Question Number: 25308

Law 11 - Offside 8/15/2011

RE: Under 19

Dave of DM, ia U.S. asks...

2 offside questions please:
1.Was taking one of those unofficial on-line ref quizes.
One asked that if Ref and near AR both missed an offside call during a play where a goal is subsequently scored, can the Ref disallow the goal before kick-off based on the advice of the far AR who claimed that there was an offside infraction.
Of course the Ref can disallow the goal before the restart, but should the far AR ever be consulted for OS?
Maybe if the infraction occured near the center line?
I'm thinking that it probably wouldn't 'sell' very well in any case.
2. Should offside ever be considered trifling?
Like when a player near the defender's goal in OSP runs clear back to near the center line to become involved in active play?
(Like on a high kicked ball or header)
Since he is now not much of an unfair threat, should you allow play to go on in the spirit of the trifling provision to avoid unecessary stopages?

Your thoughts are always appreciated

Answer provided by Referee Dennis Wickham

We know that if the assistant referee is not even with the second to last defender, there is a high likelihood of an error regarding offside position. Because of the way our eyes work, the different angle from being a yard out of position causes a player to look clearly off when in fact the player is onside. Imagine how much the error would be compounded when the trailing AR is more than 30 yards beyond the second last defender.

The trail assistant referee can help with many things. Offside position in the opposite half should not be one of them.

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

Ref Wickham nailed the first question. Trail AR should probably never help with OS, because as you note, it creates more problems than it solves.

As for whether offside can ever be trifling, I suppose it could. For instance, if the ball is going straight to the keeper who will get it before the attacker, then OS doesn't need to be called (although the AR should get that flag up just in case the keeper misses the ball). In the case you presented, the AR would have to wait until the player in the OSP actually got involved by interfering with play, with an opponent or gaining an advantage from his position (unlikely in your scenario).

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Dave
The trail assistant should not get involved in offside decisions in the other half of the field of play. He is not well positioned to do so. He could though offer information about a blatant error in Law such as seeing a defender on the ground say at the corner flag on the field of play that was missed by the lead AR and the referee in calculating offside. It is then up to the referee to assess that information.
As regards trifling on offside if the player is interfering with play or an opponent it must be called offside. It is irrelevant as to whether there is a threat or not. Possession of the ball in the appropriate circumstances even at half way can be a threat.
In this part of the world (outside the USA) the referee can decide not to accept the offside flag and play advantage when it is clear that the team will benefit from that advantage.

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

See Question: 25527