[JugglingReferee]

MJT,

Excellent question.

I've been wrestling about this for about a year now.

Although we play with different rules, the philosophy you mention does exist in our game.

In the Cdn game, the team scored upon (TD only) may elect to receive or kick. We never give the option, because what team, after scored upon, wants to kick to the other team?

Play: A scores a TD (+ convert) to tie the game, with 2 seconds on the clock. After the convert is dead, A1 is flagged for unnecessary roughness. By rule, the only point of application is the ensuing kick-off. If B opts to receive A's kick, then time will likely run out after B's kick-off return. B's only way to win is to return kick the ball through the EZ (a single point in Canada). That's likely not going to happen given the depth that A will kick the ball, even with the 15 yard penalty.

Let's say that B has a fantastic kicker. So, B should choose to kick-off to A. They will still move up 15 yards for the kick-off. Now, B kicker kicks the ball deep and it:

- touches the ground IB and then goes OB through the EZ
- is caught deep in the EZ by A and A is tackled in the EZ

In these scenerios, B will score a single. And they're more likely than the first paragraph.

But how many B coaches know that they can do this?

Not many, I surmise.

I think that officials, at the beginning of the year, should communicate a set a statements to the coaches about things they might not know, such as:

- a team can decline ANY penalty, except the DQ part of a Rough Play foul

- a team can accept a penalty, but decline the yardage portion of the penalty

- a team can kick-off or receive the kick-off following having a TD scored on them

- the safety options (no coaches remember all of them)

- maybe some others

wwcfoa43? ref18? cdnRef? Casey?