NY Metro ISOA News

Offside Restart

Our last clinic and article on offside have generated a lot of positive feedback and discussion on this issue. One aspect of offside we did not discuss was the location of the restart after an offside infraction. Read the rest of this article »

Offside Revisited

During last night’s chapter business meeting/clinic, we discussed the three elements the Assistant Referee must consider before raising the flag to indicate an offside infraction. The goal of the clinic was to increase the consistency of offside decision making based on the common language and elements of Rule 11. In summary, in order for there to be an offside offense, the attacking player in an offside position must be:

• Interfering with play (defined as playing or touching the ball passed or touched by a team-mate)  or;
• Interfering with an opponent (defined as preventing an opponent from playing or being able to play the ball by clearly obstructing the opponent’s line of vision or challenging an opponent for the ball) or;
• Gaining an advantage by being in that position (defined as playing a ball that rebounds or is deflected to him off the goalpost, crossbar or an opponent or playing a ball that rebounds, is deflected or is played to him from a deliberate save by an opponent).

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Heat and Humidity Dangers

Heat and high humidity are a significant part of the playing conditions at the start of the intercollegiate soccer season. While the NCAA soccer rules do not address heat and humidity specifically, Rule 5.6.1 can be broadly applied by the referee to suspend a match for any reason deemed necessary. Dangerous heat conditions can and probably should be considered in this context.

Referees are encouraged to use  judgement in their application of Rule 5.6.1, especially in cases where a brief water break will reduce the risk of endangering player safety. The match should be resumed as soon as possible as conditions allow in this case.

Additional discussion and background on this interpretation is available on the NISOA web site.

2013 NCAA Soccer Ejection Reporting

All ejections in NCAA soccer matches must be reported to the NCAA via the NCAA Soccer Central Hub within 24 hours of the match. Some conferences may have additional reporting requirements. As an example, ECAC requires all ejections and terminated games to be reported via the ECAC web site as well.

Junior College (NJCAA) ejections are reported on the match box score form.

If you have any questions about reporting red cards or other unusual events, please contact your assignor immediately after the match.