Question Number: 32343

Law 11 - Offside 4/1/2018

Jordon of Sydney, NSW Australia asks...

Hi, I wanted to know if the 2nd last defender from team 'A' is off the field of player to avoid a tackle, is it offside if the attacker from team 'B' is closer to his goal line than him? And would this be the same outcome if the 2nd last defender from team 'A' was injured and getting treatment off the field of play?. Thank you!

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Jordan
It all depends if the player is off the field of play with permission or not. If permission is not given and the player gets there through normal playing motion the player is placed on the goalline or touchline for offside purposes.
If the player is injured as part of play and does not return the referee has to make a decision. The player is still placed on the line until the ball is cleared away towards half way. Once that happens the player is not factored into any subsequent offside calculation.

Answer provided by Referee Peter Grove

Hi Jordon,
If the player has left the field without permission (including as a normal part of play such as to avoid a tackle) the law puts it thusly:

''A defending player who leaves the field of play without the referee's permission shall be considered to be on the goal line or touchline for the purposes of offside until the next stoppage in play or until the defending team has played the ball towards the halfway line and it is outside their penalty area.''

If the player has left the field to be treated for injury this would normally be with permission so the above provision would not apply.

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

See Question: 32354