Support signs: Go to bouts and support your favourite NSO with a sign. Even officials need support when they’re in action and this is an easy way to encourage them while they’re on track. You may think the officials do not notice support signs because they rarely smile – but we do! Just make sure it’s not in any league affiliated colours as all officials pride themselves on professionalism and impartiality.

Pencils or whiteboard markers: Officials can never have too many of these invaluable items. Somehow they always seem to go missing in bout halftime or whenever skaters want to “borrow” them for writing numbers on their arms. These will always come in handy and no NSO can do a bout or scrimmage without them.

Clipboards: Another way to make that special NSO in your life happy – clipboards! They come in different variations and materials and an excellent gift idea is to buy clipboards in a sturdy material, so they don’t break easily. Buying different variations with the clip on either the top or the side is also possible, as is buying extra fancy ones with pencil holders.

Stopwatches and batteries: These babies are an essential part of any dedicated official’s kit and like the clipboards, these come in a multitude of variations. Look for stopwatches with a reasonable sized display and digits; numbers should be easily read. The stopwatches should also be easy to handle. Starting, pausing and resetting should be done without problems. And don’t forget batteries!

Whistles: This is a far more personal gift than the ones listed above as officials usually have a preferred brand and type of whistle. A recommended brand in Roller Derby is the Fox 40 Classic and the Fox 40 Eclipse. Depending on the official, they may have a preferred colour and length of lanyard as well, so this is a gift that needs a bit of thought – but no matter what a new whistle will be appreciated by any official.

Non-league affiliated derby merch: Officials may pride themselves on being impartial but that does not mean they do not want to show that they are in fact fans of roller derby. A shirt or pin that says “ROLLER DERBY” or “OFFICIAL” will still be considered impartial when in civil clothing. There are many options and if you are creative, you can perhaps make your own merch as a personal gift.

Earplugs: For any official who works on the inside of the track, this will be an invaluable gift. Trying to keep your hearing and your sanity is not easy with five whistles blowing in your ear when each jam ends. There are certain criteria, however. When working on the inside, your hearing should not be impaired in any way as vital information (such as penalties) may be overheard. If you want to dazzle any official with a pair of earplugs, get a pair of noise-cancelling earplugs that will take the sharp edge of that damned Fox 40 Sonik Blast. They will probably cost more than a pretty penny but it will be worth it.

Shoes: When the skates wish for new skates, gear for their skates and yet again new skates, the Non Skating Officials skip the wheels and wish for shoes or boots instead. Not just any shoes, thank you very much, we have a long list of requirements and the perfect pair of bout footwear is up there amongst our biggest dreams.

They need to be black – preferably all black, to go with the standards for officiating uniforms (and because we like black!). They have to be “closed toed” and rather sturdy to protect our feet from getting killed by a runaway zebra on skates. They have to be comfortable enough for us to stand in them during an entire tournament, non-slippery so we don’t tumble on the inside while chasing penalties and in general aid your performance on bout day. And last but not least – we’d like them to look cool and contributes to making us feel good in our boutfits/uniforms, too.

Just like skaters NSOs can express their personality through their uniform-style, and we’d like the shoes to be a part of that, too.

Flight or train tickets: Most officials love being on the road and travelling for derby. This, however, is not inexpensive. If you want to show your favourite NSO even more support, help them out financially. Many officials are booked for bouts and tournament 2-3 out of 4 weekends in a month and this definitely puts a strain on finances. So if you really want to shower an NSO with love and support, flight or train tickets are a sure-fire way to do just that.

Tour bus: Officials love travelling and they love travelling together. And if you feel like you just can’t show your officials enough love through clipboards and train tickets, we’ve got a perfect solution for you: a tour bus for your officials’ travelling needs! It is both a mode of transport and a place for officials to sleep during tournament weekends. Your officials will hopefully (but probably not, considering the price of petrol these days!) save money on transportation, and they get to bond even more on their way to new roller derby adventures. Yay!