Question Number: 17229

Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct 10/10/2007

RE: Rec Under 12

Tony Ooten of Powder Springs, GA United States asks...

This question is a follow up to question 17191

Thanks and I'll watch out for Ref Contarino at Tramore Park (and Mudcreek) in Cobb County!

In reading ref Voshol's
response to 17191, he says "players can only charge another if they are making a play for the ball" Where is the line drawn between foul and fair when a defender physically takes possesion of the ball?

I'm a volunteer parent relatively new to the sport. In reading Law 12, I'm having trouble distinguishing between using excessive force to push an opponent, tackling an opponent before touching the ball, and impeding the progress of an opponent.

I was recently watching a scrimmage during an academy team practice (At Tramore). A defender was running down field along side an attacker who had possesion of the ball. The defender leaned her shoulder into the attacker while running and eventually nudged her off of the ball and gained possesion. The defender was praised by the coach.

How does Law 12 apply (or not apply) in this situation?

This stems back to my original question about physical play. What are examples of "physical play" that are within the laws of the game?

Thanks and I have really learned alot by reading this web site.

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

Tony trying to explain the history and traditions of The Game to a person only familiar with American sporting events is nearly impossible. I'll offer this, here is how I explain American football to a person unfamiliar with the sport.

The game is played by many burly men and a few slight men. The burly men are dressed in very heavy armor plate worn under their uniforms and they wear helmets with thick bars in front of their mouths. I don't understand why the bars are there but they seem to stop them from biting each other. Their uniforms are worn overly tight so it appears they bulge with huge muscles all over their bodies, except their backsides where no armor is worn. The slight men seem to wear smaller, lighter versions of armor and smaller helmets with much smaller bars over their mouths. Again the reason for this is not readily apparent.

The game seems to be played by 11 burly men and 10 burly men with one slight man squaring off at one another. They line up near an oblate spheroid that seems to be used as a ball and snarl and stare. Again the reason for this behavior escapes me but what happens next is amazing, the slight player seems to tickle the backside of one of the burly players. The burly guy seems to enjoy this so he allows the slight player's hands to remain in contact with his backside for an inordinate amount of time. During this time he yells numbers and small words until the burly man grows tired of the hands where they are and tries to push them away with the oblate spheroid.

What happens next is beyond belief because, it seems, everyone wants to get whoever has the oblate spheroid. Remember everyone is big and burly and the man whose hands were doing whatever they were doing is slight. Anyway he usually grabs the ball and tries to run while holding it, tries to hide it or give it away or tries to throw it to another player. While he is trying this everyone seems to want grab him and pull him to the ground and lay on top of him, again it is not readily apparent why this is happening. Anyway, sooner or later he is caught by someone and held to the ground.

Now there seem variations to what happens next. He is caught and held to the ground by burly men and sometimes other burly men jump on top of them. Sometimes many burly men fall into the pile of other men; what is being done inside that pile of men can only be imagined. Sometimes other men who wear black and white and carry whistles tweet their whistles and reach into the pile of wiggling men, perhaps to investigate what they are doing, perhaps to see if the oblate spheroid has been crushed. Sometimes they throw yellow handkerchiefs into the air and march a short distance away. All of this behavior is nearly beyond belief but it's nothing compared to what the burly men.

Both groups of burly men move away from the oblate spheroid some 10-15 yards and form a circle! Them they bend over with their heads inside the circle and seem to pat each other on the backsides while telling secrets.

There you have it. Bend over snarl and get tickled, run around a while, fall on each other, something with an handkerchief, form a circle, pat, tell secrets, do again. Now sometimes this goes on for three or four hours and during this time thousands of spectators cheer them on.

Oh, there is a time that a slight gent gets to kick the ball but they don't do that often and he doesn't get to tickle a burly guy nor does he get to join in the secret telling or backside patting ceremony. Sometimes burly players fall on him and sometimes they do the handkerchief thing for him, but not often. He must be a special player because he is the only one who gets to use his foot to kick the ball.

Our game of Football is slightly different and much more finesse rather than collision. We prefer it that way...

Regards,

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

Advice to Referees is a publication of the USSF. The brand new 2007 version is available at http://images.ussoccer.com/Documents/cms/ussf/Advice%20Final%20Aug2007.pdf

Regarding charging, it says:

12.5 CHARGING
The act of charging an opponent can be performed without it being called as a foul. Although the fair
charge is commonly defined as "shoulder to shoulder," this is not a requirement and, at certain age
levels where heights may vary greatly, may not even be possible. Furthermore, under many
circumstances, a charge may often result in the player against whom it is placed falling to the ground
(a consequence, as before, of players differing in weight or strength). The Law does require that the
charge be directed toward the area of the shoulder and not toward the center of the opponent's back
(the spinal area): in such a case, the referee should recognize that such a charge is at minimum reckless
and potentially even violent.

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

A Cobb County Coach that's reading The Laws and Decisions!!!! I'm gonna have a heart attack. Hopefully not at the new fields at Mud Creek!!!