Question Number: 30282

Law 11 - Offside 4/13/2016

RE: competitive Adult

Andy Hollingsworth of Thormhill, Dumfries and Galloway scotland asks...

Can you please clear up an incident from a recent game I was involved in, the 2 strikers were headed towards the goal with the ball, 1 striker managed to get himself into an offside position, his team mate shot at goal but his shot was blocked by the defender, the ball rolled to the player still in an offside position who put the ball into the net, should the goal have been allowed or was the striker offside?

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Andy
I believe you have answered the questioned when you mention blocked which is a rebound / deflection. This is a perfect example of a player gaining an advantage by being in an offside position. The rebound off the defender does not negate the offside so the goal should be disallowed for offside. To quote the relevant section of law 11
** Gaining an advantage by being in that position” means playing a ball that
1. rebounds or is deflected to him off the goalpost, crossbar or an opponent having been in an offside position
2. rebounds, is deflected or is played to him from a deliberate save by an opponent having been in an offside position
A player in an offside position receiving the ball from an opponent, who deliberately plays the ball (except from a deliberate save), is not considered to have gained an advantage.*

Answer provided by Referee Jason Wright

Hi Andy,
Was the striker in an offside position at the moment the ball was last touched by his teammate? By that I mean, was he in front of the ball? And was he closer to the goal line than the second last line of defence?
If so, he's in an offside position.

The laws would 'nullify' the offside if the goalkeeper 'played' the ball - say, he made a controlled parry. For a save - a blocked shot - the initial offside should still remain.

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