UCLA v UNC - no call on corner kick

[Mystery Train]

If any of our resident SoCalSoccer refs saw the women's national championship game (UCLA made an unbelievable comeback to win in OT) I'm curious to get your opinion on the second UCLA goal which came with 16 seconds left on a corner kick. Contact clearly made on the GK as she is starting to leap for the ball, she gets pushed in the air back into her goal. No foul was given. I was rooting for UCLA, and at first agreed with the no-call on the basis that the contact didn't seem heavy. However, after watching the replay a few times and then imagining that it was my DD (also a GK) getting moved back into the net in that situation, I realized I would be absolutely HOWLING for that call. What's the consensus here?

(Best angle replay starts at 2:30 mark below)

 

[Grace T.]

If any of our resident SoCalSoccer refs saw the women's national championship game (UCLA made an unbelievable comeback to win in OT) I'm curious to get your opinion on the second UCLA goal which came with 16 seconds left on a corner kick. Contact clearly made on the GK as she is starting to leap for the ball, she gets pushed in the air back into her goal. No foul was given. I was rooting for UCLA, and at first agreed with the no-call on the basis that the contact didn't seem heavy. However, after watching the replay a few times and then imagining that it was my DD (also a GK) getting moved back into the net in that situation, I realized I would be absolutely HOWLING for that call. What's the consensus here?

(Best angle replay starts at 2:30 mark below)

1. Foul. Some proponents of UCLA has been saying it was just a shoulder to shoulder challenge and therefore can't count as pushing. But if you look at the player send to guard the goalkeeper, the arm is clearly pushing back on the goalkeeper's chest.
2. Even if it's not a foul, it's still impeding. The striking player (at least at first) isn't making an attempt to play the ball, but to hold back the goalkeeper. The goalkeeper tries to move forward and rather than attempt to play the ball the striking player pushes her back into the net.
3. However, the most persuasive argument I've heard against is that the foul (whether a push or impeding) did not affect play? Why? Because to get a ball like this the goalkeeper needs to side shuffle towards the far post and then attack forward. Had the goalkeeper gone straight forward, the referee may have been of the opinion it would have gone over her outstretched hand since she made no effort to reposition herself laterally.
4. There's no rule prohibiting someone standing in front of the goalkeeper. It only becomes a foul once contact is made or movement is impeded instead of making a legit attempt to play the ball. GK coaches have recommended this be handled in two ways. One, the GK notify the ref before the corner is taken, try to move the striker (since they are both entitled to their space) or if not then engage in a shoving match with the striker prior to the corner being taken....particularly on a corner of this import. Physically move the striker or die trying. Two, a pusher. Particularly if the GK were already playing on a yellow, I would have gone with the pusher given the importance of the corner, but some GKs are too proud, some GK coaches think it's not the right way to handle things, and some coaches think it should just be on the GK. However, given the size mismatch, I think a pusher was warranted in this situation.
5. Part of this is on the GK. She unfortunately isn't very big relative to the other players. On the men's side, the goalkeeper just plows through the strikers who will lose any such shoving match. Therefore, it was imperative on her to try to sell the foul by falling over particularly once she had been pushed into the net and out of range of being able to impact it.
6. Isn't there limited VAR of these matches? If so my guess is the ref is hanging the hat on 3 and/or didn't have the angle on VAR to judge 3.

 

[sockma]

1. Foul. Some proponents of UCLA has been saying it was just a shoulder to shoulder challenge and therefore can't count as pushing. But if you look at the player send to guard the goalkeeper, the arm is clearly pushing back on the goalkeeper's chest.
2. Even if it's not a foul, it's still impeding. The striking player (at least at first) isn't making an attempt to play the ball, but to hold back the goalkeeper. The goalkeeper tries to move forward and rather than attempt to play the ball the striking player pushes her back into the net.
3. However, the most persuasive argument I've heard against is that the foul (whether a push or impeding) did not affect play? Why? Because to get a ball like this the goalkeeper needs to side shuffle towards the far post and then attack forward. Had the goalkeeper gone straight forward, the referee may have been of the opinion it would have gone over her outstretched hand since she made no effort to reposition herself laterally.
4. There's no rule prohibiting someone standing in front of the goalkeeper. It only becomes a foul once contact is made or movement is impeded instead of making a legit attempt to play the ball. GK coaches have recommended this be handled in two ways. One, the GK notify the ref before the corner is taken, try to move the striker (since they are both entitled to their space) or if not then engage in a shoving match with the striker prior to the corner being taken....particularly on a corner of this import. Physically move the striker or die trying. Two, a pusher. Particularly if the GK were already playing on a yellow, I would have gone with the pusher given the importance of the corner, but some GKs are too proud, some GK coaches think it's not the right way to handle things, and some coaches think it should just be on the GK. However, given the size mismatch, I think a pusher was warranted in this situation.
5. Part of this is on the GK. She unfortunately isn't very big relative to the other players. On the men's side, the goalkeeper just plows through the strikers who will lose any such shoving match. Therefore, it was imperative on her to try to sell the foul by falling over particularly once she had been pushed into the net and out of range of being able to impact it.
6. Isn't there limited VAR of these matches? If so my guess is the ref is hanging the hat on 3 and/or didn't have the angle on VAR to judge 3.

