A&H

The Removal of Players after Injuries

JH

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I have a couple of questions:

1. If a caution/sending off is not given, it is not a goalkeeper, it is not the result of two players from the same team colliding and it is not a severe injury; are players always removed from the field of play after injury where treatment is required? (A bit wordy I know)

2. Do you immediately call them back on after play has restarted and if not, what is the rationale in deciding when they come back on?

Thanks.
 
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Quick answers ...
1) Yes, that's a decent summary. But you missed out the situation where a GK and an outfield player from the opposing team collide .. in that case both can stay on after treatment

2) No, they come on at your discretion and the critical thing is not to wave them back on when play is close to them and therefore they might 'surprise' opposition players, thus gaining some kind of an advantage, So sometimes you wait a few seconds. And very occasionally, if necessary, you have to keep them waiting longer (which is sure to annoy the hell out of them as they won't understand why! :rolleyes:)
 
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I have another question but I don't think it's worth starting another thread.

What is a typical routine before a match?

I arrive with about 45mins to kick off and find myself standing around awkwardly with nothing to do, any recommendations on what I could be doing?
 
This is one of the rules / laws that needs looking at. Trainers / medics straight on pitches happens in most sports almost immediately (especially rugby). Who are we really to judge whether a person is seriously injured or not?? You certainly don't learn medical training at Ref school!! In serious cases, like concussion, head injury, swallowed tongue etc etc seconds matter, it can mean life or death. (It does happen unfortunately). The ceremonial off and back on thing actually punishes the fouled players team, how can that be fair really!!! It could be equalled up if the fouler went off for the same time as the fouled player getting attention!!! Then come back on together and there is no actual advantage!!!
 
Russell has covered the first question well.

The second question really depends on the competition. Personally I think that even for the lowest of grass roots level you should be there 30 minutes before, so you are well over that. In terms of what you could be doing then the obvious is checking the pitch, and if you have team sheets then potentially proactively chase these up.

As you get to higher levels there will be rules about what time you need to be there.
 
This is one of the rules / laws that needs looking at. Trainers / medics straight on pitches happens in most sports almost immediately (especially rugby). Who are we really to judge whether a person is seriously injured or not?? You certainly don't learn medical training at Ref school!! In serious cases, like concussion, head injury, swallowed tongue etc etc seconds matter, it can mean life or death. (It does happen unfortunately). The ceremonial off and back on thing actually punishes the fouled players team, how can that be fair really!!! It could be equalled up if the fouler went off for the same time as the fouled player getting attention!!! Then come back on together and there is no actual advantage!!!

'Severe' injuries are cited in the laws as situations where players don't have to be removed after treatment, which is only fair.
 
Russell has covered the first question well.

The second question really depends on the competition. Personally I think that even for the lowest of grass roots level you should be there 30 minutes before, so you are well over that. In terms of what you could be doing then the obvious is checking the pitch, and if you have team sheets then potentially proactively chase these up.

As you get to higher levels there will be rules about what time you need to be there.

I suppose the issue is that teams rarely have referee changing rooms in my league and so instead of being able to sit in there and prepare, I have to stand on the touchline - hence the awkwardness.
 
I suppose the issue is that teams rarely have referee changing rooms in my league and so instead of being able to sit in there and prepare, I have to stand on the touchline - hence the awkwardness.

Same here - I've found it quite useful to have something to be actively doing during this time. When I get there, I'll immediately try and introduce myself to team coaches/captains (depending on who is in charge), which cuts out a few minutes. Do some stretches on the side, jog around the perimeter of the field once doing more stretches, go round again and check the nets, then move in a zig zag motion up and down the pitch doing a pitch inspection. Time goes much faster if you have something like this to be doing. Once I've done as much of that as is reasonably possible, I'll end up just heading towards the semi circle - often teams will see this as a sign to get ready and head on the pitch too if they're not already there, and within a few minutes you're generally good to go from my experience.
 
'Severe' injuries are cited in the laws as situations where players don't have to be removed after treatment, which is only fair.
Not quite - I think you are misreading the law in this regard. This is understandable, because the law on players being treated for injury is almost never followed to the letter. The first applicable part of the law in the scenario we're discussing is, "An injured player may not be treated on the field of play ..." This part of the law is so routinely ignored that you could be forgiven for thinking that it isn't actually there, which then skews the interpretation of the rest of the law.

