Question Number: 14145

Law 1- The Field 10/15/2006

RE: Select Under 15

Doug McKellan of Abbotsford, BC Canada asks...

We recently played a game where the field was not fully marked. In other words, the lines were dashed not complete lines. It was confusing for the players and linesmen.
What is the official standard for field markings?

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

Law 1 - The field of Play affords:

Quote

The field of play is marked with lines. These lines belong to the areas of which they are boundaries.

The two longer boundary lines are called touch lines. The two shorter lines are called goal lines.

All lines are not more than 12 cm (5 ins) wide.

The field of play is divided into two halves by a halfway line.

The centre mark is indicated at the midpoint of the halfway line.

A circle with a radius of 9.15 m (10 yds) is marked around it.

End Quote.

The casual reader will notice there is a significant lack of the word "dashed" when referring to lines. The club marking their fields in this manner is to be commended for saving untold thousands of pennies worth of paint or chalk in their quest to have a better end of season party for the board of directors.

Regards,

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

Why in the world would anyone paint with dashes? I suppose if the referee wanted to make a point he could refuse to allow the game to be played as the field conditions are not adequate. This, of course, would be unfair to the kids that wanted to play but if the teams and coaches were ok with it, I think I would be tempted to refuse to start the game to make sure the fields were properly marked in the future. But I doubt I'd get any more assignments from this league and they probably would leave the fields as they were.

Answer provided by Referee Ben Mueller

Sounds like we might of had a breach in law 1 here. If the field is playable and the game is played, the referee should send a report to the proper authority stating the condition of the field.