A&H

What happens if....

R

Reuben Watt

New Member
So today I had my first game in a month, an under 10's friendly. When I arrived the mini soccer pitch lines were no longer there so after speaking to the managers of both teams we decided to move to the 9v9 pitch as it was only a friendly but we didn't have any offsides etc. The goals were those plastic temporary ones that can easily be moved around.
Half way through the game, the red team shot from outside of the box(on the right hand side) heading towards the bottom right hand corner. The blue team member got in the way and blocked it. I noticed a player on the blue team tried to move the goal post to ensure the goal didnt go in. Thankfully It didn't affect the game. What would I of done if it did?
 
The Referee Store
Oooh, thats a tricky one.

Pretty sure the lotg dont memtion a player moving the goals.

However, it is the referees responsibility to make sure the goals are secure etc.

If a child playing in a u10s game can move them then i would be wondering whether the goals have been secured as theres the chance they could collapse/fall over
 
Well firstly, all goals must be secured either by a back bar, sandbags or goal pegs/hooks. If a goal isn't secured in any way, I'd be asking myself if they were safe. Even if they are plastic goals, they can still cause potential for injury and confusion that could have easily been otherwise avoided.

Under the letter of the law, the scenario you described would most likely fall under unsporting behavior, so a caution and indirect free kick would be correct in law (keeping in mind that mini soccer for 7 and 5 a side has no indirect free kicks).
 
Surely if the ball is heading into the goal and a player moves the goal to deny the goal it is a penalty and RC...? I just had a look at the laws and I can see nothing to contradict that...
 
This looks like an incident that deserves a red card, but there isn't a way to give one in the laws.
santa sangria said:
Surely if the ball is heading into the goal and a player moves the goal to deny the goal it is a penalty and RC...? I just had a look at the laws and I can see nothing to contradict that...
Click to expand...
What would you see in the laws that would SUPPORT that?
 
But what code would he be dismissed under?

The only thing i can think is that it would be a yellow for usb and an IDFK.

Doesnt sound right to me, but cant see anything to support a red and a penalty
 
Last edited:
Regardless of whether it's 5/7/9/11-a-side, if a player is able to physically move the goal during the match, it would suggest the referee has failed to carry out his basic pre-match inspections especially with regards to if the goals are safely secured or not.

Judging by some of the comments I receive and matches I have witnessed at youth level in my area, I seem to be in the minority who does carry out pitch/goal/equipment inspections.

A player trying to move a goal during the match falls under USB/disrespect for the game for me. U10s? Prehaps ask the manager to remove the player...
 
Brian Hamilton said:
Hi hello, this is an U10s game. Are you going to dismiss for DOGSO in U10? Get real
Click to expand...
I was asking the general question: ball is heading into the goal, defending player moves the goal to stop the goal, what is the offence, sanction and restart?


I think this is the closest passage in the laws:
"If the ball is in play and a player commits an offence outside the field of play:

>> if the player is already off the field of play, play is restarted with a dropped ball if the player leaves the field of play to commit the offence, play is restarted with an indirect free kick from the position of the ball when play was stopped. However, if a player leaves the field of play as part of play and commits an offence against another player, play is restarted with a free kick taken on the boundary line nearest to where the offence occurred; for direct free kick offences a penalty kick is awarded if this is within the offender’s penalty area."

However, this says "offence against another player". Also the handball laws cover "thrown objects" but not moving the goal.

AFAIK moving the goalposts is not covered by the laws.... or is it?
Spirit of the game says RC PK... perhaps not at U10 though ;)
 
(In futsal, unfortunately in my experience many goals are not nailed down so accidental movement of the goal is common. I have warned players against moving the goalposts in futsal. On pitches with the goals that move easiest I remind the GKs to tell us if they think the goal needs moving back, rather than do it themselves. Different game though. Also this scenario is not covered in the futsal laws either AFAIK and I just skimmed;))
 
santa sangria said:
I was asking the general question: ball is heading into the goal, defending player moves the goal to stop the goal, what is the offence, sanction and restart?


