Question Number: 16175

Law 13 - Free Kicks 7/31/2007

RE: Summer School Under 15

TJ of Patchogue, NY USA asks...

One of the players on our team (red team) was given a yellow card for not being back the 10 yards on a free kick for the opposing team (green team). The girl on the green team told the girl on the red team to move back.
I was under the impression that the girl from the green team must indicate to the ref that she wants her 10. I was also under the impression that the ref must pace off the distance and then indicate to the red team where to stand. Is the girl on the green team allowed to give direction to the red team? And did this really warrant a yellow card?

Thank you.

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

TJ, sometimes we get the wrong impressions about the rules or in our case, the Laws of the Game - especially if we listen to sports announcers! The FIFA Laws of the Game are very clear. The defenders have an obligation to retire 10 yards without being asked or told by the referee or anyone else. Failure to do so may be punished by a caution (yellow card). Usually a referee will warn once, especially in youth or recreational type leagues, but he is not required to do so. A defending player who remains within the 10 yards - in any direction of the ball risks the caution. It is a MYTH OF THE GAME that attackers have to ask for the 10 yards!!! If the attacking team takes a quick kick and defenders have not had time to retire the 10 and don't interfere with the kick, no issues. You can actually read about this in the USSF Advice to Referees, or in Law 13. Pertinent part from the Laws of the Game - Law 13 Free Kicks: Indirect free kick to the attacking team:
? all opponents are at least 9.15 m (10 yds) from the ball until it is
in play, unless they are on their own goal line between the goalposts
Free Kick Outside the Penalty Area
? all opponents are at least 9.15 m (10 yds) from the ball until it is
in play
? the ball is in play when it is kicked and moves
? the free kick is taken from the place where the infringement
occurred
So, to answer your question, yes, this can merit a yellow card. If the green team had to ask for the 10 yards, the defenders are already in violation. Defenders think yards are about 2 ft and attackers think a yard should be about 4 feet. We refs try to mediate with a distance of 3 feet.

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

Hi soccer kid's parent. Good on you for asking the big one, basically what happens after we give a foul?

Law 13 is the applicable part of the Laws here. That says all first and foremost:

all opponents are at least 9,15 M [10 yds] from the ball

This is simple statement. Cut and dried, simple. Except [well, you knew that was coming didn't you] it doesn't say how fast the player is to retire to the proper distance. What it has come to mean, sadly I might add, is when we get pulled up for a foul crowd around the ball and see if we can slow things down enough so they can't capitalize on our mistake. That is reinforced by nearly every referee in the world who puts up with the guilty side's players milling about smartly and not retiring the required distance as the Law demands they do.

The girl on the green team, who probably knew the Law, told her opponent to move away and that is the referee's job. She embarrassed him into acting. He acted and out came the card. Slam bam, upside your head and if you do it again off you go.

There are other ways to manage this problem. The first is so simple it is seldom addressed and even seldom used. It involves knowing exactly what "at least 9,15 M [10 yds]" means! It is subtle. Thinking?

Right the first time there is a defensive wall to be managed, and the attackers want you to intervene, the referee's yellow card comes out of his pocket, he lets the WMD be seen. Next is, to the attackers is "You WILL wait got the whistle". Now the fun, the referee assumes a position 13-15 yards from the ball and picks the most skilled defender milling around smartly and bellows this "NUMBER 9, you come HERE NOW" [the referee now has every one's attention, everyone!]. The players are going to complain about how far they are from the ball. The referee gets to say "right now this is at least 10 yards, you know exactly where 10 yards is and if I have to do this again at least 10 yards might look a lot like 20 yards, require me to do it a third time and you might not be able to see the ball from where at least 10 yards is. Get my meaning?

If it happens again start at 20 yards to place the wall... BUT not until anyone moving toward the ball and inside the required distance, gets a caution for failing to respect the required distance.

I seldom have difficulty in this area, on my matches.

Regards,

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi TJ, '
to be brief,
Your impressions are part of a far too widely accepted myth.
The opposition must, upon learning of the foul and who that foul is on must immediately retreat a MINIMUM 10 yards or face further misconduct sanctions for either delaying the restart or failure to respect ten yards,.
Red takes no direction from green but a referee should ensure those opposing players follow the law to prevent further conflict!
Caution, show a yellow card to any player who delays the restart or fails to respect the ten yards is recommended in law as the correct action for a referee to take.
A player can request ten yards as they may WANT to try a set play or recover and rest . That is the team's right. It is ALSO their right to take a FREE kick not a time delayed, lets get back and defended wall.
It is always a right to take a free kick quickly and to be fair an opponent might not have had time to retreat. The POINT is though they had BETTER be in the PROCESS of retreating because to stop or move towards the kicker or ball because they see a free kick is about to go off is 100% against the law and cautionable USB if they try and interfere. Now if the free kick gets off without interruption even if an opponent tried to intercept it the team taking the kick will likely want to keep playing so the misconduct can be considered trivial or cautioned at the next stoppage.

If I pace off 10 yards you can be very very sure they will be at least the biggest ten yards you ever saw. As a counter measure to avoid a senseless caution it works very well at the youth level trains them so when adults they dissent less!
cheers

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

My colleagues have fully addressed the issue of the defending team being required to retreat 10 yards.

Should the kicker have directed the other team to move? Technically no, that is not her job, it's the ref's job. How did green do this? Did she say "Hey red, you need to move back"? Or was she pointing the player out to the ref saying "Ten yards"? The players have to do the latter all the time, and not just because so many referees refuse to enforce it. Unless there is something blatant going on, the ref should not interfere with the kicking team's right to a quick free kick.

I *never* pace off ten yards. When I need to place the wall, I simply go to the place they should be and indicate it. There are many clues on the field to tell us what 10 yards is - the radius of the center circle, the distance from the penalty mark to the penalty arc, sometimes a mark is made on the goal line 10 yards from the corner arc. The distance from the goal area line to the penalty area line is 12 yards so 10 yards is just a little less. If we're on a multi-use field that is also lined for pointy-ball, it gets really easy! And if my 10 yards is just a little generous and they complain about it, all I have to say is, "If you know where 10 yards is, why didn't you go there in the first place?"

Answer provided by Referee Steve Montanino

Yes, this offense really did warrant a yellow card. One of the 7 cautionable offenses listed in the laws of the game is "failing to respect the required distance at the taking of a free kick or a throw-in."

If your team's player did not respect this distance (by retreating as required) then that player is guilty of a cautionable offense and the referee is within his rights to caution for this at his discretion and show a yellow card.

Answer provided by Referee Jon Sommer

You were under very wrong impressions. And yes a yellow card is warranted as one of the 7 cautionable offenses is: "failing to respect the required distance at the taking of a free kick of throw in."

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