When the law goes on to say that, "Exceptions to the requirement to leave the field of play are only when: [...] a severe injury has occurred," the exception it is referring to is that in this case, the player is not required to leave the field for treatment, not that he doesn't have to leave the field after being treated. The part of the Laws that says, "if the referee has authorised the doctors and /or stretcher bearers to enter the field of play, the player must leave on a stretcher or on foot" still applies.

Although not strictly relevant to the application of the law, it would in fact be pretty unusual for a player who had a severe injury (head injury, broken limb, severe muscle tear, torn ligament etc) not to need to leave the field of play after being initially treated, as these kinds of injuries usually need more lengthy treatment off the field and often the player is unable to continue anyway, precisely due to the severity of the injury that required him to be treated on the field in the first place.
 
It's the assessment of injury that takes place on the field of play, the treatment ordinarily takes place on the sidelines. The exception being severe injuries and minor treatments where a caution has been given to the player causing such injury.

If the treatment is prolonged and a caution is issued this too should be moved to the sidelines , except in the cases of severe injuries.
 
All of the above PLUS with regard to letting them re-enter the field, make them come back via a touchline AND only when their team won't gain an advantage from their re-entry. So don't wave them on as the ball is played towards/or is being contested in the vicinity of their entry point.
 
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I have another question but I don't think it's worth starting another thread.

What is a typical routine before a match?

I arrive with about 45mins to kick off and find myself standing around awkwardly with nothing to do, any recommendations on what I could be doing?

If you've done all the stuff listed below and find yourself with some time, then just use it to warm up. The teams will know you're taking it seriously if they see you stretching and doing some running!

Obviously you should do all the normal stuff, like get and check match balls, check nets, inspect pitch, collect teamsheets, ask about CARs (if you're on a league that uses them), check equipment etc as well.

You will also begin to learn which grounds have facilities and which don't and can adjust your arrival time accordingly.
 
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Not quite - I think you are misreading the law in this regard. This is understandable, because the law on players being treated for injury is almost never followed to the letter. The first applicable part of the law in the scenario we're discussing is, "An injured player may not be treated on the field of play ..." This part of the law is so routinely ignored that you could be forgiven for thinking that it isn't actually there, which then skews the interpretation of the rest of the law.

When the law goes on to say that, "Exceptions to the requirement to leave the field of play are only when: [...] a severe injury has occurred," the exception it is referring to is that in this case, the player is not required to leave the field for treatment, not that he doesn't have to leave the field after being treated. The part of the Laws that says, "if the referee has authorised the doctors and /or stretcher bearers to enter the field of play, the player must leave on a stretcher or on foot" still applies.

Although not strictly relevant to the application of the law, it would in fact be pretty unusual for a player who had a severe injury (head injury, broken limb, severe muscle tear, torn ligament etc) not to need to leave the field of play after being initially treated, as these kinds of injuries usually need more lengthy treatment off the field and often the player is unable to continue anyway, precisely due to the severity of the injury that required him to be treated on the field in the first place.

This has confused me even more, the law says: "Exceptions to the requirement to leave the field of play..." It doesn't distinguish between assessment and treatment? Can someone clarify when a player can remain and when they need to be removed?
 
@Josh H I haven't read the full thread.

But my understanding of the law is that if a player requires treatment after being on the receiving end of a challenge which is punished by a red or yellow card, then they do not need to leave the field of play after treatment. This is providing the treatment can be completed in a reasonable amount of time, and won't hold up play for too long - such as a player needing staples, for example.

I think generally, if once you have finished cautioning a player (taking name, showing card, etc.) the player has finished or is close to finishing treatment then you should let them remain on the field. If possible, extend the cautioning procedure out to allow the player to receive full treatment will benefit you and help you to remain consistent. Rather than letting one player stay on the FOP, then asking another to leave because their treatment took 15 seconds longer.
 
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It's the assessment of injury that takes place on the field of play, the treatment ordinarily takes place on the sidelines.
This is what is supposed to happen - however if you watch the way this is handled in most top-level games, the player actually almost always does receive treatment on the field and then is ushered off the field only to return in many cases almost instantaneously once play has restarted (unless, as mentioned, the play is in the vicinity of where the player is waiting on the sideline).

