Question Number: 15936

Law 5 - The Referee 7/3/2007

RE: House league Under 11

Leah of Thornton, Ontario Canada asks...

What happens if a player on the team you are refereing keeps pushing other players, you ask him to stop, but he keeps doing it, what do you do?

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

You don't ask the player to stop pushing, you tell him. And whistle a foul each and every time that he pushes. Keep track of the number of pushing fouls you are calling. Caution and show the yellow card to a player for Persistent Infringement if he keeps fouling. And if he keeps it up after that - well, a second caution for PI, meaning he is sent off and shown the red card for receiving 2 cautions.

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

What Ref Voshol is saying isn't a bad thing because all the players the one is pushing will have better days. Your whistle has told the player he is doing wrong. The first caution has told him his persistently ignoring you telling him to stop is falling on deaf ears. Remember when cautioning a player the referee must tell him why he is being cautioned!

So there he is, play gets stopped every time he pushes, then he is told, by you, to stop pushing. A reasonable person would understand something he is doing is not right. He continues pushing.

At this point the referee must realise the player is asking to be sent-off. Don't refuse his pleas... After a player such as him goes away the match is better for it. All the other players, the ones being pushed, will have fun again and isn't that the point of playing a game?

Regards,

Answer provided by Referee Ben Mueller

Hit him with a caution for persistant infringement. If the pushing is reckless, then the player should be given a caution for unsporting behavior. If it involves excessive force, then the player should be sent off for serious foul play.

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

See Question: 16644