Question Number: 23434

Law 15 - Throw In 6/8/2010

RE: Select Under 12

Frank Remmel of Fort Worth, Texas US asks...

If a a player takes a throw-in from any position other than the point where the ball passed over the touch line, the throw-in goes to the opposing team.


True or False

Answer provided by Referee Dennis Wickham

Coach: this appears to be a question from the USSF referee test, and I'd prefer not to answer it.

The answer can be found in Law 15, and Advice To Referees 15.1.

Instead, let me refer you to the needs of Law 15.

Far too many referees ignore the place of the throw-in, and this lax approach can affect the game. Unchecked players will keep testing the referee, and it is not uncommon to see players run 10 to 15 yards up the line on a throw in. IMO, the wise referee will put a stop to this in the first instance, and hold up the throw, insisting that it is taken from the correct location.

It is not mandatory, however, for the referee to be proactive about the spot of the throw-in. If the team takes the throw-in from the wrong spot, Law 15 does not require a warning.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Frank
The answer to this depends on the circumstance in which it is being asked. Law 15 has a clearly defined technical answer.
In reality does every throw in be taken from the exact point it passed over the touchline or does every free kick be taken from the exact blade of grass at which the infraction took place? In the normal playing of the game there is some latitude given on these positions. Indeed even identifying the exact point can be a challenge. The question then revolves around how much latitude should be given. Some Associations suggest that within one metre of the point is acceptable and satisfies the requirement.

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

False the way the question is phrased. The point from which the TI is taken is only one of the items referees watch for on the restart, and there is some leeway allowed in the Laws for a short variation on where it must be thrown. The referee can decide the infraction is trifling and allow play to continue. It is the referee who gets to decide whether it is the correct place or not.