Reading the law again, it does seem that there is no distinction specified between how the different listed exceptions should be handled and so maybe this is an(other) instance of where commonly-applied practice is not totally consistent with the letter of the law. All I can say is that whereas goalkeepers, players injured in a collision with the goalkeeper and players on the same team who have collided are not usually required to leave the field (goalkeepers, never in my experience, the others - sometimes, if more lengthy treatment is required), I cannot recall a case where I have seen a player with what is normally considered a 'severe injury' (e.g a head injury) being allowed to remain on the pitch after the treatment which the law says is allowed in such cases.

Nearly always, as I mentioned earlier, this is because the nature of the injury means the player is unable to continue or requires more lengthy treatment off the field, such as further assessment before deciding if the player is OK to return, change of shirt, stitches/staples etc. However even is this is not the case, it still seems the player is usually required to leave. There was a good example of this in the France vs Spain game last night. Laurent Koscielny sustained a head injury that the referee thought was serious enough to stop play for immediately and for which he received treatment on the field lasting nearly 4 minutes, including having his head bandaged. After the treatment was finished, he was made to leave the field but returned immediately after play restarted (probably less then a second later).

I would have been very surprised - as I suspect everyone else would have been, had he been allowed to just get up after treatment and stay on the field even though that could possibly be seen as a valid interpretation of what the law says.
 
Laurent Koscielny sustained a head injury that the referee thought was serious enough to stop play for immediately and for which he received treatment on the field lasting nearly 4 minutes, including having his head bandaged. After the treatment was finished, he was made to leave the field but returned immediately after play restarted (probably less then a second later).
I haven't seen the incident but I would have thought for such a head injury, the player would have been required to leave the field for a concussion assessment and examination by a doctor. Clearly football isn't taking these incidents seriously enough if player was allowed unto the FOP immediately and without examination.
 
I haven't seen the incident but I would have thought for such a head injury, the player would have been required to leave the field for a concussion assessment and examination by a doctor. Clearly football isn't taking these incidents seriously enough if player was allowed unto the FOP immediately and without examination.
You're right and I thought the same thing at the time. The commentators also remarked on it and made exactly those points as well as mentioning that it seemed particularly pointless to bring him back on in a meaningless friendly with plenty of substitutes available and when it was so close to the end of the match (around the 80th minute as I recall).
 
Same here - I've found it quite useful to have something to be actively doing during this time. When I get there, I'll immediately try and introduce myself to team coaches/captains (depending on who is in charge), which cuts out a few minutes. Do some stretches on the side, jog around the perimeter of the field once doing more stretches, go round again and check the nets, then move in a zig zag motion up and down the pitch doing a pitch inspection. Time goes much faster if you have something like this to be doing. Once I've done as much of that as is reasonably possible, I'll end up just heading towards the semi circle - often teams will see this as a sign to get ready and head on the pitch too if they're not already there, and within a few minutes you're generally good to go from my experience.
I am a bit surprised there a few answers WITHOUT "warm up" included. I am about to run 9-11km. Oh lord I need to warm up. At 20 you might not feel you need it. It is quite important at 40. I am not a physio but you are much more likely to prevent injury by warming up. "Learn" a simple routine that is not ostentatious - nothing over-the-top as it can seem really odd to amateur players. But like the man says, a sensible warm up already shows something about your attitude.
 
I am not a physio but you are much more likely to prevent injury by warming up.
I am not a physio either but I know several and they say that recent research on this is somewhat equivocal.

A systematic review of randomised controlled trials published in the US National Library of Medicine concluded that:
There is insufficient evidence to endorse or discontinue routine warm-up prior to physical activity to prevent injury among sports participants. However, the weight of evidence is in favour of a decreased risk of injury. Further well-conducted randomised controlled trials are needed to determine the role of warming up prior to exercise in relation to injury prevention.

It depends partly on what you mean exactly by 'warming up.' Generally warming up the body and muscles (by jogging, for instance) does still seem to be indicated (despite some studies showing no benefit) but stretching before exercise may actually be counter-productive.

See for example, the various studies referenced in the article below from Time magazine:

http://healthland.time.com/2013/04/08/why-stretching-may-not-help-before-exercise/
 
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