Question Number: 31433

Kicks From The Penalty mark 4/6/2017

RE: Senior Referee Adult

Radomir Senic of Brisbane, Queensland Australia asks...

For the penalty kicks to decide a winner new Law says that ref has to toss coin to decide the goal at which the kicks will be taken.What about who takes first and second penalty kick?Does the ref tosses a coin again or is it decided alternate?Thanks

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Radomir
Yes there are now two coin tosses, one to decide the end and the other to decide who goes first or second.
There had been a problem in the past with referees deciding which end to take the kicks and that did not sit well with supporters who felt it was a benefit / disadvantage to one team decided by the referee. It is now a decision of a lottery provided both end are equal in terms of surface and that there are no safety issues.

Answer provided by Referee Peter Grove

Hi Radomir,
Ref McHugh has given the right info as regards the coin tosses. The actual wording of the law is:

''Unless there are other considerations (e.g. ground conditions, safety etc.), the referee tosses a coin to decide the goal at which the kicks will be taken which may only be changed for safety reasons or if the goal or playing surface becomes unusable

The referee tosses a coin again and the team that wins the toss decides whether to take the first or second kick''

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

HI RAdomir,
IT should be noted we often use a coin that says Away and Home rather then let the call be a head or tails there is no need to decide who gets to call, the referee simply flips the coin and the coin decides.
Cheers