Question Number: 26033

Law 3 - Number of Players 3/5/2012

RE: Select Under 12

Courtney of Plano, TX US asks...

Last 4 minutes of a key league game between 2 teams fighting to prevent relegation next season. Score is 1-0 and leading team's attacker is taken down just outside the box from behind. Ref calls foul immediately and walks to the spot just outside penalty box. As the attacking shooter starts lining up a shot and the defending team is building a wall, defending team coach calls out for Sub and pulls out his current keeper to put in a taller keeper. The original keeper was not involved in the foul at all and did not appear to be injured. The time it took for the keeper's to change gear ate up most the remaining time, such that this shot became almost the last play of the game. Should the ref have allowed this substitution?

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Courtney
Unless the underage competition rules dictated that no substitution should be allowed say in the last 10 minutes of a game there is nothing wrong in a coach using a substitution in this manner and the referee should facilitate the request. The Laws of the Game places no restriction on when a substitution can be made just that the referee is informed and the correct procedure is followed. Some competitions at underage can modify the Laws with regard to size of field of play and ball, substitutions, durations of the game etc. Referees would be familiar with those competition rules. I suspect that no competition substitution rule was in place in this game.
As regards the time element perhaps the referee added on the time taken for the substitution element only which allowed the free kick to be taken and play to continue. I doubt if a referee would allow the clock to be run down on a substitution by 4 minutes in such a situation.

Answer provided by Referee Jason Wright

There are no laws preventing this substitution from taking place, and there are no further restrictions upon when the keeper can be substituted.

There's nothing wrong with changing the keeper at any time, either with an outfield player or a substitute, as long as there are valid substitutions remaining.

If it was the final minute then I'd suggest not allowing it, but 4 minutes remaining is more than enough time to permit this. As you say, there was still time to take the free kick.

The substitution could have been made 10 minutes ago, but it still would have eaten up 2-3 minutes of play (assuming that it's a game without stoppage time), so in the end it makes little difference.

I'd say that the referee would have had no right to prevent this change from occurring.

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

The youth playing rules generally allow for subs only at specified times, not at any stoppage as under the adult version of the Laws. Even so, such a substitution is generally allowed and in any case, a field player could have changed places with the keeper for the PK.

The referee is in charge of the time, and will or should add on extra time if the substitution takes excessive time.

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