Some people officiate to stay in touch with the game. Some do it for money. Still others do it for power and ego gratification. Dartmouth’s Rod Shoveller does it for sheer love of the game. For more than 29 years, Rod has donned his referee’s uniform and travelled coast to coast and abroad to enforce the rules of basketball. Whether working in Beijing or Baddeck, Rod has built a reputation for a good effort every time out, always firm but fair.

After moving to Halifax in late 1950 as a “young buck” from the West Coast to serve two years at Shearwater, partly because of his basketball talents, he boarded the aircraft carrier HMCS Magnificent. In November of 1953 Rod married his wife Joan and shortly thereafter headed for Korea where he spent his first year of married life. While the Korean experience was anything but pleasant, Ron credits it for maturing him. “I grew up quick over there and realized I wasn’t as important as I thought I was. It also gave Joan and me a chance to start on a solid footing when I came home.” In the late 1950’s, he began to “fool around” with officiating but didn’t get serious until 1961. Officials of the day were the likes of Bill White, Austin Matthews, Derek Piers, David Dunlop, Buddy Wallace, Struan Robertson and Johnny Fortunato.

Since then he has served two terms as president of the Nova Scotia Board of Approved Basketball Officials (1969-71), 1979-80); been a rules clinician in Metro Halifax since 1968; served 12 years as a member of the college board; participated at all levels of national championships; toured Red China with the national team; officiated at Stoke Mandeville world championships for the physically disabled in England; was a member of the national committee chosen to compile the first international rule book for Canada; served as referee-in-chief of the college board and national college championship; was the first non-Manitoba official invited to work the prestigious Golden Boy Classic in Winnipeg and was one of the first Nova Scotia referees selected to work the Canada Games.

His list of awards include IAABO honorary citation for contributions to basketball officiating 1973; National Association of Basketball Coaches of Canada Merit Award 1977; Nova Scotia School Athletic Federation Certificate of Merit Award 1985; CABO’s top honor, the J.A. Wink Willox Award, annually given to one referee in Canada for outstanding contribution; IAABO and NSABO 25 year service and contribution to official development award.

As an athlete and administrator, he competed in the 1952 Canadian junior track and field championships; was a member of the Purdy Cup football championship team Stadacona Sailors in 1953 and 1958; played for Canadian Senior Basketball champions Halifax Schooners in 1965 and 1966; was athletic director at King’s College from 1965 to 1980 where he coached men’s basketball for nine years and women’s volleyball for two years; has been athletic director at Technical University of Nova Scotia since 1980 and a director of Ashburn Golf and Country Club since 1980.

Rod remembers with bittersweet memories his final college games, one of which was what has been called the greatest college basketball game ever. It was the night guard John Beausang launched a bomb at the buzzer to lift Acadia Axemen over Saint Mary’s Huskies in triple overtime at a jam-packed Halifax Forum in the early seventies. It was sweet because it was such a great game to officiate and bitter because the very same week, Rod stopped refereeing local college games and dedicated his career to the more amateur leagues. Rod believes young officials are not getting a chance to do good games early enough in their careers, thereby giving them something to strive for and a sense of accomplishment. “You almost have to be perfect before you get a chance to do a good game now.” Rod’s advice to young referee is, “No matter if the game is minor league or college, you have to work just as hard. Give the players an honest effort and be consistent.”

Bio Courtesy of Terry O’Neil