Are the New Rules a Bust?

G

Grace T.

So with the season about to begin and tournament play almost over, with the Women's World Cup over, and with European play off and away, what are people's thoughts on the new rules, both from seeing your own kids play (or refereeing) and from watching the non-MLS pros?

From the press, I think the consensus is that the rules are generally a bust:

-Handball: The new handball rule has come under tremendous criticism, particularly after the WWC and the Manchester City-Tottenham and a few games in Germany. Basically, it seems that everything is being called a handball now if the ball strikes an arm or hand and that defenders (and now attackers after the MC-Tottenham game) are expected to basically keep their arms glued to their sides particularly if they are in the box.

-Goalkeeper in a Penalty: We saw a lot of the penalty saves in the WWC being clawed back. Then the Premier League announced they wouldn't review goalkeepers coming off the line with VAR. Then the Liverpool game happened in the Supercup where Adrian made the game winning save but was very clear off his line in violation of the new rule. IFAB has protested the decision of the Premier League not to review, but the Premier League has announced they have no intention to change things at the current time and the dispute is making it's way up the FIFA chain of command.

-Goalkicks: Hasn't affected the pros as much since they have a much wider field, but in the referee thread some of us noted that it seems easier for a pressing team to intercept a pass played short and the interception point is now closer to the goal. Is this encouraging coaches to "send it long" instead of build it from the back?

-Walls: You can't have opposing players in the wall anymore. In the WWC South Africa tried building a wall in front of the defensive wall as a result? Any other shenanigans been seen regarding the wall?
 
Grace T. said:
-Goalkicks: Hasn't affected the pros as much since they have a much wider field, but in the referee thread some of us noted that it seems easier for a pressing team to intercept a pass played short and the interception point is now closer to the goal. Is this encouraging coaches to "send it long" instead of build it from the back
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I think it's going to take some time for youth soccer coaches to implement new formations and to practice new strategies under the new goalkick rules. However, the effect should be that it will be easier to play out of the back. Teams can now put one or two defenders within a couple yards of the keeper, so I don't see how it would be easier to intercept a pass in this situation than it would be when a keeper was trying to kick it out of the box. Also, for teams who want to kick it long, but they don't have a strong-legged keeper, instead of having another player take the goal kick, the keeper can now send a short pass to a nearby defender who can now send the ball long if necessary, or continue to play from the back if the press doesn't come. So far I think the best team to implement new goalkick strategies is Man City -- they have their two center defenders and the holding mid within about 5-10 yards of the keeper in a triangle. On my daughter's team (U13) they've always played out of the back, but so far the only adjustment the team has made to the new rule has been to have the two center defenders move a little bit closer to the keeper on goalkicks.
 
Just to clarify my understanding, the offense can play the ball while in the goalbox, but the defensive team must still wait until either (a) its outside the goalbox, or (b) played/touched by a second player on the offensive team. The defense can't be the first to play a GK's kick if in the goalbox, still, correct?
 
No. The defender must start outside the box unless the attacking team does not give them time to leave. Then, as soon as the ball is kicked, it is live. Any player can then challenge for it.
 
Historically, most rule changes have been a "bust", or at least, immaterial to the improvement of soccer. I'd have to go all the way back to when the outlawing of the keeper picking up a back pass to think of rule change I felt had a material improvement to the game. In my opinion, the rule changes in the last few year have been more ref centric, then game or player centric. Of course, that is going to happen when IFAB's technical committee is made up of all referee's with no players (I believe one member is a not a ref but an executive). To me the beauty of the game is it's simplicity . Unfortunately, I feel like soccer is turning into the NFL with continuous rule changes.

While I believe IFAB's intent is to make the rules more objective, its drafting and implementation of the laws is horrible. What results is actually more subjective laws. At the professional level the problem is now being compounded by VAR which has the combo effect of creating more confusion and delaying the game. I'm OK with VAR being used to correct "clear and obvious"; however, in some leagues and competitions VAR is being used to re-referee the game. The difference between the use of VAR between the MWC and the WWC is mind-boggling different. It was a positive for the MWC and a stain on the WWC. If you can't make a VAR review decision in 20 seconds then its not "clear and obvious". I don't give a flying F if computer modeling tells me after 2 minutes that a player was offside by 11 mm. The game is made to be played.

The game is not perfect, attempting to make it so may destroy its beauty.
 
