Question Number: 26163

Law 8 - Start and Restart of Play 4/11/2012

RE: semi-pro

Gary of Edinburgh, Scotland asks...

Is it right for a referee to stop the play and give an IDFK for off side to then say he got it wrong and restart with a drop ball? We did not have AR's. This was in an SFA affiliated league

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Gary
Yes that is the correct decision in Law. If the referee makes an error in stopping play by mistake such as an incorrect offside call then the proper way to restart is a dropped ball from where the ball was when play was stopped. That happens when it is patently clear that it is not offside such as a defender being excluded by the referee from the offside calculation only to realise his error after stopping play.
For example a colleague told me of a situation where he blew for offside after a goal kick was played back by a forward to a team mate who was well beyond his marking defender in what would normally be an offside position. He forgot that the kicker of the goal kick was not the goalkeeper but a defender which he excluded from his calculation who clearly played the forward onside by some 20 yards. Cue red face and an apology with a dropped ball restart.
On most offside calls where there is an element of doubt most referees simply go with the IDFK

Answer provided by Referee Jason Wright

In my early days of refereeing, I was officiating an U/11 match with no assistants. Where I'm from, this age group plays on a full sized pitch with almost no modifications to the laws, so offside applies.

Ball went through to an attacker. All defenders were on halfway, and the attacker was about 10 yards behind them. Very clear offside. I blew the whistle, then I heard some parents shouting something about the one near the keeper. Looked up and I saw another defender having a good chat to his keeper. Stuffed that one right up!

I apologised, then changed my decision and awarded a drop ball.

That is the correct decision, as an incorrect stoppage falls under the 'any other reason' that a drop ball is awarded for.

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

Play was stopped incorrectly. This would be the same as an inadvertent whistle. The restart has to be a dropped ball as provided for in Law 8