Question Number: 27008

Law 11 - Offside 11/12/2012

RE: Amateur Adult

James of Glasgow, Strathclyde UK asks...

Hi

Offside:

I was in an offside position and the ball was played towards me by a teammate, i did not move towards the ball and 'let' the defender gain control of the ball. As soon as he gained control i then sprinted from my offside position and closed him down forcing him to make a mistake and put the ball out of touch.

Ref blew for offside as he said i gained an advantage from being in that position. But as the defender was now in possession i disagreed i could be offside.

Was the ref correct?

thanks J

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi James
The decision rests on the time between the control by the defender and your challenge for the ball. If the time between both was very short with the defender having little time to fully control the ball then that is offside. Obviously with higher levels of the game the defender's control will be better with less time needed for a player to control the ball and move it away . That obviously reduces the time for the player in an offside position to interfere

Answer provided by Referee Dennis Wickham

Most referees want to see that the defender has obtained full possession and control of the ball, unhindered by a player who was in offside position, before determining that the player is again eligible to interfere with play or interfere with a defender.
Simply waiting for the defender to touch the ball will not be enough.

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

You were close enough to immediately capitalize on a mistake by the opponent so you should have been penalized for offside.