Question Number: 18699

Law 8 - Start and Restart of Play 4/6/2008

RE: Adult

Steve of Wellington, NZ asks...

Hi just want a few clarifications as I like to improve my knowledge as a player and a ref. I occasionally ref when there is no one else willing or available. Today I mistakingly blew the whistle for offside and instantly after blowing it I realised one defender was keeping the attacker onside (The defender was blocked from view by another attacker) Not knowing the right thing to do in this situation I called a drop ball. What should I have done other than getting the call correct in the first place?

The other thing is when 2 players infringe at the same time i.e both players kicking with a foot too high?

Thanks in advance, this site has already been a great help.

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

Not knowing the right thing to do, you happened to do the right thing. (Dropped ball for inadvertent whistle) Don't you love it when that happens?

If two players happen to infringe the Laws at the exact same time, you have a choice. Decide that the offenses are inconsequential to the situation and allow play to continue, or stop play to chew them out and restart with a dropped ball. The other choice is to see that one of them actually infringed the Laws a split second before the other, and base the foul on that.

In the case of your two players both kicking with their foot high in the air, I'd say that neither one of them committed the foul of "playing in a dangerous manner". For that to be called, one of the players has to pull back from play based on the dangerous situation created by the other. If both are attempting to pull the ball down with a high foot, it doesn't seem from my reading from afar that either has flinched away from play. No call is needed. If this was a youth game, the ref needs to be more proactive, because those players haven't matured enough to know their actions could be dangerous. In that case, I'd go with the dropped ball for simultaneous infractions.

We appreciate the thanks. It's not clear from your post if you are a certified referee, or if you only fill in when needed. Even if you do not plan on reffing a lot, you can improve your playing skills by taking a referee class and doing a few games officially. Knowing how the Laws should be called can help the player in deciding how to play properly.

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

Well Steve, you did the right thing! You inadvertently blew the whistle so the only recourse is to restart with a dropped ball. It is very, very rare for simultaneous infringements occur but if they do, and you are certain of this, then, again, a dropped ball is the proper restart. That said, in practice, we usually decide one way or the other unless neither is really foul play in which we allow play to continue.