Don Clark Memorial Quiz

October Answers

Question 1

A defender badly overhits a backpass: the ball strikes the post and rebounds back to the keeper, who catches it instinctively then clears it upfield. Do you intervene?

Yes. It may seem harsh in the circumstances, but the keeper has taken possession of the ball after a deliberate pass to him by a team-mate – and that's not allowed. It's an indirect free-kick to the attacking team.

Question 2

A striker is flagged offside as he races into the area. In his frustration, he ignores your whistle and dribbles past the keeper – but the keeper, wanting to get on with the game, aggressively trips him over and picks up the ball. What now?

Both players have committed an offence. Show the striker a yellow card for delaying the restart, and show the keeper a red card for violent conduct. Once the defending team have a replacement keeper in place, restart with an indirect free-kick for the original offside decision.

Question 3

A defender breaks from the wall just before a free kick is taken from the edge of the area. The ball hits his shoulder – but before you whistle, you see the it deflect up and over the keeper into the net. What now?

Caution him for failing to stay the required 9.15m distance from the ball, and award the goal. If the ball hadn't looped into the net, you would have given a re-taken free-kick – keeping the advantage with the attacking side.