1dad2boys said:
How are subs leaving at the closest point, simplified goal kicks and fairer drop balls ref centric?
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I didn't say all changes are ref centric but the most controversial one, the handball change(s), that is having the most impact on the game, is certainly ref centric. What was once the cornerstone of the handball rule "deliberate" has effectively been eliminated and now the ref can rationalize any handball call (even if 100% accidental) by saying the player was "unnaturally bigger" (which has no definition and can be defined anyway a ref sees fit) while virtually ignoring actual normal body mechanics. Since this new rule, many times I've seen professional defenders playing with their arms behind their bodies, turning sideways or jumping out of the way of a shot to avoid accidental contact with the ball. Its an unattractive soccer. It's hard enough to get my kid to not jump out of the way of a kicked ball (I tell him it doesn't hurt that bad!) and now the pros are doing it.

I think the sub rule will actually make a refs job tougher, particularly at the youth level. I realize it's intent was to speed up the game but its going to create more points of conflict when a player has to walk past opposition parents, fans and bench in some cases. A ref of a youth game is going to have to keep an eye on the subbed player to ensure safety back to the bench while keeping an eye on resumed play. Its not ref centric, its just misguided and certainly doesn't benefit the player, ref or game. I actually like the simplified goal kicks. I hope it promotes playing out of the back and speeds up play. We will have to see if that actually occurs. As far as the drop kick goes, was fairness of drop balls even an issue? How is an equally contested drop ball unfair? However, it is much easier for a ref to administer an uncontested drop ball.
 
I believe the sub rule will not be used in many youth leagues including CSL. At the higher level, it prevents time wasting by subbing. Upgrade to me.

Drop balls should not be contested in my opinion. They are usually called when there is an extenuating circumstance. Let the team that last had the ball start over with it. 4 yards is not enough to take off and score. Just enough to retain possession and carry on.
 
watfly said:
I didn't say all changes are ref centric but the most controversial one, the handball change(s), that is having the most impact on the game, is certainly ref centric. What was once the cornerstone of the handball rule "deliberate" has effectively been eliminated and now the ref can rationalize any handball call (even if 100% accidental) by saying the player was "unnaturally bigger" (which has no definition and can be defined anyway a ref sees fit) while virtually ignoring actual normal body mechanics. Since this new rule, many times I've seen professional defenders playing with their arms behind their bodies, turning sideways or jumping out of the way of a shot to avoid accidental contact with the ball. Its an unattractive soccer. It's hard enough to get my kid to not jump out of the way of a kicked ball (I tell him it doesn't hurt that bad!) and now the pros are doing it.

I think the sub rule will actually make a refs job tougher, particularly at the youth level. I realize it's intent was to speed up the game but its going to create more points of conflict when a player has to walk past opposition parents, fans and bench in some cases. A ref of a youth game is going to have to keep an eye on the subbed player to ensure safety back to the bench while keeping an eye on resumed play. Its not ref centric, its just misguided and certainly doesn't benefit the player, ref or game. I actually like the simplified goal kicks. I hope it promotes playing out of the back and speeds up play. We will have to see if that actually occurs. As far as the drop kick goes, was fairness of drop balls even an issue? How is an equally contested drop ball unfair? However, it is much easier for a ref to administer an uncontested drop ball.
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IFAB provided explanations for all of the changes.
- The drop ball change was something that players and coaches at the highest levels had been requesting. They didn’t like having to kick the ball 40+ yards back to the keeper and start building out of the back. Now they get the ball where it was when play was stopped.
- During subs I have been having players leave the field at the nearest touch line and walk around the field since the early 2000’s. The old LOTG allowed players to leave anywhere on the field. I have never had a youth player that subbed out and walked around the field have any problems. No parents yelled at them and no problems walking behind the other bench. Any spectator that says anything negative toward a subbed out player during one of my games will be immediately ejected and sent to their car. The new sub rule was implemented to speed up the game and reduce the time it takes to sub. I really like this rule change especially for the youth game with unlimited subs. I don’t have to worry about the coach with a one goal lead subbing the furthest player away on every other stoppage.
- Having refereed almost 20 games under the new LOTG, I have not seen much impact with the handball rule change. If anything it has made it easier to call.

Since the majority of teams and referees have not played/worked games using the new LOTG, I think the first few weeks of the season could be a little ugly. In my opinion, Cal South should have mandated that the new LOTG be used in tournaments beginning the first weekend in August. That would have allowed the players and refs to get used to the changes.
 
1dad2boys said:
I believe the sub rule will not be used in many youth leagues including CSL. At the higher level, it prevents time wasting by subbing. Upgrade to me.

