5th foul sub. question

[Terry Reiter]

An officiating friend asked this question and I thought that I would share it. This happened to him in a jr. high girls game. Team A only has 6 players. A1 just received her 5th foul but the table did not notify the calling official. Team B is in the bonus shooting a 1 & 1. A6 enters the game as a sub. for A3, (not A1). Just prior to the official administering the first foul shot the horn blows to notify that A1 has 5 fouls. My friend would not allow A3 to return and sub for A1 until after the clock has legally started. My comment was that since this was an administration error, I would let A3 return and replace A1. This one is not in the case book. Any opinions?

[Ron Pilo]

Well let me see.......A Jr. High game..........hmmmmmmmmmmm....let her in the game for crying out load. I think that sometimes we can get so caught up in the "Rules" that we forget why we are out there. Especially at this level. Let's be flexible and try to understand the spirit of the rule instead of enforcing the letter of the rule. It will make for a better experience for all concerned.

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Ron
Seattle Officials - Women's Basketball

[Warren Poncsak]

Another way around this would be to mention to your partner that the minor officials (and possibly the refs) made the mistake, not the kids nor the coach. So, back the bus up and take the original sub off the floor. Tell the coach that you and your partner must deal with the disqualified player first before entertaining the sub! Then, tell the coach that s/he must bring in a sub for the player with 5 fouls. No harm, no foul.

[Joe Recruiter]

I agree with ALL the posts. To do this "by the book" though (let's assume it was a High School game) you'd have to send the player out who had 5 fouls. Even though that isn't the proper substituting process, the most important thing is to not let a player play who has been disqualified.