Question Number: 25098

Kicks From The Penalty mark 6/13/2011

JDS of NYC, NY USA asks...

This question is a follow up to question 25087

The Italian committee have not lost their collective minds, I wish people would research this issue more carefully before throwing judgments around. As it happens, the rulebook for Italian referees explicitly represents this case. Rule 14 Article 12 section (c) says that during a penalty shoot-out, if the ball hits wood and then bounces backwards without hitting more wood or the GK, the play is over. There really is nothing to debate here, as the Italians know. One might argue that the rule itself is dumb (maybe it is, I don't know what the pro/contra arguments are), but that's not the point.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi
The real point is that while a regional competition authority can make whatever ruling it pleases that does not allow the competition organisers or its association to interprets differently or changes a Law of the Game. That right is reserved exclusively for IFAB.
The decisions of the AGM of the IFAB regarding changes to the Laws of the Game shall be binding on confederations and member associations.
No alteration to the Laws of the Game can be made by any confederation or member association unless it has been passed by the Board.
So FIGC is bound by what the LotG say and nowhere in Law 14 does it mention direction of the ball or it touching the ground. Even the referee trained and appointed by FIGC awarded the goal based on Law 14 supported might I add by most of the refereeing world.
I have read with the help of rough translation what the Italian advice is to referees on Law 14. What it is saying is that if 12 (C) the ball bounces back into play the game is over. What it also says that if 12 (G) the ball bounces on the goal line, between the posts and under the crossbar: the referee must wait and if the ball crosses the entire line, between the posts and under the crossbar a goal is awarded.
I have no difficulty with either statement. What is at debate is whether it is a C or G scenario and it is clearly G which is what the referee interpreted.
Addendum
The AIA Referee Technical Committee of FIGC on the 13th June stated that roughly translated ""Greater clarification of the practical guide to the AIA to p. 164, question No 12. (c)), the "bouncing back in the game" is to be considered as "bounces on pitch and remains the same. "
The full Italian FA Referee Technical Committee ruling can be viewed here and it fully supports our view that the referee was correct to award a goal.
http://www.aia-figc.it/download//13_06_2011caso.pdf

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

Italy is a member federation and cannot change LOTG that drastically. I'll stand by my statement that the Italians have lost their collective minds if they have altered the LOTG so drastically so as to disallow what is a goal everywhere else that plays by FIFA rules.

If Ref McHugh's translations are correct the Italians still blew it. If they say the game is over they can only be referring to a penalty kick taken after all time has expired as the directions are under Law 14. If "bounces back in the game" means "bounces on the pitch and remains the same" they still blew it as that ball clearly didn't "remain the same", it backspinned into the goal.

Regardless, Law 14 says the kick is over when the referee says it is. Period. No room for misinterpretation. The Italians may issue guidance as to when the referee should decide the kick is over but it is still his decision.

Insanity reigns if this referee's decision is overruled.

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

Before we all get huffy, let's consider for a moment that the rule you quote means exactly the same thing as what the IFAB has declared is how the referee determines if the PK is done.

Generally speaking, the referee is looking to see if the ball has lost it's forward momentum - or if you prefer, any momentum that can carry it into the goal - so a ball that hits the post or crossbar and doesn't hit the other post or the crossbar again, or rebound off of the goalkeeper, it's a pretty safe bet that the kick is over.

Sometimes trying to put that concept into different languages produces some interesting challenges. Perhaps this is one - I suspect the referees know what to do and when and how, and isn't that what matters?

The following questions were asked as a follow up to the above question...

See Question: 25167