Question Number: 24296

Character, Attitude and Control 11/8/2010

RE: rec Under 18

larry phelps of Newburgh, new york usa asks...

When team A kicks the ball out of play over the touchline because of an injury to a team B player, on the throw-in restart for team B, are they obliged to throw the ball to team A? Does the ref give direction on where the ball should be thrown?

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Larry
Nothing to do with the referee. Indeed teams should wait for the referee to decide whether to stop play or to wait for a natural stoppage.
It has become practise that teams will throw the ball back to the team in possession in the interest of fair play when it has been deliberately kicked out of play. The referee should not direct this to happen but he should also manage the situation to ensure that nothing untoward happens such as the ball being kicked into the opponents' goal unchallenged, which then affect his match control.

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

It would be very unwise to direct a team to throw it to the other team. Reminding them that the other team kicked it out so their teammate could receive treatment usually works, however. And, if a team takes unfair advantage of this, I'm sure the referee wasn't quite ready for the restart, so it will have to be taken again.

What works better is for the teams not to have to stop the game themselves to have an injured player attended. That is the referee's job.