Question Number: 26645

Law 11 - Offside 8/17/2012

RE: Competitive Adult

Harris of Toronto, Ontario Canada asks...

A player in an offside position looking to make a breakaway looks to me as the Assistant Referee to see if I have raised the flag. I am aware that he is in an offside position but haven't raised the flag because he isn't in Active play because he isn't interfering or playing the ball.

Do you recommend doing something in particular as the Assistant Referee to communicate this information to the player or should we continue the game and only raise the flag when he is in active play?

A technique to communicate it to the player would allow effective game management, in my opinion, and prevent disputes/dissent later on as the player would be aware of the half-mistake (offside position already).

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Harris
It is up to the player to make his own determination of whether he is offside or not and the AR should not be getting involved with players on the FOP about possible decisions.
In your example there are many options including a player from an onside position coming into the play. That changes the call.
So just make the call based on what happens. Trying to head off dissent is futile as the same player could question your 'advice' based on his opinion that he was not in an offside position. It can also be gamesmanship to distract or break the ARs concentration which also includes the one of moving directly in front of the AR.

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

I had a similar situation. A long ball was kicked past an offside-positioned player, and he turned to look at me. I didn't do anything. He shrugged and took off after the ball - and then I raised the flag and actually said , 'Now he's offside.' I don't remember if there was anyone who might have heard me.

If you or I had told the player not to chase the ball because of the offside, we'd be helping his team to the detriment of the other. That wouldn't be fair.

We can remind players to play fairly when we see potential foul situations: 'Careful guys.' Or when we see the fire in their eyes, 'Don't do it.' But we shouldn't be advising players on how to play the game like in this offside scenario.

Answer provided by Referee Dennis Wickham

I don't think there is anything the AR can do until he play has ended. 'Had to wait to see who gets the ball, sorry' sometimes will satisfy them.

But, in the moment, the AR needs to concentrate. Changing your focus while running down the line so that you can communicate with one of the players is a sure way to miss something that happens with the rest of the players.