Question:
I am a high school coach and last night we had a game were the opposing goalie dribbled the ball back into the box and then picked up the ball with her hands. The ref said that it was a free kick for us, but then changed his mind and gave the team a goal kick. Now I do not know if someone on her team passed the ball back to her or if we shot the ball, but does it matter? According to IHSA RULES, is she allowed to dribble the ball back into the box and pick it up?
USSF answer (April 30, 2009):
Coach, we don’t do high school rules here, but unless your state high school association has some special rule on this matter, the answer is pretty clear: NFHS rules on this are the same as the Laws of the Game. If the ball came from a deliberate kick by a teammate, indirect free kick for the opposing team where the goalkeeper handled the ball (it is still directly following the kick by the teammate, despite the goalkeeper dribbling the ball before picking it up). If it did not come from a teammate or if the teammate’s contact was not a deliberate kick, then there is no offense at all. Under no circumstances or variations in the scenario could the referee correctly give a goal kick.
