Make the Call - 2/25 - 3/3

In a U-16 boys game, Black #12, a team substitute, enters the field of play without permission from the referee. While the ball is in play, White #5 strikes Black #12 in the middle of the field.

What should the referee do?  What is the restart?.

Answer: The referee should stop play, show the red card to white #5, and send him off for violent conduct for striking black #12. Then the referee should show the yellow card to black #12, and caution him for unsporting behavior when he entered the field of play without permission from the referee. The referee should start play with an indirect free kick for the black team. Violent conduct is a more serious misconduct than entering the field of play without permission, and so the send-off is managed first in order to calm players down and prevent possible player confrontations and/or additional misconduct.

Make the Call - ATR

During a U17 Boys match Blue team player #9 falls to the ground after being held by Red team player #8 in the middle of the field. Blue #9 rolls around grabbing his ankle while screaming at the referee that the opponent should be cautioned.... "and no,  Blue #9 is not Fernando Torres."

What should the referee do? and what's the restart?

Make the Call - 2/18 - 2/24

In a U-16 boys game, Red player #9 takes a shot on goal which the White team's goalkeeper saves with his feet. Then the goalkeeper dribbles the ball outside the penalty area looking for a teammate to pass the ball to. He sees a Red team player approaching him to challenge for the ball so he dribbles back into his penalty area and picks up the ball.

What should the referee do? What is the restart?.

Answer: In this case, because the red team's goalkeeper originally saved the shot with his feet, he is allowed to handle the ball. Since the goalkeeper did not previously touch the ball with his hands, he did not commit any infringement when he picked up the ball inside his penalty area.

An indirect free kick is awarded to the opposing team if a goalkeeper, inside his own penalty area, touches the ball again with his hands after he/she has released it from his/her possession and before
it has touched another player.

Make the Call - ATR

In a U-17 boys game during the 72nd minute, white #9 is dribbling the ball towards the red team's penalty area. Red #4 who was already sent off at the 34th minute for "Violent Conduct" runs onto the field of play and takes the ball away from white #9.

What is the restart?

Answer: Restart with a dropped ball where the ball was when play was stopped*.

USSF Advice to Referees:

Tradition and common usage are very strong in soccer. Nowhere is this more true than in the definition of "outside agent." An "outside agent" (under any portion of the Laws of the Game) is anything that enters the field without the permission of the referee and plays or misdirects the ball or otherwise interferes with the game. This means that outside agents can be dogs or coaches or spectators or players who have been sent off. (Substitutes, whether called upon to play or not, are not considered outside agents.) Interference by any outside agent will result in the referee declaring a stoppage of play, restarting with a dropped ball where the ball was when play was stopped*. See Advice 3.17-3.20, 10.7 and 14.7 for further guidance on dealing with outside interference. If the interference is by a substitute who has entered the field of play without the permission of the referee, the restart is an indirect free kick where the ball was when play was stopped*. The kick is taken after the substitute is cautioned, removed from the field of play, and shown the yellow card.

Make the Call - Week 2/11 - 2/17

In a U-18 boys game, blue #11 takes a corner kick and the ball is going straight into the white team's goal. White #7 jumps up, grabs the cross bar pulling himself higher and stops the ball from going into the goal by heading it away to a teammate.

What is your decision?

Answer:

Players are not allowed to hang from the goal posts or crossbar as this is an unsporting behavior action. Illegally denying a goal scoring opportunity (DOGSO) is commonly done by deliberately handling the ball or by committing an offense against an opponent which results in a free kick or penalty. Also, denying a goal scoring opportunity offenses are not limited to those punishable by a direct free kick and include misconduct or those fouls by which the restart is an indirect free kick. In this case, blue # 3 committed two misconducts at the same time. The first was unsporting behavior for acting in a manner which shows a lack of respect for the game by hanging from the crossbar to assist play. The second was denying a goal scoring opportunity while committing the unsporting behavior offense. The referee needs to document both offenses in the game report but he should penalize only the most serious of the two offenses. Therefore the referee should stop play, show the red card to blue #3 and send her off for denying a goal scoring opportunity. Restart the game with an indirect free kick for the red team on the goal area line parallel to the goal line, at the spot closest to where the misconduct occurred.

Make the Call - Week 2/4 - 2/10

In a U-19 boys state cup final (white vs blue) 84th min. 2-2 game, white #11 receives permission from the referee to leave the field of play to change his shoes. White #11 is running toward the opponent's goal line to leave the field when the ball comes to him (he was not in offside position), so he kicks it into the goal and scores.

Make the call...

Answer: When the referee gave permission to white #11 to leave the field of play, he was expected to leave the field without participating in the game, and not return until given the approval of the referee. By playing the ball when he did, white #11 committed a misconduct. Therefore, the referee should stop play, disallow the goal and show the yellow card to white #11. After cautioning him for unsporting behavior (playing the ball after being granted permission to leave the field of play), the referee should restart the game with an indirect free kick for the blue team.

When a referee allows a player to leave the field while the ball is in play, he/she should ask the player to do so away from play and remind them not to interfere with play or the opponents.

Coin Toss:

The decision made by the team winning the toss is only which end of the field to defend; the other team takes the kick-off. When extra time is played, the coin toss again decides only which end the team winning the toss will defend in the first extra period of play. The team that wins the toss at extra time also kicks off to start the second period of extra time. A separate coin toss is required for kicks from the penalty mark; however, in this case, the team whose captain wins the toss decides whether to take the first kick or which goal to defend.

Is this correct?  Answer