Question Number: 23578

Law 3 - Number of Players 6/29/2010

RE: competitive Under 19

mp of bridgeport, ct usa asks...

Team A scores goal, but before restart, you see that team A had 12 players on the field. You are not certain when that 12th player entered the field or who that player is. I know that a caution is called for in this situation, but what if you don't know who the 12th player is? Do you randomly pick someone or ask the captain who their last player to enter the field was? If you don't know who the 12th was do you just tell team to remove a player without issuing a caution? It seems this is a very likely scenario. Thanks.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Referee MP
The referee has to do some detective work here. If he has a roster then he ascertains who should be on the FOP allowing for substitutions etc. If it is not possible to determine it that way I would simply ask the captain who should not be on the FOP and caution the player that is nominated.
If it is not forthcoming from the team then the referee has to make a call say based on his understanding of what happened and a player should be cautioned.
Whatever way a player has to be removed and cautioned, the goal is disallowed and the restart is an IDFK inside the goal area

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

If you do not know who the 12th player is, then you likely are using modified substitution rules. It can be very hard to remember who is a player at any given time when teams are allowed to make multiple substitutions and players can reenter the game.

You need to be reasonably sure that the 12th player was on the field when the goal was scored, that he didn't run onto the field to celebrate the goal.

It could also be that the substitution mechanics followed in your game contributed to having the extra player on the field. Sometimes we allow players to run on en masse when the coach calls, 'Subs, Ref!' Sooner or later this will get us into trouble when 5 run on and only 4 come off. If the referee is complicit in allowing the extra player on the field due to poor mechanics, it would be harsh indeed to caution the player who is on the field with your permission.

Still, a team with 12 players, no matter how that happened, has cheated and they cannot be allowed to benefit from that. The goal is cancelled. The restart is problematic - some sources say it is an indirect free kick from the goal area because of the misconduct; others say it is a goal kick because the ball crossed the line with no goal being scored. USSF is rethinking what the restart should be.

Answer provided by Referee Dennis Wickham

The captain should decide who will leave, and if no one will leave, the match will be abandoned.

There generally are two situations in which there is an extra person on the field. The first is the substitute who runs onto the field during play into disrupt an attack. They are pretty easy to spot. The second (and unfortunately very common at the amateur level) is the substitution opportunity where three substitutes enter and two players leave. This is the direct result of improper referee mechanics. Referees should count players before kickoffs, and should not permit a substitute to enter before the player leaves.

Some detective work might discover who entered improperly, and if the referee can identify the substitute, a caution is proper. Note: the players are likely to identify the player who failed to leave; under the laws, however, it is the substitute who should not have entered. If the referee cannot discern who entered improperly, the referee should not caution the captain or randomly caution one of the twelve. There is no 'team misconduct' and IMO the referee loses credibility when the referee punishes a player who has done nothing wrong.

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

The 2010/2011 Advice to Referees (soon to be published) says regarding the restart for this issue, section 3.20:

' (1) Outside agent. The restart is a dropped ball* if the extra player was either a player who had been sent off or an outside agent (see Advice 1.8(d)). Referees must remember that already-substituted players remain under the authority of the referee and may be punished for misconduct, while outside agents may not.
(2) If the person was a player who had left the game with the referee's permission for injury or other reason, or to correct equipment or bleeding, and then re-entered without permission, the restart would be an indirect free kick for the opponents in the goal area*.
(3) If the extra person was a substitute who had entered the game without the referee's permission the restart is a goal kick.'