Question Number: 15625

Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct 5/28/2007

RE: Competetive Under 18

Brian Sniatkowski of Kinnelon, NJ USA asks...

Here is the situation. The keeper goes high in the air for a ball. As he comes down with it a player from the opposing team runs into him, knocking him (holding the ball) backward into the goal.

Ref blows a half-hearted whistle, says "Foul, no goal" , but allows play to continue and the GK to punt the ball.

My guess is that the ref felt that to have the defending team restart from the point of infraction vs. allowing the GK to punt the ball would have given the offending team a benefit from their infraction (In most cases punts will go farther than kicks).

Though his intent seemed to be in the spirit of the law, it doesn't seem like the correct way to handle it to me.

Question: How should this properly be handled?

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

Good intentions cannot be used to change the Laws of the Game. The ref blew his whistle and stopped play - that alone means play must resume with one of the restarts in the Laws. Then he said it was a foul, so that defined which restart it would be - a free kick. I assume the location of the foul was within the goal area, so the ball could be placed anywhere in the goal area for the kick. Not as good as a punt where the keeper could go up to the 18, but that's what is required. By not using the proper restart, the referee has made the game technically protestable. Whether any such protest would hold up is another question, but it was an error in application of the Laws.

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

The whistle blew. Play was stopped. An IFK for playing in a dangerous manner or a DFK for a careless push, charge or jump.

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi Brian,
half hearted you say?
A whistle speaks to players as surely as any tool in our man management belt!
A collision by an opponet into a keeper with ball possession requires a loud firm skreech and quick intervention by a referee to placate any retailiation issues.
It is at minimum a push or charge and DFK out from inside the 6 yard area. There could be caution or send off possibilities depending on the severity of the event.
Whistle be it loud or a quiet tweet demands a restart according to WHY it was sounded!
Cheers

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

See Question: 15650