Question Number: 36018

Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct 9/8/2025

RE: NPFL RefereeAssessor Adult

Ishiaku Ibrahim of Lokoja, Kogi Nigeria asks...

Good moment. Hope this question reached you in good health?
My question: If a player throws a ball to his team mate goalkeeper and the ball touches the goalkeeper’s hand before entering the goal line, under the crossbar and in between the goal posts what should be the referee’s decision?

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Ishiaku
Thank you for the question.
As you know the goalkeeper has committed a Law 12 offence which would result in an indirect free kick from where the ball was touched by the goalkeeper’s hand.
HOWEVER a referee can play advantage in which case a goal can be awarded and the restart is a kick off.
By the way there is no disciplinary sanction.

In a game setting a referee might be tempted to call the offence immediately rather than waiting for a few seconds on a Wait and See. It is for that reason that I recommend to wait to see what develops before calling any offence.

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hello ISHIAKU,
it's not illegal to do a throw in directly to your keeper.
The ball is in play the moment it enters the field
The only restriction is he not allowed to use his hands to control ...aka parry or pick the ball up.. The indirect free kick awarded for the illegal use of hands, it was primarily put in place to prevent time wasting. It wasn't designed to catch the keeper out if the ball took a weird bounce and looked likely to enter the goal under the crossbar in between the posts as you suggested. Still a mistake is a mistake and we generally do not reward mistakes.

A whistle might quickly sound because the character of some referees will cringe thinking oh that's a cheesy goal but own goals are common and the essential character of a referee is neutrality. I've seen deliberate foot pass backs do much the same thing. where a keeper is forced to use his hands to keep it from the goal and it goes over the goal line for a corner kick rather than an indirect for a kick from where he touched it. But even that thinking is consistent with the fact that if the ball touches his hand and goes into the goal under the crossbar between the posts it likely will be ruled as a legitimate goal.
Cheers