Question Number: 32835

Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct 10/24/2018

RE: Competitive Under 13

Fred Plenn of Seaville, NJ United States asks...

Player A is dribbling the ball towards his own PA and trips and falls onto the ball. Player B kicks at the ball as Player A is on the ground not having had a chance to regain his feet. Which player is guilty of PIADM? This was called as a foul on Player A in a game I was watching.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Fred
Every chance that Player A tried to play the ball while he was on the ground. That is my experience of these situations.
As a result Player A cannot move quickly and he runs the high risk of getting kicked while the ball is close to him, probably lying on it.
Safety is paramount so the referee in my opinion was correct to stop play and call an IDFK on A.
Having said all that it does not give Player B a free pass to recklessly kick the ball and a fallen player close to it. If A had no time to react and Player B just kicked aimlessly then that is a foul by B and perhaps a card as well for reckless play.
Each situation is different and the referee will call it based on what he sees. Going the safety first route an early call may be made and generally against the player on the ground who looks like he is attempting to play the ball by laying on it and not trying to get up to his feet.

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

HI Fred,
there are two fouls here to consider,
PIADM INDFK on A & a kicking foul of attempts to kick or if contact kicking foul of a DFK on B with possible cardable misconduct

Just because a player falls is NOT an offence, what he does in trying to regain his feet or in attempting to play the ball while on the ground MIGHT be the ingredients of PIADM.

That though is NOT a guarantee as the ball is within playing distance the A player on the ground is permitted to shield the ball as he arises, just not in an unsafe manner but it is not necessary illegal to play that ball while on the ground .

If the player in the ground is on top of the ball & is making no effort to get up or using his hands or head to control the area around the ball or has compressed the ball say between his legs & there is an opponent hovering nearby trying to get to that ball at the youth age we generally call the PIADM quickly to head off any possible injury.

I believe USA high school rules would be inclined to go with the PIADM immediately as they emphasize safety above everything just so the kick could not possibly occur.

Under FIFA we generally wait a second or too to give a moment to regain his feet to see if the player is acting in a fair or unsafe manner & if the opponent is actually disadvantaged & restrained from having to play the ball.

If the referee award an INDFK for PIADM then he had decided the player on the ground created an unsafe situation and that the kick by player B was not careless reckless or excessive.
Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Peter Grove

Hi Fred,
Only one of the two, the player on the ground, might potentially be seen as playing in a dangerous manner but not necessarily so - it all depends on how the situation develops. The player who is kicking at the ball is not guilty of PIADM but might well be judged guilty of kicking or attempting to kick an opponent in a manner that is careless, reckless or using excessive force.

As my colleagues have mentioned, it is not always the case that PIADM must absolutely be called immediately whenever a player falls onto the ball. There is usually some leeway allowed, to see if the player can either play the ball away or regain their feet, especially at higher levels of the game. The referee should not wait too long of course, lest a dangerous situation develop and that is all the more true at youth level where the call should come sooner rather than later.

If the opponent is too quick and too aggressive in trying to kick at the ball before the fallen player has even had a chance to do anything, the call could also go against the player doing the kicking.

In the end, I think this is yet another case of YHTBT - the call could go either way and it depends on the actual circumstances and the individual judgment of the referee in the game in question.