Drop balls should not be contested in my opinion. They are usually called when there is an extenuating circumstance. Let the team that last had the ball start over with it. 4 yards is not enough to take off and score. Just enough to retain possession and carry on.
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For the dropped ball the opposing player must be 4.5 yards away. During the 4 training sessions I attended, we were told to move the opponent back 5 yards. That should be more than enough room to allow the player with the ball to get a pass off or start a dribble.
 
Surfref said:
For the dropped ball the opposing player must be 4.5 yards away. During the 4 training sessions I attended, we were told to move the opponent back 5 yards. That should be more than enough room to allow the player with the ball to get a pass off or start a dribble.
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I don't know if you have ever watched any girls lacrosse games. If the ref calls a foul out in the middle of the field, she has the power to move the fouling player back behind the fouled player to give her an appropriate advantage on the restart. Restarts after defensive fouls in the "fan" near the goal are set up like charted ballet movements (in case you were wondering what all those marks on the field are for).
 
Yep. Played lax. Definitely like that approach. And equally agree that the 4 meter (not yards, oops) change is very good. Like I said, the team keeps possession but it is not the equivalent of a free kick. Not in on goal but still building from where they were before.
 
Surfref said:
IFAB provided explanations for all of the changes.
- The drop ball change was something that players and coaches at the highest levels had been requesting. They didn’t like having to kick the ball 40+ yards back to the keeper and start building out of the back. Now they get the ball where it was when play was stopped.
- During subs I have been having players leave the field at the nearest touch line and walk around the field since the early 2000’s. The old LOTG allowed players to leave anywhere on the field. I have never had a youth player that subbed out and walked around the field have any problems. No parents yelled at them and no problems walking behind the other bench. Any spectator that says anything negative toward a subbed out player during one of my games will be immediately ejected and sent to their car. The new sub rule was implemented to speed up the game and reduce the time it takes to sub. I really like this rule change especially for the youth game with unlimited subs. I don’t have to worry about the coach with a one goal lead subbing the furthest player away on every other stoppage.
- Having refereed almost 20 games under the new LOTG, I have not seen much impact with the handball rule change. If anything it has made it easier to call.

Since the majority of teams and referees have not played/worked games using the new LOTG, I think the first few weeks of the season could be a little ugly. In my opinion, Cal South should have mandated that the new LOTG be used in tournaments beginning the first weekend in August. That would have allowed the players and refs to get used to the changes.
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We had a scrimmage this past weekend with a paid ref. Before the game the ref spent about 10 minutes going over all the new rules. Our coach had previously reviewed some of the new rule changes, but I appreciated the ref taking the time to go over all the new rules (obviously not possible in a tourney game do to time constraints but a great use of scrimmage time). During the game he had a very liberal interpretation of the "wall rule". On a free kick he made the kicking team move 3 meters away from any defenders in the path of the kick whether they were in a wall or not.

New rules aren't necessarily bad by themselves, the problem becomes every time you introduce a new rule you also get all the different individual interpretations that come along with it which causes additional confusion for what is supposed to be a simple game. But I'm biased because I'm a huge proponent of the KISS model in everything.
 
Surfref said:
For the dropped ball the opposing player must be 4.5 yards away. During the 4 training sessions I attended, we were told to move the opponent back 5 yards. That should be more than enough room to allow the player with the ball to get a pass off or start a dribble.
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Grace T, I am curious why you disagreed with this post. It was put out by 4 different CalSouth instructors over three association meetings and a RPD session. The new LOTG say 4.5 yards and since most referees step-off is less than a yard, stepping of 5 yards should be about correct. With 20 games as a CR using the new LOTG, I have had no problems or complaints with the new drop ball procedure.
 
Surfref said:
Grace T, I am curious why you disagreed with this post. It was put out by 4 different CalSouth instructors over three association meetings and a RPD session. The new LOTG say 4.5 yards and since most referees step-off is less than a yard, stepping of 5 yards should be about correct. With 20 games as a CR using the new LOTG, I have had no problems or complaints with the new drop ball procedure.
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Sorry. I was on my phone and intended to hit agree but small buttons...fixed now :)
 
coachrefparent said:
WHEW, that one disagree could have been a real tragedy. Especially since you were disagreeing with a referee. :eek:
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I am too remember, but just a baby ref (and published amateur youth soccer columnist too :)). I would only presume to disagree with Surfref after very careful consideration and consultation with several others in the know (including you). o_O
 
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