Question Number: 9236

Law 11 - Offside

RE: house Under 16

Lee of , asks...

Hi, Since my discovery last year of your great learning tool (website)for soccer officials, my fellow local AR's & refs have been visiting regularily. ..I have offside questions please. In my 2nd season of AR'ing (this year faster U14-U18 youth), I've been vigilant in keeping up & in line with the 2nd last defender (or following the ball in on breakaways/races), listening/watching for the teammate kick/pass forward to see if it's heading to teammates who I'm aware are standing in an offside position. I have been trying not to throw flag up, but delay until i'm sure there is 'involvement, etc' ...3 scenarios have happened recently that I'd love clarification/coaching on, or perhaps words of wisdom on how an AR can quickly internalize a 'check list' to sort the immediate decision needed. ..1) U18: defending team doing timed offside traps throughout game, opponents caught offside by 2-6 yards lots, even just over center line. On one of these surges, 3 attackers are spread across the width of field amongst 3 or 4 defenders who have again stepped back 2 yards just before an onside attacker (10 yards behind everybody) kicks the ball forward down the middle. Ball comes slowmotion, up towards & thru the 'wall' of players, none of the now offside attackers moves (they are about 8 - 10 yards on either side of this 'thru' ball) Just as I'm putting my flag up because I'm anticipating that one of the closer offside players is about to spring towards the ball coming up beside him, the original kicker, collects his ball (about level with the 'wall' of players and dribbles into the penalty area, deaks the goalkeeper & scores...The defending team not only figured it was an offside goal, but saw my flag almost going up, then before it got past my waist, down. Oops! Ref came over to disuss with me. I told him that the scorer had dribbled it in and that the offide guys didn't get involved. The defense didn't even try to intercept because I believe they felt they had another offside in the bag. What to do next time please? ..How does one handle when you flag an offside, then quickly a new phase of play begins without ref seeing your flag up. Can you erase your own AR offside call, by putting flag down because a new phase as started or you realize you made a mistake? Or do you have to keep it up,until ref waves it off?..#2) U16 similar situation, with offside traps, but sloppier in their stepping up, and the defence that did step up were intercepting/blocking the through ball, sometimes successfully, sometimes ending in a scramble with the 'offside' players coming back a few yards to contest defence for ball successfully, then turn & run for goal & score. The coaches on the offside trap defence side felt that the flag should be raised the moment the pass headed forward with attackers 2 yards offside, not wait until it be known whether the 'now stepped back defence' would play the ball. I had been waiting to see if the offside players would be recieving a direct pass from their teammate's first. ..I'm wondering: ..a) what is definition of opponent 'playing/controlling the ball' versus 'deflection' in these instances of offside trap (where the defender is in an advantage to being closer to passed ball because he's facing the pass and quite likely to try to play it, as in this instance did often) ..b) Besides attackers timing their runs to hustle past the 'standing still, just stepped up defense' in offside traps, or attackers dribbling thru the trap, are there any other considerations from the perspective of AR's that we should be aware of when judging this manuevre correctly?..#3) U16: My biggest error yet cost my own son his goal and is he ever ticked at me! His teammate, 'mister offside' we all call him, was 3 yards ahead of the (middle field) defenders as the ball was coming in down the (10 yards from touchline)sides in a series of passes. The center offside attacker is now waiting (has about 3 defenders around him) for the cross at about 14 yards out from goal. I see the kick coming across, but instead of it going to the offside centered attacker, it goes into the net just on the shooters near side (a banana shot with a curve. nice) ..My flag went up because I felt that the offside player was involved in play or at least interfering, however I realize now, after much discussion with my son the shooter(the disallowed goal guy!) that he had dribbled the ball almost until the goaline, so everybody then became 'behind the ball' so therefore, 'mister offside' teammate was no longer offside anyways. Egads! It's so complicated sometimes. But that is number 1 in offside qualification. ball closer to goaline........Any quick thought patterns for those scrambles around the net to help with quick decisions, for instance right after the first contact off of a corner kick & the AR then lines herself up with the 2nd last defender, which is often by then the goalkeeper as he/she runs out into traffic to jump for ball after some headers. Headers are counted as 'directly' from a teammate when judging offside, but are headers from a defense counted as deflections or playing the ball?..Thanks again for your great site...Lee

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

Hello Lee. Thanks for trusting us with offside answers. Right here's what an assistant referee must try to do, given his position at the last but one defender; PAY ATTENTION. This is an easy thing to write, (or type) but it ain?t so easy to accomplish in the heat of battle. ..In the referees prematch instructions he MUST remind you what he wants you to do with an offside player. With the one player offside this is an easy task, a touch by the attack and an offside player may not get involved AT ALL. Now this resets every time there is a touch by the attack. Touch by the attack, check for an offside player; touch, check; touch, check; touch, check; and the assistant does that until the defense gains control. Really we check for all offside players when there?s a touch, right? So that is all that's needed, for ONE player offside. ..When there's more than one attacker involved, the assistant MUST delay his flag until he is absolutely sure the offside player is getting involved in things he shouldn't. The assistant has to wait until there is the proverbial touch of the ball by the (one of the) offside player(s). Whoa! This is going to delay the flag, sometimes one bleep of a long time. Yeah, make like the flag is Velcroed to your butt until you determine who gets the ball. That way you get the decision right and then lays to the referee to see the flag and pull him up. With some referees this is a near 100% thing with others it's a fat chance kinda thing... ..When your son lost his goal to offside you missed the -touch by the attack, check for an offside player- part of what you do. As soon as the ball passed the offside player and the next touch happened he, by definition in Law 11, became available to play the ball because he was not offside at the last touch by his side. When a side is using the offside trap the assistant must remember a couple extra things: Where the offside player was at the last touch by the attack or who is(are) the offside player(s) and where are they on the field. He remembers these things because on a shot towards goals the assistant must determine if the position of any offside player interferes with the keeper?s line of sight, as well as their other prohibited activity, and if there is no line of sight interference, or other interference, he MUST NOT flag until the ball rebounds to an offside player. In other words he allows the shot on goals. If there is an offside infraction the restart of play is at the point the offside player in question was at the last touch by the attack. That point on the field may be significantly different than where he was when pulled up offside...When there is only one player active from an offside position get the flag up soonest, this prevents possible collisions and perhaps injuries. When there?s more than one player involved and one of them is NOT offside you must wait until you see who gets the ball. Coaches and players will come all unpuckered because of the perceived -late flag-. The flag isn?t late because it can?t move until there is an offside offense! ..Notice we haven?t addressed an offside player who places himself in a position that is not offside and THEN plays the ball, or interferes with play, or gains advantage. The whole world is going to think he isn?t offside, right? But we know he can?t get involved until the next touch by his side or the defense gains control? ..Regards,

The following questions were asked as a follow up to the above question...

See Question: 12409