Question Number: 16158

Law 11 - Offside 7/29/2007

RE: Rec Adult

Steve C of Ottawa, Ontario Canada asks...

Offside Call or Not ?
Here's the situation.
An attack by yellow team is foiled by the white team defence just inside of the penalty area. The white team has full control of the ball and starts to carry the ball back up field. The yellow striker is tired after his run and stands around resting inside the penalty area. He is now clearly and unambigously standing in an offside position as the white defence has started to move back up the field. White defender A passes the ball to the front of white defender B but it's not a great pass and yellow midfielder starts to close down the gap. White defender B decides a clearing ball is required to get the team out of danger. All this time the yellow striker continues to stand in the penalty area in offide position. The white defender's clearing kick is poorly directed and smacks the yellow midfielder really hard and rebounds straight to the yellow striker still standing clearly and unmistakably in an offide position. He receives the ball, turns and shoots. The ref does not call offside.. players comment questioningly and ref states that offide call would be wrong because the yellow midfielder did not pass or kick the ball to his team mate in offside position, the ball merely deflected off him and he had no control whatsoever. It IS true that the yellow midfielder had no control whatsoever and no active part in redirecting the ball to his striker. But I would have thought that the mere fact of it last touching the yellow midfielder before rebounding to the yellow striker in offside position would have been enough to require the offside call to be made. Please comment.
Thanks, Steve

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

Offside. Law 11 says, "A player in an offside position is only penalised if, at the moment the ball touches or is played by one of his team ..." Touches or is played - it doesn't say deliberate.

Unfortunately some referees don't have all the concepts straight. This referee confused deflection off the defense with deflection off the offense.

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

Law 11 gives us the moment, from which time forward, a player in an offside position is prohibited from getting involved in play. That moment is when the ball touches or is played by one of his own team.

Touches has the same meaning as "made contact with". In your scenario we see the ball did touch a team mate of the offside attacker. From that moment in time the offside player can't get involved. Now, what is not written, in so many words, is when the attacker's restrictions are removed. They are when the ball touches one of his mates again and he has positioned himself so that he is no longer offside, when the opponents have established control of the ball or when the ball is no longer in play.

So, your thoughts are spot on! The referee, whose name could well have been P. Pan, was off in Never, Never Land this time.

Regards,

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

This is clearly an offside offence. The ball merely has to touch a teammate not necessarily played. This referee was either having a very bad day or simply doesn't understand offside

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

I take it youwere on the white team? At least somebody on the field had the Law on offside down correctly! The goal by the yellow player should have been disallowed, as the ball last touched by his teammate (so eloquently discussed by my esteemed colleagues above) came to him while he was standing (sitting, running - it matters not) in an offside position and made the position from which he shot the goal an offside one. Shame on the referee!! I think we should prescribe 11 slaps with a current Laws of the Game book! No, wait. Violence begets violence. Let's just have him write the pertinent portion of Law 11 eleven times. That should do it.

Answer provided by Referee Steve Montanino

All of the other panelists have given excellent answers, so I really can't add much.

For any referees out there reading this answer the important thing to remember is that during dynamic play any touch by the offensive team is enough to reestablish who is and is not in an offside position. It does not have to do anything more than this, there is no more stringent requirement (like deliberately plays the ball or some other such standard).