Being a referee isn't regarded as the most desirable job for a young man but for former Canobolas Rural Technology High School student Connor Taylor, there's nowhere he'd rather be than on a basketball court with a whistle in his mouth.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The 15-year-old just wrapped up a three-year stint as an official for Orange District Basketball Association and has now moved to Cairns where he'll continue his refereeing career in Queensland.
While the relocation is for his father's spray painting business, Taylor's excited to oversee some more competitive action up North after living in the Central West for his entire life.
Being committed to officiating at such a young age is admirable but what's special about Taylor's story is that his playing and refereeing career kicked off at the same time.
Usually a ref would have a wealth of experience on the court when they make their debut but Taylor threw himself in the deep end and took on playing and officiating at the same time.
He doesn't fancy himself much as a hooper and says his basketball future will be almost entirely focused on refereeing.
"I've had a passion for refereeing since year four," Taylor said.
"When I started playing I told myself I'd give officiating a crack and I've stuck to it ever since.
"It's really challenging and I've always liked challenges... without those it would get a little boring. That's what's kept drawing me towards it."
Basketball's a bang-bang sort of sport as the man in the middle often has only milliseconds to make crucial calls, dissimilar to rugby league where referees can often wait a second of two before ruling on an infringement.
It's those quick decisions that attracts Taylor to the job as he loves the work out your mind gets from it.
"Being so quick trains your brain to keep up with the play," he said.
"It's hard learning all the things that you've got to get your head around."
Unfortunately for Taylor, a partial achilles tear will see him miss the entire winter of action but he's hell bent on returning with a bang next season.
"I've got to wait now but I'm looking to ref under 16s and 18s state championships," he said. "Hopefully I'll get down to NSW and do a few representative rounds there as well."
Orange District Basketball Association has recently expressed its need for referees ahead of the 2020 season and Taylor didn't struggle to list reasons why becoming an official is a great idea.
"It's so much fun and I love meeting new people," he said.
"I've travelled a lot for it. Last year I went to Broken Hill and I never thought I'd end up there.
"As a player you train, play and then leave but there's so much behind-the-scenes stuff that goes into refereeing.
"You have to get to certain levels and go to weekend courses... it's great fun."
Orange District Basketball took to its Facebook page to give Taylor some kind parting words.
"We say thank you and wish you all the best for the future," ODBA said. The club also gave Taylor a Certificate of Appreciation for valuable service to the association.
For now, it's rehabilitation time for Taylor as he's set to mend his achilles and watch his favourite NBA team, the Philadelphia 76ers.
DO YOU WANT MORE ORANGE NEWS AND SPORT?
- Receive our free newsletters delivered to your inbox, as well as breaking news alerts. Sign up below ...