Question Number: 33262

Law 6 - The Other Match Oficials 4/22/2019

RE: Select Under 16

Chris Payne of Suwanee, Georgia USA asks...

On a corner kick there was significant action and confusion in front of the goal. As the AR2 I saw the ball clearly cross the goal line for a goal. I know the proper mechanic is for me to run up the touch line to indicate a goal but nobody (including the Center), is looking at me. What should I do? Keep running? Yell at the Center? Thanks for your help with this and for all the support you provide to refs like me.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Chris
The proper signal is to raise the flag to signal that the ball has crossed the goal line when the ball appears to stay in play. When the referee sees the raised flag followed by eye contact the AR should then run up the line towards halfway which signals a goal.
In the situation where the referee has not seen the flag the AR should remain in place with the flag raised above his head until the referee sees it. Once the flag is seen and eye contact has been made the run up the line should commence.
In the case of a missed flag and without buzzers I have always found it appropriate to shout the referees name to attract his attention. I have found that to work well with no *untoward* outcome. The referee is usually tuned into his first name so when he hears it shouted from the direction of an AR it always gets his attention.
Many times appeals from players / bench usually attracts the referee towards the unseen flag which can take a few seconds.

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

HI Chris, it is thanks to referees like you that enable us to continue with our enthusiasm and passion for the game, knowing our efforts are still making a difference in the beautiful game!
When it is OBVIOUS a ball has bulged the old onion skin and you KNOW it was good goal. Although not required, a referee may or may not blow the whistle, then you can move up along the touchline to get ready for the kick off. Eye contact, thumbs up. All is good! However in cases where the ball has crossed the goal line and came back into play immediately you RAISE the flag to indicate to the referee that indeed he MUST Stop play! While eye contact is a must occasionally things occur in such away as the back is turned so without the buzzers or microphones, calling out verbally is certainly a worthy effort to gain the referee's attention. Plus a raised flag generally gets everybody else screaming at the referee if he is missing that signal,. lol Once he turns and sees you with the flag you can run up the touchline, do the hand wave palm flip which is a soft signal indicating ball in and out or he can run over to talk to you . Remember it WAS a goal so KEEP the flag raised until the next stoppage or he acknowledges you and make sure he DOES NOT restart until YOU have confirmed to him what you KNOW to be true!
Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Peter Grove

Hi Chris,
Here's what the laws document says in the 'Practical Guidelines for Match Officials' section:

''When a goal has been scored but the ball appears still to be in play, the assistant referee must first raise the flag to attract the referee's attention then continue with the normal goal procedure of running quickly 25-30 metres along the touchline towards the halfway line.''

What this does not address, is the situation where the assistant raises the flag but the referee does not see it straight away. As my colleagues have both indicated, you should not lower the flag until the referee has seen it. If they are still not looking your way, it is worth calling out to the referee (using their name as ref McHugh suggests, may work) to attract their attention.