Question Number: 15867

Law 11 - Offside 6/22/2007

RE: USSF Grade 8 Under 17

Z. Nguyen of Marin County, California U.S. asks...

At the Gold Cup semi-final game between US and Canada yesterday, a defender played the the ball back and it was intercepted by an attacker who was in an offside position. This attacker scored a goal but the referree disallowed it because he ruled it was an offside. I thought there shouldn't be an offside from a back pass by a defender. The attacker should be penalized only if he received the ball played by one of his teammates. Did the referree make the correct call? Thanks.

Answer provided by Referee Jon [Withheld]

This was not acutally a deliberate pass from the defender. For this to be offside, the player who finally recieved the ball would have had to have been offside when his team mate originally passed the ball. A defender must be in complete control of the ball for offside to be reset, here it was just a deflection off of the defender therefore offside was still in play. However, the attacker wasn't offside when his team mate played the ball therefore the goal should have stood. Being a referee you should really know this.

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

There is also discussion going on in the various media and internet forums that the AR may have thought a Canadian player deflected the ball forward. If that was the case, then a new offside determination occurs, and the call would have been correct.

Answer provided by Referee Ben Mueller

You are listenting to the incorrect comments by the Canadian coach after the game. A player needs to be closer to goal line than ball and 2nd last defender and also, on attacking half of field to be considered in an offside position. Then he is penalized if and only if he gets invovled in play AT THE MOMENT BALL TOUCHES HIS TEAMMATE. Here the referee ruled that the player was in an offside position at the time the ball touched the attackers teammate. The only way that offside gets reset is if a defender establishes control of the ball (which did not happen) or new attacker that was not in an offside position touches ball. If the ball bounces of a defender and comes to the offside position player, then there can indeed still be offside as the defender never controlled the ball. Hope this helps!

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi Z.
you think correctly, there is no offside for the opposition on a ball that a defender plays backwards towards his keeper.
However was that what occurred? Not likely given the official decision!

Your other question is did the referee make the right call?
He supported member of his team whose responsibility it was to make that judgement so kudoes for the referee! Yes it was the right call!

The referee supported the raised offside flag his AR displayed.
In fact it is likely the referee whistled the play dead even before Canada scored the goal. A whistle if heard by the USA keeper might have caused him to relax a bit, yes? Especially if he noted the raised flag.

As a Canadian fan I was peeved as I thought it was a good goal. That is watching from my tv armchair where unfortunately our best work is done within our own minds!

In the sequence of play I thought the attacker who scored the goal was onside when his team mate kicked the ball down field and he used the ball's flight time to get inbehind the 2nd last opponent.
As that ball traveled in the air a Canadian, Hume I think, tried to head the ball and in my opinion missed the ball, instead it fell to the head of the American defender who did not miss and the ball was either played or deflected depending on your opinion of what constitutes such things. It is the consensus of all panel members on this site the ball was deflected.

The question that blazes around the world why did the AR raise his flag? Not why did the referee support him? I expect my referee to support any flag I raise if I am certain it is so! The referee could overrule me if he KNOWS something I do not but he must acknowledge me with either a whistle to stop play or wave me off to allow play to continue.
As a world class official one could expect the AR understands LAW 11 as well as anyone on the face of the planet. It is after all what he is SPECIFICALLY trained to do.

So if the AR held that opinion it would have to be one of these!

The Canadian attacker who scored was in fact offside positioned when his team mate last touched the ball in the AR's opinion be it perceived or true and the ball that contacted the American defender was a deflection which changes nothing with regards to offside play for the Canadian opponents.

The Canadian attacker who scored was not originally offside positioned when his team mate last touched the ball but in the AR's opinion HUME managed a very slight deflection of the ball just prior to the American header. If you look close at any replay the Canadian attacker was offside positioned if indeed this slight touch by Hume percieved or true occurred!

As my esteemed colleague Ref Fleischer and my good friend Chuck obliquely points out the Esse Barharmast100% correct call in the 98 World Cup that no one saw for several days until the one camera actually focused on that specific spot at that specific moment blazed its truth for all detractors to see

Now those two opinions if held by the AR are 100% correct in law whether or not we think different.

It is obvious the Referee or AR did not think the American defender played the headed ball with control /possession as that would negate any offside position by a Canadian opponent!

As a devout Canadian fan it hurts to see it end so ugly but we dug a hole 2 to zip and cannot hold the officials responsible for our poor 1st half instead be grateful for the 4 extra minutes as I thought we were only to get 3.. Yes OT would have tickled me to see it but it shows why you must bury all chances when they come and stop all opponents when you can
Cheers

The following questions were asked as a follow up to the above question...

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