Question Number: 22920

Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct 3/9/2010

RE: Competive Under 14

Glen of Highlands Ranch, CO USA asks...

Hi,
I have questions about contact that can be made with a goalie. The first play is a high ball that bounces in the penalty area. The goalie has one opposing player coming and decides to screen that player and allow the ball to bounce past the goal line. The opposing player throws an elbow to the goalie chest and then reaches around to bat the ball into play with his arm. The ref rules handling and gives a free kick to the goalie. This contact happened in the goal box. Are there different rules for contact with the goalie in the goal box? Second play is the goalie charges out to get a ball coming into the 18. He dives and cradles the ball. Opposing player is chasing the ball and stops and tap kicks the goalie in the eye. This was not a bang-bang play and the opposing player could have pulled up or jumped over. Play stops as the goalie is rolling around on the ground and when play resumes there is no foul and the goalie takes a free kick. My question is what warrants a foul being called.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Glen
The goalkeeper is treated the same as any other player on the field of play and he cannot be kicked, pushed, charged, tripped etc. So an elbow to the goalkeepers chest would be a foul and a kick to the goalkeeper's head would most definitely be a foul. Both challenges if they were in the opinion of the referee were reckless would also merit cautions.
The goal area has no relevance on challenges and it is used for restarts such as goal kicks, free kicks and dropped balls.

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

Referees should monitor contact by or against a goalkeeper very carefully. Why? Because teams are very protective of their keepers, and allowing mayhem to happen to a keeper without intervention will cause the referee to have major problems.

The keeper has no special protections though under the Laws with regard to the fouls/offenses committed by him or to him, except for the four IDFK fouls specific to keepers and that opponents are not allowed to interfere with the keeper putting the ball back into play. If an offense is committed against the keeper by an opponent, it doesn't matter whether it is in the goal area, the penalty area or in the open field - it is still an offense, and the punishment is the same regardless of location.

That said, if an opponent deliberately kicks a keeper in the face, they deserve to be sent off for violent conduct. Even kicking the keeper 'accidentally' should merit a caution for recklessness.

I doubt very seriously that no foul was called when the keeper was kicked, because the restart would have been a dropped ball, if play was stopped for the injury. If the restart was a free kick, then you can bet the referee called a foul - it's odd a card was not issued, though.

What warrants being called as an offense will depend in part on the level of play and age of the players, but all fouls have to fall into one of the categories listed in Law 12. There are 10 DFK offenses and 8 IDFK offenses. Referees don't have to call all fouls that happen, just the ones that matter, and the referee is the judge of that - again depending on the age and skill level of the players, and also the experience of the referee.

Answer provided by Referee Dennis Wickham

Although a long time ago, the goal area had significance in whether/how a player could charge the goalkeeper, there is none today.

Most referees will caution opponents who foul the keeper in a reckless manner and will send off those who use excessive force against the keeper. One problem for the referee is that when the keeper and opposing players are both advancing toward the ball and directly at each other, the referee must be in a good position to see who fouls whom. Some contact occurs without any foul being committed. Sometimes only the assistant referee has a good view of what happened.