Question Number: 16499

Law 4 - Players Equipment 8/30/2007

RE: Rec Under 18

Ashly of Seattle , Washington Usa asks...

Do U-17 players for rec leagues have to have ankle guards on their shin guards, or can we just wear the ones held on by compression sleeves? If the compression sleeves are the same as our sock color, can we wear those with just an ankle sock?

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

Unless your youth association mandates the ankle guards in addition to the shinguards, they are not required under the Laws of the Game. As for the compression sleeve serving as a sock, the answer is NO. Socks are required equipment under Law 4, so you must wear a sock that covers your shinguards.

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

Ashly I have known some players that competed with shinguards worn front and back. These gents competed during times when the cardinal rule was either the player goes through or the ball goes through, but not both. In those days even referees thought that was fair so many players pulled up lame for some reason. In those days shinguards were canvas on one side leather on the other and bamboo strips sewn between. Getting kicked in the shinguard HURT! Getting raked in the calf hurt much more. These things I know first hand. It never occurred to stupid ole me to wear a second shinguard in the back. There was even a time when I believed I could run faster with no shinguards.

While this was absolutely true at the millisecond level of measure when taken as an average, before and after getting kicked in the shin, I began to understand why FIFA mandated the wearing of shinguards entirely covered by the stocking. The difference was being able to run with a small knock or hobbling to the touchline with a cricket ball sized lump on my shin. Today we are able to purchase shinguards on any size, from postage stamp to pretty big, with or without ankle guards, even carbon fiber ones.

Knowing how bad my shins look today I wonder why I elected to go without the best protection available. And I can wear long trousers with my suit and be very stylish. A young lady is, sooner or later, going to wear stockings and heels to look stylish. One wonders if she wants her shins to look like mine...

Regards,