Junior/Youth Messy Goal

[magpie1892]

Game today, blue against yellows

Yellows get a FK about 20 yards from goal. Free kick goes in, misses everyone and goes into the bottom corner. Look across and blue's AR is flagging for offside and I know straight away this is going to be messy.

Go to speak to him to see his reasons for flagging, he said that one of the yellow players was offside when the ball came in, from my position I didn't notice anyone offside, yellow #7 did try and head the ball when the corner came in but missed it and didn't feel he was offside, my first instinct was nobody was offside when the ball went into the net.

In the end I stuck with my instinct and gave the goal, queue the blues going mad.

I felt dammed if I gave it and dammed if I disallowed.

Goal - get complaints from blue players/manager
No goal - get complaints from yellow players/manager because the other teams AR gave it

 

[DB]

If you are sure the player is onside, then award the goal. You must be sure though.

To over-rule an AR means that you were confident with the call, with that confidence, stick to it and have courage in your convictions, just as you did.

Just remember though that if the player is in an offside position and has jumped, clearly interfering with play or having an influence on the goalkeepers judgement, it's offside. Being in an offside position isn't an offence

As for complaints, ignore them. In one ear and straight out the other

 

[Padfoot]

Did the AR identify which yellow player was offside?

 

[Martiju]

Did the AR identify which yellow player was offside?

A good question for CARs (I'm assuming it wasn't a NAR) is to ask which player, by number, was offside. Nine times out of ten they can't say and will say 'the one going for the ball' - which doesn't help. That way though, you can say that from your position there was no infringement and they can't confirm that a player interfered.

 

[Ryan Owens]

Regardless of whether he was in an offside position, did the yellow player become involved in active play? It sounds like he didn't.

 

[CapnBloodbeard]

Regardless of whether he was in an offside position, did the yellow player become involved in active play? It sounds like he didn't.

This. Even under the new interpretation I don't think attempting for the ball is enough to penalise him unless it affects how an opponent.
In these cases where he's flagged for offside, I wonder if it would help briefly explaining the decision as you come back and let the players know it's a goal?