Thursday 3 June 2010

Some Observations from Pre-World Cup Friendlies

Japan 1-2 England
The following incident occurred during the Japan and England friendly on Sunday 30 May 2010.

Encroachment
Players continue to encroach, and it appears referees continue to allow players to enter the penalty area before the penalty taker kicks the ball.

[England’s Frank Lampard (red #8) hasn’t kicked the ball yet, and Wayne Rooney (red #10) is already about 6 or 7 yards close to the ball. Two Japan players (blue #22, #2) have also encroached. Pic Getty Images.]

Q: The penalty was saved by the Japan goalkeeper. Within the laws of the game, what should referees do in this situation?


Australia 1-0 Denmark
The following incident occurred during the Australia and Denmark friendly on Tuesday 1 June 2010 at the Roodepoort Athletics Stadium in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Offside Player Involved in Active Play
Law 11 states that a player in an offside position is penalised 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.


[Australia’s Josh Kennedy (yellow #9) should have been penalised for being offside and interfering with an opponent. Video link here.]

The above five freeze frames show that when the ball is crossed from the right, Kennedy (yellow) is in an offside position. The ball is then deflected up and, because the defending team has not yet brought the ball under control, Kennedy should be regarded as "interfering with an opponent". ARs must watch these situations closely.


Related Post (Law 14)
Europa League Penalty Kicks and Encroachment

Related Posts (Law 11)
Some Observations of the 2010 Europa League Final

Offside and Consistency

Offside and Optimum Officiating

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