in the shooting circle is critical as correct decisions are necessary here to maintain the control of the match as well as the outcome. Exact positioning will be determined by the need to keep the ball in view, the desire to be reasonably close to the ball and the relative pace of the game. The preferred position of most umpires is behind and to the right of the play as the lead umpire, whilst the other umpire (the trailing umpire) is around 15m behind at a 45 degree angle with the engaged umpire. History The early history of hockey officiating is quite similar to that of football refereeing: decisions could only be made on appeal by the players (compare with cricket where this is still the case for some decisions); and if no dedicated official was available the team captain could act as an umpire in addition to playing. Over time it has come to be desirable that the umpires should be neutral, although many matches are still played with one umpire from each club involved in the game. Uniform Umpires are required by the Rules to wear clothing of "similar colours to one another, but different from those of both teams". In practice, umpires appointed by their Association, National body or the FIH wear black slacks (male) or a black skirt with knee-high black socks (female). In club competitions, particularly in colder climates, females often adopt the black pants instead of a skirt. Each competition has its own approved umpiring shirt, sometimes with various colour options and sometimes with different shirts for different competition divisions (for example, the premier league may have a different shirt to the remainder of the competition). In February 2012, Grays International became the new supplier of official's uniforms (including umpiring shirts) for FIH competitions, replacing TK. Grays manufacture three colours of umpire shirts for international matches - red, yellow and blue. Previous colours used by the FIH include cerise, turquoise and yellow (circa 2005) and fuchsia, turquoise and purple (circa 2000). Video Umpires In FIH World-Level competitions, where facilities are available, a video umpire is appointed in addition to the field and reserve umpires. The scope of the video umpire's role is restricted to making decisions as to whether or not a goal has been legally scored. To this end, the video umpire may assist in decisions to determine: whether the ball crossed the