I think this is the closest passage in the laws:
"If the ball is in play and a player commits an offence outside the field of play:

>> if the player is already off the field of play, play is restarted with a dropped ball if the player leaves the field of play to commit the offence, play is restarted with an indirect free kick from the position of the ball when play was stopped. However, if a player leaves the field of play as part of play and commits an offence against another player, play is restarted with a free kick taken on the boundary line nearest to where the offence occurred; for direct free kick offences a penalty kick is awarded if this is within the offender’s penalty area."

However, this says "offence against another player". Also the handball laws cover "thrown objects" but not moving the goal.

AFAIK moving the goalposts is not covered by the laws.... or is it?
Spirit of the game says RC PK... perhaps not at U10 though ;)
Click to expand...
U10 has its own laws. The role of the referee is to educate on not enforce those laws. You should take a knee and explain to this 9 year old child that they shouldn't do what they did as it's against the rules.
 
Brian Hamilton said:
U10 has its own laws. The role of the referee is to educate on not enforce those laws. You should take a knee and explain to this 9 year old child that they shouldn't do what they did as it's against the rules.
Click to expand...
I agree with you but what age do you not to be repsonisble for educating players like that. I educate s laws if there genuinely not known at most ages.
 
@Brian Hamilton if we ignore this being an under 10s match.

As an observer what would you be expecting a referee to do in this (admittedly unlikely) scenario?

It would make sense that this would be a red and a penalty, but there doesnt seem to be anything in the laws that would support this.
 
zarathustra said:
@Brian Hamilton if we ignore this being an under 10s match.

As an observer what would you be expecting a referee to do in this (admittedly unlikely) scenario?

It would make sense that this would be a red and a penalty, but there doesnt seem to be anything in the laws that would support this.
Click to expand...
Although I agree that red and penalty would be very sellable, I don't think I can find justification in the LOTG for it.

Moving the goalposts isn't listed as an offence, and DOGSO requires an offence to have been committed. I think you can use similar logic to rule out a penalty as well. So I'm fairly sure that the LOTG-correct thing to do is stop play in order to issue a caution for general USB and therefore restart with an IFK?
 
Forget the fact that this is an U10 game for a minute, that topic has been done over and over again.

I think I'd be trying to justify a DOGSO in this situation. If a player is able to move the goals left/right to ensure the ball doesn't go in, the player has surely denied an obvious goal scoring opportunity? This may be incorrect, but surely that's what the players would expect? Definitely one that I hope never happens to me! :confused:
 
santa sangria said:
I was asking the general question: ball is heading into the goal, defending player moves the goal to stop the goal, what is the offence, sanction and restart?


I think this is the closest passage in the laws:
"If the ball is in play and a player commits an offence outside the field of play:

>> if the player is already off the field of play, play is restarted with a dropped ball if the player leaves the field of play to commit the offence, play is restarted with an indirect free kick from the position of the ball when play was stopped. However, if a player leaves the field of play as part of play and commits an offence against another player, play is restarted with a free kick taken on the boundary line nearest to where the offence occurred; for direct free kick offences a penalty kick is awarded if this is within the offender’s penalty area."

However, this says "offence against another player". Also the handball laws cover "thrown objects" but not moving the goal.

AFAIK moving the goalposts is not covered by the laws.... or is it?
Spirit of the game says RC PK... perhaps not at U10 though ;)
Click to expand...
There is simply no possible way to award a PK here. RC....I know some people think it falls under the 'stops play to issue a card' category, but that's circular reasoning. However, I would say that a RC is more arguable than a PK, which is inarguably wrong
 
Matthew said:
Forget the fact that this is an U10 game for a minute, that topic has been done over and over again.

I think I'd be trying to justify a DOGSO in this situation. If a player is able to move the goals left/right to ensure the ball doesn't go in, the player has surely denied an obvious goal scoring opportunity? This may be incorrect, but surely that's what the players would expect? Definitely one that I hope never happens to me! :confused:
Click to expand...
If this was an open aged game and the player did this I would abandon as the goals would not be secured properly and therefore unsafe.
 
Part of any pre match inspection at any level is to satisfy yourself that the goals and nets are secure and do not pose a threat to players, officials etc.

When reffing mini soccer I always stood on the securing pegs to ensure they were actually holding the frame to the ground.

Better to be a pedantic arse before kick off than an apologetic one when something goes wrong
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top