Question Number: 19987

Law 3 - Number of Players 9/18/2008

RE: Any Under 16

Derek of Vacaville, CA USA asks...

Mechanics: How is a card shown to a player off the field. I have not had this situation occur yet, but I could see the the following scenario occuring: Player goes off the field because of injury without informing the referee who's back was to the player at that time. Once referee notices and during a stoppage in play, how is player approached? Let's say the player is a bench w/ leg up and ice on it, do you walk up to the player or call them over? Restart would be for whatever stoppage in play was for. If Ref stops play just to issue caution, restart is IFK to other side, correct.
Thanks

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

That's correct. The mechanics are the same. Go to the player, tell him he's being cautioned for whatever reason the caution is for and then show the yellow card.

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

First you need to evaluate whether or not you need to caution the player. Technically it's a must. But in a youth game, even older youth ages like U16, where we are more proactive to protect the players from harm, you might just go and remind him of his obligation to receive permission to leave the field. The AR might also be able to head off the player leaving without permission.

It's similar to the u-littles where we don't abandon the game for pitch invasion when a parent runs out to comfort her child with a boo-boo. We show some common sense.

If the ref stops play for the caution, the restart is an IFK for the opponents, at the position the ball was when the player left the field - or where it was when the referee discovered the player had left the field.