AR Review: Week 4
With only three games this week this will be a review.
There were a couple of interesting plays to look at, both suggest that we need to improve our teamwork to get the offside puzzle correct.
More Teamwork in NY
These two plays show the need for improved teamwork between the referee and and the assistant. They are slightly different as in one case the flag is raised (NY) and in the other the assistant is unsure of who had the last touch and does not raise the flag. Both are wrong. Both need help from the referee. The common denominator is that in both case the ball is played into a crowded area and the assistant has a difficult time identifying which player was the last to touch the ball. How to communicate in this type of situation is something that should be covered in the pregame.
In the NY Red Bulls match
the defender heads the ball
at the same time as a Red
Bull attacker is also
attempting to play the ball.
For the AR it is difficult to
identify who played the
ball.
Two ways this can go. First,
if the referee sees that two
opposing player are
attempting to play the ball
and the defender is the last
touch, a quick “defender,
defender, defender” is
needed. However, referees are usually not thinking about offside, but rather looking for fouls, so it can be missed, this means that the AR needs to ask. There is no need for a quick flag in this situation so there is time for a “who played it?” or “help, help, help”. This play should not have been called offside.