Question Number: 14839

Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct 2/12/2007

RE: select to rec Under 14

Brian B of baltimore , md usa asks...

keeper goes outside the penalty area and with his feet controls the ball. He then brings the ball into his penalty area and picks up the ball with his hands. Is this a legal play?

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi Brian,
a keeper has the special ability to use his hands within his own penalty area but as one of 11 players he can do anything another player can do with his feet. So yes in answering your first part of the question he can go out and legally dribble the ball back into his penalty area.

For the next part you ask can he reach down once inside his own penalty area and pick that ball up with his hands?
Here we have certain restrictions because it is the right of a keeper to be able to use his hands inside his own penalty area UNLESS one of the four restrictions mentioned in law 12 are in place

An indirect free kick is awarded to the opposing team if a goalkeeper, inside his own penalty area, commits any of the following four offences:

takes more than six seconds while controlling the ball with his hands before releasing it from his possession

touches the ball again with his hands after it has been released from his possession and has not touched any other player

touches the ball with his hands after it has been deliberately kicked to him by a team-mate

touches the ball with his hands after he has received it directly from a throw-in taken by a team-mate.

The key point of legality is not the keeper dribbling the ball back into his own area but if any of the four restrictions are in effect before he did so?

A ball off an opponent is not restricted
A ball passed to the keeper by a teammate using his head or chest for example is not restricted. You see it is not were the ball winds up but who did what and how it was done! Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Ben Mueller

Sure. The keeper can do this as long as a teammate did not kick ball to him deliberatly. Here the keeper just left the penalty area to play ball with feet (perfectly ok), brought ball back in area (again perfectly ok), and picked up ball with hands.

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

As long as he could have played the ball INSIDE his penalty area then he may collect the ball outside the penalty area, dribble it into his penalty area with his feet and subsequently handle it.