Question Number: 18589

Law 2 - The Ball 3/21/2008

RE: rec Under 11

Brett Peavler of Brookfield, Wisconsin United States of America asks...

I almost had to cancel a game once because of a reason that is very hard to believe. I arrived at the field and did all the pre-game insection. I asked the coatches for a ball and none of them had remembered to bring any. They told me that I should have brought one to avoid this scenario. Luckly one of the fans had a ball that was the correct size. I have read law five over and over and never found anything that said it was the refferee's job to bring a ball. What do you make of this?

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

Most league rules specify that the home team supplies the ball.

Suppose one of the goals was missing or broken. Would the teams expect the ref to pull one out of his bag?

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

A coach telling you that you should have brought a ball is idiotic. Are you also supposed to bring a goalkeeper jersey in case the coach forgets? Why not corner flags? I know coaches blame us for a lot but this is ridiculous

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Inept people frequently blame others for their own problems. The coaches should have soccer balls for their teams. While we can possibly see the equipment manger forget to place the ball bag in the van it is the home teams responsibility most often to provide a ball. The league or tournament people could provide these balls initially but generally the teams bring them to the game!
A referee's job is to ensure the balls in use conform to law and collects them at the match half and end to give back to the respective team. If you do bring a great game ball and allow its use expect no thanks and likely that ball to go missing!
Cheers