Shifting gears, NFHS/USSF

[Nevadaref]

Originally Posted by Eastshire

Not what the rule says. It says the ball must be "between two opposing players." It doesn't say equidistant or that opposing players must participate. As long as an opponent is behind the ball, the rule is satisfied.

Which is to say, I'm not going to order a team who doesn't want to participate in a drop ball to do so.

Originally Posted by CMHCoachNRef

Great point, Eastshire!!!

Of course, interestingly, this precise situation is why FIFA changed the law concerning scoring directly off of a drop ball....

I very much DISLIKE the NFHS rule on the "two opposing players" drop ball.

At the same time, I also HATE the indirect free kick rule when a team has possession. GV game on Tuesday, we had a defender injured in the PA. The play was killed after the ball was cleared out of the penalty area. My partner insisted that the attacking team got a touch on the ball BEFORE the play was killed (I could not disagree, but the defender was right there to challenge). Therefore, we started with an indirect free kick -- a HUGE advantage over the "live run of play" situation when the play was killed. The resulting free kick generated a goal.

A drop ball would have been a much more appropriate call, in my opinion.

Nah, he's just reading into it what he wants. The intent of the NFHS rule is obvious. They want the drop ball to be contested by two and only two players. We may or may not like the rule, but the intent is clear.

For your situation, your partner wasn't very wise and probably caused a situation that placed the game out of the balance of fairness to the teams by his insistence. Not good.

Now I will express my opinion that since sporting behavior is so highly stressed in HS games and the rules even require it to be mentioned at the pregame meeting with the head coach and the captain, that the referee has much more basis under NFHS rules than the USSF LOTG to instruct a team to either return the ball to the opponents or to play it backward and not create a scoring opportunity from an IFK which results from an injury situation.

That could have been your way out of what your partner created.

[Eastshire]

Originally Posted by Nevadaref

Nah, he's just reading into it what he wants. The intent of the NFHS rule is obvious. They want the drop ball to be contested by two and only two players. We may or may not like the rule, but the intent is clear.

I would say I'm reading it in a way that allows us to play the game in the traditional manner.

As a practical matter, I'm not going to order either team to participate or conversely not to participate in a drop ball. If they want to contest it, that's fine; it's their right. If they don't, I'm not going to force them to even though I agree the rule appears to require two opponents.

[phatneff]

Ahh yes, Nevada being Nevada. Oh how I miss thee!

Of course, I'm going to get chastised for this, but for a situation where play is stopped with the GK in clear possession by hand, I would do a one-person drop ball that includes the GK. He/she would then have the option to pick up the ball or kick it from the ground (for which a goal could be scored). It's one of those situations that DOES NOT NEED to follow the black and white letter of the law. The NFHS doesn't have ATR's, but if they did, I'm sure this would be allowed. I've seen it happen many times and I've done it a couple of times. All of which have NEVER been challenged by opponents' players or coaches.

[Eastshire]

Originally Posted by phatneff

Ahh yes, Nevada being Nevada. Oh how I miss thee!

Of course, I'm going to get chastised for this, but for a situation where play is stopped with the GK in clear possession by hand, I would do a one-person drop ball that includes the GK. He/she would then have the option to pick up the ball or kick it from the ground (for which a goal could be scored). It's one of those situations that DOES NOT NEED to follow the black and white letter of the law. The NFHS doesn't have ATR's, but if they did, I'm sure this would be allowed. I've seen it happen many times and I've done it a couple of times. All of which have NEVER been challenged by opponents' players or coaches.

NFHS does have an ATR. It's called the case book.

[phatneff]

Originally Posted by Eastshire

NFHS does have an ATR. It's called the case book.

Not for soccer.

[Eastshire]

Originally Posted by phatneff

Not for soccer.

The paper case book for soccer is co-printed in the rules book. It is listed separately in Arbiter. Either way, it still exists.

[phatneff]

Ok, fair enough. My previous post was taken from the NFHS site. Can you tell me where this situation is listed in the case book?

[CMHCoachNRef]

Originally Posted by Eastshire

NFHS does have an ATR. It's called the case book.

A woefully written poor version, at best. Not too different from the NFHS Rule Book, might I add....

[phatneff]

RULES BOOKS which are published by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) contain the official rules for high school sports. These books are designed to explain all aspects of the game. They are used by coaches, officials, players and many fans who wish to know more about the rules of the game.

CASE BOOKS are published separately in baseball, basketball, football, softball, and track and field and are a supplement to the rules books. These books contain actual play situations.

OFFICIALS MANUALS have been developed in baseball, basketball, football, softball, and track and field. These manuals are directed specifically to those who wish to enter the field of officiating or to those who wish to improve their competence.

CASE BOOKS AND MANUALS are published as a combination book of the case book and officials manual. They are printed for the sports of volleyball and wrestling.

SPORTS HANDBOOKS in basketball and football have been developed for use by players, coaches, officials and others interested in the game. They include brief histories of the games, procedures followed in developing the rules and emphasizing the philosophy of the rules committees. The football handbook also includes the rules for flag football and touch football.

RULES SIMPLIFIED AND ILLUSTRATED for basketball and football are published annually. These books make use of cartoons and diagrams to clearly explain situations which might otherwise be difficult to comprehend.