Question Number: 17223

Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct 10/9/2007

RE: 3 Adult

John Baltutis of Belleville, ON Canada asks...

hand ball
I explain to the captains my understanding of the hand ball, if a player has his/her hands against their chest and the ball is kicked and the ball hits them in the chest I would not call this as a hand ball, since the hand did not go to the ball. Is this a hand ball? My fellow referees agree if this is a womens game, but in a men's game they would call the hand ball.
That is the referees call?? please clarify.
thanks
John B.

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi John,
it is ok to cover the vital body parts to protect against an unexpected impact but the deliberate action of placing the arms to rebound a ball needs to be weighed with could that player have easily gotten out of the way or chose another method to play the ball?

Think a bit on the young lady running forward on a long ball she crosses the arms and tight as they maybe against the chest that ball will be rebounding off a hard bony surface as opposed to a chested or thigh trapped ball. The arms were put there supposedly to protect the chest WHILE she deliberately played the ball? This is not the instinctive reaction on a bail out or protective guard we set up on free kicks from 6 to 10 yards distance. The speed of the ball allows for no time BUT to react to protect.

IN dynamic play ask yourself why if she could head the ball or had time to adjust to the flight of the ball are we granting a deliberate placement of the arms directly in the ball's path?
Women are more than capable of chesting or heading a ball!
The use of hands are for balance not a hard rebound surface placed conveniently at chest height

We all know that in many cases the ball will hit the arm by accident but here we are in a deliberate mode to rebound, granted I will allow anyone of either sex to shy away or bail out and protect the vital spots of a fast moving unable to do ANYTHING else ball but women deserve to be refereed according to the laws not pampered unnecessarily. There are far better places to do that then on the soccer pitch!
Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

When I ref the young ladies who try this, I tell them they cannot PLAN to play the ball with the hands/arms. Somewhere between U-littles and the National team it stops - and today it's stopping here.

I agree with Ref Dawson, if you are protecting yourself from a ball that suddenly appears in your vision, heading toward a sensitive body part, you may duck and cover, flinch, throw up an arm to fend off the ball, and not be called for deliberate handling.

By the way, handball is another sport played inside, similar to squash or racketball. We have a foul of "deliberately handles the ball".

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

Please do not call it hand ball. In doing so you perpetuate the myth that when the ball hits the hand or arm it is an infraction.

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

So John, what you have done is told these players it's ok to deliberately cross their arms over their chests anytime they want to play a ball with their arms. As an example, in your game it is now legal for a player seeing a ball kicked high in the air, to cross her arms over her chest and then allow the ball to hit her arms. This is wrong. In order for handling NOT to be deliberate it must be unavoidable. A player running under the ball with her hands crossed on her chest is hardly trying to avoid contact with her arms. While I generally don't like referees to "explain" what they think is a foul at a pregame, what you should have said is "you may cross your arms across your chest to protect yourselves at a wall or anytime you do so reflexively and instinctively to protect yourselves. Any other time you do this I am going to consider it deliberate."

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

John, why are you explaining Laws and requirements to the captains? Did they ask, in a polite and inquisitive fashion? If so, that's fine. But if not, you could be seen as lecturing to them, and that's a no-no. Besides, unless you are using correct terminology, they will have reason to doubt you know what you are talking about! The offense is "handles the ball deliberately (except for the goalkeeper within his own penalty area)." Hands that are not in a natural position, especially with adult male or female players, or that are not being raised as an instinctive protection against a fast moving ball unanticipated are most likely going to be the deliberately handled type. Yet, having said that, in years of assessing and watching referees, I can tell you the ball which is handled deliberately is miscalled at least 75% of the time - in other words, it is called when it does NOT exist.

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