Question Number: 14650

Law 8 - Start and Restart of Play 1/2/2007

RE: select Other

gregg munslow of houston, texas usa asks...

Assume the game has been stopped because of the stated incedent below. How would the referee restart the game?

The goalkeeper, in control of the ball with his hands inside the penalty area, falls down with a muscle cramp.

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

If the referee stops play to deal with an injury, the only proper restart is a dropped ball. In this instance, after the keeper has been attended to (the keeper is the only player that may be attended to ON the field) or subbed for, the prudent referee in the spirit of fair play, would quickly drop the ball to the keeper and get on with play.

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Answer provided by Referee Ben Mueller

Must be drop ball. In the spirit of the the game, the referee may elect to drop ball to keeper, have keeper pick it up, and move on. Hopefully the opponents will understand this and just move away.

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Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

If the referee is obliged to stop play for anything not mentioned in Laws of the Game the restart of play is a dropped ball where it was when play was stopped, subject to the special circumstances of Law 8.

Regards,

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