Question Number: 19127

Law 10 - Method of Scoring 5/18/2008

RE: Adult

Warren of Sydney, NSW Australia asks...

This question is a follow up to question 17882

Howdy all.

Two quickies.

In answering question 17882 referee Contarino says "In no way can a goal be awarded unless the ball crosses under the cross bar and between the goalposts in accordance with law 10. Not that this is relevant here as the ball was never in play but a referee can NEVER award a goal he thought would occur were it not for foul play of some kind"

1) Doesn't he mean "..can never award a goal he thought would NOT occur were it not for foul play of some kind" ?

2) Assuming a ball DID leave the penalty area from a goal kick and then was blown back toward the goal or bounced back toward the goal after striking the referee, then wouldn't the goalkeeper be best to leave it as if it goes into the goal it is a corner kick ("a goal may be scored directly from a goal kick but only against the opposing team" Law 16) whereas if he touches and it still goes into the goal the goal would stand ? (assuming he was not the player that took the kick).

Which brings me to a related question. Say the keeper HAD been the player taking the goalkick in the cicrumstance described in 2) above. He attempts to stop the ball entering the goal on the rebound/blow-back and manages to touch it but is unsuccessful in keeping the ball out of the goal.

Would you consider it in the spirit of the laws of the game to "penalize" him for the infringement of handling the ball before it had been touched by another player (IDFK) rather than award the goal (which would be advantage to the opposing team)?

I realize these are farily unlikely scenarios in real-life situations but I'm sure you gentlemen like having your individual and collective brains tested on these "curly" ones ! :-)

Thanks in advance,
Warren.

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

No. I stand by what I said. A goal has to score in accordance with Law 10. Period. You restate exactly what I said in #1. Wasn't in accordance with Law 10, then referee may not award a goal. 2. Yes. If no one touches the ball blown back in, then a corner kick would be awarded. If the keeper WAS the player that took the kick and he touched the ball a second time before the ball went into the net, the referee should give advantage and still award the goal.