Question Number: 22190

League Specific 10/9/2009

RE: Varsity HS, college High School

Richard Gramolini of Farmingville, NY United States asks...

In High School, if a player gets hurt, say minor injury (cramp, hit in the shin, wind knocked out of him), and you stop the clock without beckoning a coach or trainer.
Does that player have to come off?

Is the H.S. rule, anytime you stop the clock for an injured player, he MUST come off? Even if nobody enters the field to treat him?

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

NFHS rules state that the clock must stop at a goal kick, penalty kick, yellow and red cards, and at the discretion of the referee in which injury is listed.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Ref Gramolini
Ref Wickham has answered the question from a NFHS perspective. In general though I believe that if a player accepts the request for treatment and the for some reason does not receive it then he should still leave the FOP.
I have asked player if they need assistance, they agree and I signal on the physio to be then told that they are okay and don't need any help. I always ask them to leave the FOP in these situations. If they complain I say that as soon as the physio stepped on the FOP the process has to be completed.

Answer provided by Referee Dennis Wickham

The clock is not stopped automatically for an injury, but is one of the reasons the referee may order the clock be stopped.

Unlike the laws of the game (when a player must come off if play is stopped by the referee because of a serious injury or if the referee beckons the trainer onto the field if play is stopped for some other reason), under NFSH high school rules the player must leave if 'attended to on the field' or 'is deemed injured by the referee.'

Few referees would stop the clock if they did not believe the player was injured. So, it is very unlikely that the referee would stop the clock, determine that the player is not injured, and then allow the player to remain. But, the rules do not mandate that the player come off just because the referee has stopped the clock.