Question Number: 15225

Law 7 - Match Duration 4/19/2007

RE: Rec Under 13

Tom of Seattle, WA USA asks...

I first wanted to say what a great site this is. The insight from the refs is excellent! I have a long history with the game of soccer and have a good grasp of the LOTG. But the scenarios mentioned here are very educational.
My question is about the duration of the game. Questions about added time and the referee's decision on how much that will be.
My question...couldn't a referee stop his watch for time consuming events and restart it when play resumes? That way, when his watch reaches the 45 min mark the half, or game is ended without having to consider adding time? Or does this just increase the odds of a timing mistake by say forgetting to restart the timer.

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi Tom,
thanks for the kind words. All those who participate here do so for only the occasional comments like yours where the appreciation for the effort is rewarded.
You guessed it my friend, mistakes will occur if that was our only way of recording time. Time is a discretionary unit of expiration and while time is relative it is rarely to the micro second.
That is why a referee generally wears two watches. One is on a continual count down or up to full time, the other we could choose to do as you say. We all should reset watches after each half except the running stopwatch*. The ARS each wear at least one watch preferably two and I personally give an independant stop watch * to my senior AR or 4th for running time. Whenever a goal is scored or play is stopped to show a card aside from recording the information we should verbally give the reason, who, and time to our ARs & or 4th. Communication helps confirm that our times are accurate and we have not forgotten to stop or start our watches.
Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

Thanks for the compliments. We enjoy receiving questions and giving our answers - even if from time to time we disagree with each other, or the questions are tricky ones.

Personally I've forgotten to start my watch at the kickoff enough times that I don't trust myself with a stop-start method of keeping time.

One problem with this technique is that we are to add time only for unusual delays. The Laws have a list of them, ending with "or any other reason", so the reason for the stoppage is immaterial. What is of concern is whether or not the stoppage is prolonged. Say the ball goes out for a goal kick. You assume the defenders are going to chase it down and put it into play promptly, so you don't stop your watch. But that's not what happens - for some reason the either the players saunter, or the ball ends up in a hard to retrieve position, or just as the keeper is going to take the goal kick he decides he really needs to adjust his gloves and retie his shoes. Your watch was still running - how are you going to go back to make up that lost time? For myself, I prefer to make a mental note to add 1/2 or 1 minute.

Another advantage of keeping track of added time mentally is that if you are in a game where the added time cannot possibly matter, you aren't forced to add the whole amount of lost time. (Remember, the Laws say that the amount of time to be added is at the discretion of the referee - we must add some time if there have been delays, but how much is up to us.) If the score is 10-2, the teams for the next game are prowling the sideline chomping at the bit to come on, and your mental math says you really should add 3 minutes, you can make a judgement that in no way will the outcome of the game be changed, just add 30-40 seconds and call the game whenever it's not a particularly exciting moment of play.

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

Hi Tom. In a lot of youth games I do exactly as you suggest. The only problem is remembering to restart your watch!!! Hate to admit it, but I've done just that and had to ask my AR what the correct time was. In a lopsided game I rarely do this and add just a short bit of time as Ref Voshal suggests.

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

Thank you Tom, much appreciated. Corollary one to Murphy's Law prohibits the referee stopping his watch. Everyone knows what can go wrong will go wrong but few understand what goes wrong will be the worst possible thing that can go wrong.

A one-niller in the waining seconds of a match with the referee's watch stopped at 40 minutes to go.

The referee stopping and starting his watch at each instance he wants to add time -- the total added time is more than both linesmen realise and them screaming time's up -- the winning goal is scored...

We wear two watches because who knows when one is going to fail? The linesmen wear two because who knows when one will fail? Me, I note the time of day we start each period and what time of day the period should end, then set the rotating bezel on my watch to that time, then ensure the linesmen have their watches ready, then start the match. Of course I have been known to suffer the heat and forget to stop the period even though all watches are correct and it should be stopped.

Why introduce another way for things to go wrong???!

Regards,