Question:
I was coaching my daughter’s u10 game and a younger ref did the equipment check… I have a girl on the team who has softball/baseball cleats on – they have a plastic stub on the front it is a smaller stud not one that want of great length – he informed her that he had to cut the stub off or change shoes… I told him that I am an R8 Ref and I had looked at the cleats and wanted to know what was unsafe on them… he said that he dose not allow baseball style cleats regardless if they metal or not… I told him I did not agree with the interpretation but it was his game so she played in a spectator’s shoes (they swapped) …

So I have 2 questions: 

Cutting off a stud on the fields — I have to say that getting a knife and cutting off the stud could leave “shaper” or uneven edges…  I would call that more unsafe…
Where in the rules does it say baseball cleats as a whole are not legal?

I clearly remember in the this years re-cert class that baseball cleats are legal in USSF if they are safe; unsafe in my opinion would be metal… or if the front stud sticks out farther then the others.  I did not want to disagree with the ref and tell him I was a ref and he was wrong as it was his game but I would like to have a better understanding for future to tell this parent if they need to get new cleats and I can address it with the club and the assigner.

USSF answer (March 26, 2008):
It is illegal to play soccer in football or baseball cleats of the traditional sort with toe cleats, even if the toe cleats are cut off. There is no documentation on this, other than the requirement that players’ equipment must be safe for them and all participants. Traditional football and baseball cleats are unsafe and not permitted in soccer games. In any event, the final decision rests on the opinion of the referee.…

Question:
I have never fully understood the Offside Law, I hope you can clarify:

Obviously a player is offside if he receives the ball past the 2nd to last defender, but is he also considered offside if he receives the ball before the 2nd to last defender and then dribbles past the defender?

This may have a simple answer, but I have not been able to find it in any book. Thank you in advance for your response

USSF answer (March 25, 2008):
The Law is pretty clear on this particular point:
QUOTE
Offside Position
It is not an offense in itself to be in an offside position.
A player is in an offside position if:
– he is nearer to his opponents’ goal line than both the ball and the second last opponent
A player is not in an offside position if:
– he is in his own half of the field of play or
– he is level with the second last opponent or
– he is level with the last two opponents

Offense
A player in an offside position is only penalized if, at the moment the ball touches or is played by one of his team, he is, in the opinion of the referee, involved in active play by:
– interfering with play or
– interfering with an opponent or
– gaining an advantage by being in that position
END OF QUOTE

No, a player is not obviously offside if he “receives the ball past the 2nd to last defender.” Simply receiving the ball when the player is past the second-last defender is not an infringement. To be offside, the player must actually be involved in active play (as described in the Law) and have been in an offside position at the moment when his teammate played the ball.

And no, neither would the player be considered offside if he received the ball farther away from the opponents’ goal than the second-last defender — providing he had not run back into an onside position from an offside position to receive the ball.

You might also consider reading the USSF publication “Offside Made Easy,” available on ussoccer.com. It is, as we said above, not where the player receives the ball, but where that player was when the teammate played the ball.…

Question:
The attack is occurring just outside the penalty area. There is an attacker in the offside position inside the penalty area. One of his teammates attempts to pass the ball to another attacker outside the penalty area. The ball is not played in the direction of the offsides attacker. Both of the players outside the penalty are onsides. The defender steps in to intersept the pass and is able to play the ball away from the attacker. In doing so, the ball is played towards his own goal, to the attacking player in an offside position. It was not a deflection, the defender played the ball. Offside?

USSF answer (March 18, 2008):
If the player in the offside position — there is no such thing as an “offsides attacker” as described in the question — clearly demonstrated that he was not involved in play, then there is no offside. If there was no involvement through interfering with an opponent, interfering with play, or gaining an advantage from that offside position, there the player is not offside. Once the defender gains possession and plays the ball, as you suggest he has done, then the ball is fair game.…

Question:
During a recent high school game the goalkeeper was stepped on by an attacker in what appeared to several non-working referees in attendance (including myself) to be a deliberate act. Neither of the two working referees saw the actual contact as their vision was blocked by other players. The 2-man system is used regularly for HS games in our area to save on expenses. Of course they should have had a better position but that is the problem with a 2-man crew.

The goalkeeper had dived for a through-ball and retained possession although play was stopped for his obvious injury. When the referees went to check on the goalkeeper, there were pronounced cleat marks on his leg and he was unable to continue in the game. They did not call a foul, however, claiming they had not seen exactly what happened.

In such a case, can a referee justify calling a foul based on the physical evidence of the keeper’s obvious injury and perhaps even issue a caution to the offending player? The keeper had possession 1 – 2 steps ahead of the attacking player, so it is hard to imagine the attacker being unable to avoid the contact.

BTW… The keeper was my son so I am certainly biased in my thoughts on the situation. It would be good to know your opinon for the future, however, regardless of how you come down on the issue. It is something that I might have to deal with on the field as well.

USSF answer (March 17, 2008):
Disclaimer: We do not deal with high school rules and certainly not with the two-man system of refereeing.

The referee cannot call and the assistant referee cannot flag for a foul he (or she) has not seen While it is clear from the obvious “hoof marks” on the goalkeeper’s leg that someone stepped him, without a clear view of the incident, it would not be possible to (a) conclusively rule out that it was a teammate of the goalkeeper or (b) that it happened completely by accident, rather than as a result of a foul. The circumstantial evidence may be strong, but it is still only circumstantial.

No matter which system the officials are working, they must work — let us emphasize it, WORK — to be in position to see what is going on when players are competing for the ball. This inability to see some situations is, as you point out, one of the flaws in the two-man system.…

Question:
I know if a player is given a caution, you restart with the nature of the infraction; however, what if the ball is out of play when the caution is given?

USSF answer (March 13, 2008):
1. When play is stopped for an offense which is both a foul and misconduct, the restart is based on the foul, not the misconduct.

2. When play is stopped for an offense which is only misconduct (no foul involved), the restart is not based on the nature of the misconduct.  It is based on who committed the misconduct and where was it committed.
– If the misconduct was committed by a player on the field, the restart is an indirect free kick where the misconduct was committed (subject to the special rules in Law 8).
– If the misconduct was committed by anyone off the field, the restart is a dropped ball where the ball was when play was stopped (subject to the special rules in Law 8).

3. If the misconduct consists of a player illegally re-entering the field or a substitute illegally entering the field, the restart is an indirect free kick where the ball was when play was stopped (subject ot the special rules in Law 8).

4. If the misconduct occurs during a stoppage of play, the restart is based on whatever stopped play in the first place.  If advantage is applied to the misconduct, play is allowed to continue, play then stops, and a card for the misconduct is given, the restart is based on whatever stopped play in the first place.…

Question:
The ball is in play in the center circle when a player shows his disagreement with your decision not to award a free kick by shouting very offensive and abusive language at you. 

What do you do?

Give your reason.

How and where will you restart play?
            
USSF answer (March 12, 2008):
Stop play, send off the player for using offensive or insulting or abusive language and/or gestures and restart play with an indirect free kick for the opposing team from the place where the offense occurred.

Reason and restart:
Law 12, sending-off offense 6.
Law 12, final bullet point under indirect free kick, any other offense . . ..…