I slowed it down and saw the goalie stiff arm the attacker, not the other way around. Looks like what prevented her from going all the way up was her teammate behind her. She got stuck between the attacker and her teammate as she went up.

 

[Soccer43]

That is not the way I see it. The keeper flies up and back into the air into the net, pushing her into a space where it was impossible to get to the ball. The only way the GK would have had the motion is by being shoved by the UCLA player

 

[socalkdg]

Tough one. I belong to a FB keeper page and it has been about 60 / 40 in favor of no call. I easily see both sides. Keeper takes first step forward and initiates some minor contact with UCLA player. Just as she jumps back a bit she also gets pushed a bit as well. The ball ended up far post and not the middle where she was. I put this in the category of referee's letting them play in the last 5 minutes and not calling fouls in the box that might give a penalty kick thus letting some physical play occur in the 6 on a corner. This play is not reviewable by VAR for college. Only if goal or no goal in crossing the line.

I know my daughter likes to have one of her players on that person in front of her to reduce contact and give her a buffer between her and the opposition. Keeper needs to move to her right on the play as well. Interesting that North Carolina puts two defenders in the goal on corner kicks. I do have some UCLA bias so there is that as well.

 

[Mystery Train]

1. Foul. Some proponents of UCLA has been saying it was just a shoulder to shoulder challenge and therefore can't count as pushing. But if you look at the player send to guard the goalkeeper, the arm is clearly pushing back on the goalkeeper's chest.
2. Even if it's not a foul, it's still impeding. The striking player (at least at first) isn't making an attempt to play the ball, but to hold back the goalkeeper. The goalkeeper tries to move forward and rather than attempt to play the ball the striking player pushes her back into the net.
3. However, the most persuasive argument I've heard against is that the foul (whether a push or impeding) did not affect play? Why? Because to get a ball like this the goalkeeper needs to side shuffle towards the far post and then attack forward. Had the goalkeeper gone straight forward, the referee may have been of the opinion it would have gone over her outstretched hand since she made no effort to reposition herself laterally.
4. There's no rule prohibiting someone standing in front of the goalkeeper. It only becomes a foul once contact is made or movement is impeded instead of making a legit attempt to play the ball. GK coaches have recommended this be handled in two ways. One, the GK notify the ref before the corner is taken, try to move the striker (since they are both entitled to their space) or if not then engage in a shoving match with the striker prior to the corner being taken....particularly on a corner of this import. Physically move the striker or die trying. Two, a pusher. Particularly if the GK were already playing on a yellow, I would have gone with the pusher given the importance of the corner, but some GKs are too proud, some GK coaches think it's not the right way to handle things, and some coaches think it should just be on the GK. However, given the size mismatch, I think a pusher was warranted in this situation.
5. Part of this is on the GK. She unfortunately isn't very big relative to the other players. On the men's side, the goalkeeper just plows through the strikers who will lose any such shoving match. Therefore, it was imperative on her to try to sell the foul by falling over particularly once she had been pushed into the net and out of range of being able to impact it.
6. Isn't there limited VAR of these matches? If so my guess is the ref is hanging the hat on 3 and/or didn't have the angle on VAR to judge 3.

You and I agree on pretty much all of this. By the letter of the law, it looks like a foul for impeding her without an attempt to play the ball.

For what it's worth, I do not think the GK was going to get that ball either way, because of exactly your description of her movements going vertical instead of shuffling to the back post where she needed to be, so I don't think it's a tragic injustice to let this be a no call.

Also, I do agree with your critique of the keeper in this situation. Hopefully she learns from this. I told my keeper to watch the video and learn from it, too. NEVER let the attacking player bully you in your 6. YOU are the bully, and you have to clear your own way to the ball no matter what. Even smaller framed keepers can use technique to keep from getting shoved around, or teams can compensate tactically for a smaller GK body by putting their biggest, baddest field player in there as the bodyguard.

The other point my daughter made is that she's been trained to always have her arms fully extended up in the air prior to the kick. That way, nobody can pin your arms down like the UCLA player did. It's like watching NBA players fight for rebound position or cornerbacks/receivers hand fighting as the ball is in the air: If you can make the contact subtle enough, you can get away with things that are significant enough to influence the play but not enough to draw the foul call. In that respect, the UCLA player did what she had to do to get her team in position to win and I can respect it.

I put this in the category of referee's letting them play in the last 5 minutes and not calling fouls in the box that might give a penalty kick thus letting some physical play occur in the 6 on a corner. This play is not reviewable by VAR for college. Only if goal or no goal in crossing the line.

Precisely. I think it would have been really tough to blow that whistle in that situation. You see a lot of contact on hail mary passes in the NFL for this very reason.

STILL, I do think it's a foul, but one of those that I can understand why it wasn't called.

I don't envy refs at all.