Question Number: 16766

Mechanics 9/18/2007

RE: High School High School

Franco of Bloomington, USA asks...

This question is a follow up to question 16711

Would you consider it proper, in this circumstance [16711], for the team taking the kick to question the referee before the kick was made or are they to assume the referee is right and to not question his or her authority? If your answer to this is, yes they should have asked the ref, does this then open the door for them to question any other call that he or she makes and they don't agree or don't see it that way?
Franco

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

Players ask me all the time, "Is it direct or indirect?" I gladly answer, at least the first few times. Then I tell them what the signals are, as I use them. If my hand is up, it's indirect; else direct.

That wouldn't help the players in Q#16711 as the referee was giving them misleading information by using the incorrect signal. If a player knows the kick should be direct and sees the ref's arm up, he should politely ask, "Ref, is it indirect?" If the ref tells him yes and then later changes his mind, that becomes an even bigger mess!

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

Sure, but after one or two times they should have learned and the information won't be that easy to attain. The door to speak with a referee is always open because the referee should remain "approachable" by all. What usually happens is approachable becomes "browbeatable" to a specific player and that ruins it for all.

Regards,

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

NO player is restricted from asking what they wish. Just as no referee is restricted from responding. The key will always be what question and what response? As a player and coach I understand the referee is the authority but in the participating role as non referee I accept the possibility of a bad response as much as I might HOPE for a good one when I feel I MUST ask or I MUST respond because our responsibilitities are to our respective team and team mates as well as to the spirit and the laws of the game! Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Ben Mueller

Yes, but I will make sure they understand the signals. Problem is so many referees award IFK's for infractions that should result in dfk's that the players get confused. If every referee would do it right, then this confusion would not exist.