For 10 years, Deb Van Drunen has been the athletic director at Sheboygan Christian.

During her tenure, she has had to remove only two unruly fans.

“I’ve had to speak to a few on behalf of a referee,” Van Drunen said. “Unfortunately I think people feel they have the right to rail on the refs. They paid their $4 so now they have that right and don’t understand what a difficult job it is. …  I think after awhile that it wears on you and you decide you don’t need to do this anymore.”

Sheboygan North principal John Matczak feels there has been a change in culture.

The former coach who has supervised his fair share of games wants some people to be mindful this is just a high school event, not a professional game.

“You don’t get paid enough to deal with the things you hear from other people,” he said. “It’s insulting, your values and your morals are challenged, and all you’re there to do is to give back to the sport. It’s certainly not for the money. You’re doing the best you can. It gets tough for people. There’s no reason why we should ignore what our referees are saying.”

– Dave Boehler