each league will also speak to the officials about their expectations. This will create a stronger relationship between all 4 parties moving forward. This will become an annual event," Camacho said.