Question Number: 30689

Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct 8/26/2016

John Andrews of Cygnet, Tasmania Australia asks...

This question is a follow up to question 30684

Thanks for that. I did look but couldn't find a relevant answer. It was to do with a player leaving the field of play and how that could be interpreted. Excellent job.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi John
Part of the knack is knowing where to look. Law 3 has the following statement and I quote
** A player who crosses a boundary line as part of a playing movement, does not commit an infringement.**
Also some of what is in the Laws is tacit knowledge and that has been built up over years. We can deduce from also other law statements what is understood to be an offence or not. In this case there are such statements in Laws 11 and 12 about treating a player who unintentionally left the field of play as part of playing movements.
In addition The former Questions and Answers were a great resource as they posed and answered such questions. Here is one such question in 2006 which is still the law today.
** A player in possession of the ball passes over the touch line or the goal line without the ball in order to beat an opponent. What action does the referee take?
Play continues. Going outside the field of play may be considered as part of a playing movement, but players are expected, as a general rule, to remain within the playing area.** I note that Q&As have made a return in 2016.

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

See Question: 30737