Question Number: 24186

Law 11 - Offside 10/18/2010

RE: Classic/Select Under 14

Richard of Pineville, NC USA asks...

During a U13 Classic Boys match all three officials seemed qualified for the level of competition. At one point during play in the penalty area of Team Green the AR signaled for an offside violation. The RR did not have eye contact with the AR and play continued on for 3-5 seconds longer, at the end of which time Team Blue took a shot and scored. When the RR and the AR (not having moved and having his flag still up) finally made eye contact the AR gave a subtle signal that a Team Blue (attacking) player came back onside and was involved in or interfered with play. The RR indicated no goal and allowed Team Blue to put the ball in position for the IFK restart. At this time, the opposite AR, who was approximately 50-60 yards from the play called the RR over for a discussion. After the discussion, the RR changed the call and allowed the goal, bestowing on the AR who made the initial offside call a great disservice in my mind. (1) Should that far side AR have gotten involved, after being so far away (and supposedly watching his second to last defender) and influenced the RR to change the call, and overrule the nearside (and seemingly very competent) AR? (2) Can you think of anything that the far side AR could add to the situation to influence the RR to change the call? After the match we overheard a parent very politely ask if the official could provide 'a teaching point, and explain the change in call'. The AR from the far side did all the talking and refused to even talk or look at the parent. There was no heckling of the officials and only that one parent even approached them. Seems to me this could have been a great opportunity to help quell the sometimes contentious fan-official relationship with a logical explanation.

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

The only thing I can think of is that the trail AR had a very clear view of who last played the ball, and could tell the ref that it was played/controlled by a defender not an attacker.

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

The referee and the ARs are a team, and they try very hard to do their best to help each other get the correct call.

While occasional polite requests may be entertained by a member of the referee crew, these should not be made during the game, as the team needs to focus on the action on the field. Even after the game, there is no requirement that the officials comment or answer questions. Yes, it could easily have been a teaching point, but more often - the experience of most referees - the effort to explain leads to argumentative responses from those who asked for the information. So, please cut the referee crew a little slack. Few who ask questions actually want information, they want ammunition.