Question Number: 18172

Mechanics 12/26/2007

RE: Adult

Brendan Oates of San Francisco, CA USA asks...

hi,
was wondering exactly how linesmen call offsides. Do they use peripheral vision to catch the release of the ball, while concentrating on the forward to make sure he/she is not ahead of the defender when the ball is kicked? I understand the rule itself, I'm just interested in the technique used to call offsides.
Thanks,
Brendan

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi Brendan,
Excellent question as it speaks to the importance of procedures and mechanics to get these calls of *offside *correct! Note there is no "S" on the end.

If we stumble or are at angle to the second last defender, a moment of indecision, a blink, a loss of focus then the decision will be flawed if the opposing players are moving in opposing directions at 20 miles an hour the ability to register sound, ball movement and positional movement of players to a split second is lost and we must guess our best guess.

On some parks you can hear the sound of a ball as it is kicked as well as use the peripheral vision and the eye switch of glancing a peak and back again. Staying even with the second last defender is the basic drill to at least be in the correct position to make the determination but the ability to see and translate the movement of players and ball at the same time is in truth almost impossible to detect accurately if the situation is very close with players moving quickly in opposing directions. It is one reason why we are told when in doubt do NOT wave it (THE FLAG THAT IS) about.

The ability to be aware of when the ball is last touched and the absolute positions of the players is directly proportional to the ability to stay focused and concentrate on the duties the AR's are responsible for, not the actual game itself. The best ways to stay even , side step , skip or sprint, or even back walk remaining aware of position of the second last defender but still reading ball in or out or foul or misconduct behavior in support of the referee's action

Screening players, crowd noises and the fact that other things are going on that take up your attention as AR will at times make your number one duty of getting the offside call spot on difficult!
Notice I said duty, just want to impart the responsibility of offside is upper most but the safety of all those on the pitch takes precedence over anything else.

Sometimes the conflict of trying to watch players fight for control of the ball along your touchline and the offside positions changing as this occurs you could find it difficult to sidestep or run with breaking players yet watch if the ball travels out of play along the touchline or if either player is fouling the other.

ARs, although knowledgeable of the laws can indeed make the same type of decisions as the referee, but they do not look at the game in the same manner. ARs responsibilities to assist are clearly laid out in law 6! However the fitness and mental sharpness and the ability to read the developing play are all combined with a sharp set of eyes that continually dart about evaluating when, where and when to shift the feet to stay level with that ever changing fluidity of that second last opponent positional circumstances. To recognize that sound and eye contact will only partially compensate the movement of a head to see and place the correct order of events, that even cameras at times fail to clearly determine was he or wasn?t he?
Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Ben Mueller

The assistant referee keeps even with the second last defender or the ball (whichever is closer to goal line). It is proper for the AR to continuously look at the second last defender and then the ball throughout the game. This allows the AR to check to make sure he is in the proper position and also to prepare for a possible pass by an attacking player. It is critical that the AR knows where both the second to last defender is and the ball because the AR judges the position of the potential offside attacker at the moment the ball is touched by his teammate. Then as soon as the AR sees that the offside positioned attacker has gotten involved in play, the flag pops up.

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

Both of my colleagues offer a way to deal with offside position in a quiet environment. When you advance to stadiums that are noisy you can't look at the last but one opponent and listen for the ball to be struck. Here you will shift your head to see both where the ball is and the last but one opponent is. This is incredibly difficult because it involves using peripheral vision as your main source of visual information just as you surmise. It takes practice, almost as much as teaching yourself to always be at the last but one opponent or the ball which ever is nearer the goal line.

There is another problem with listening to the ball being struck, when you see the ball going to the offside attacker and have listened to the sound you assume it was an attacker who sent the ball forward. This is not always the case and if the referee knows a defender last played the ball, not an attacker, he is forced to wave off your flag as it is error. This reduces your credibility as an assistant for the rest of the match.

Regards,