One of the results of having my name and photo alongside my column in the
Evening Post every week, is that I am often stopped and asked questions, usually
about football and more particularly about the laws of the game. I did however
have a call from a man who had seen a seagull drop dead out of the sky at
Reading Station and thought it might make a suitable topic for the column.
Sometimes, even about football I am not able to give an answer except a very
general one. This is because people ask me about incidents that I didn't witness
so it is difficult, if not impossible, to comment honestly.
For example, a number of questions have been posed to me about those other Seagulls, Brighton and
Hove Albion and their game against Reading at the Madejski Stadium last
Friday. Having officiated at four games during the week, I was having a golf
away-day and didn't see the match so couldn't give any real views on the various
related incidents.
One easy question I was asked recently was, can a player who has been
substituted come back on later in the game. The answer I gave was,
'no'.
Law three, 'Number of Players', states quite clearly 'a player who has been replaced,
takes no further part in the match'. The conditions on substitutes in the laws are
quite prescriptive and therefore a referee should never get it wrong. This
includes the part of the law which says that when a club wishes to make a
substitution, it must first inform the referee. We are now familiar with the
assistant referee holding his flag horizontally over his head to draw the referee's
attention that a substitution is required. The substitute can only enter the field of
play after a signal from the referee and this should not be given until the player
being replaced has left the field.
I know from the reaction of spectators if nothing else, that I am sometimes accused of being too pedantic in ensuring that this part of the law is carried out
correctly. The reason is very simple. I like to have only eleven players on the
field at the same time.
There have been cases where the player who was
supposed to have been substituted hasn't left the field of play and the game has
carried on with twelve players on one side. Very embarrassing for the referee
when it comes to light and of course the game can be declared void. For the
same reason, like most referees, I count the players on the field before kick-off
at the start of play and at the recommencement after half time.
I wondered afterwards whether the questioner who asked me if a substituted
player could go back on the field had been present at one of my matches a few
weeks earlier when I was faced with an unusual situation. It was the quarter
final of a national competition so an important and as it turned out closely
fought match.
One team manager asked, as I thought, to make two substitutions,
one of which involved the goalkeeper whose place was taken by an outfield
player. As soon as the goalkeeper left the field I blew my whistle for the game
to recommence. At the next stoppage the manager was waving frantically from
the touchline, and calling me. When I went over, he said that he hadn't intended
to substitute the goalkeeper but just to swap with the outfield player. He had
only taken the goalkeeper off to put on a shirt. I counted the players and they
only had ten, so I waved the ex-goalkeeper back on.
Perhaps I should have told my questioner, 'players replaced cannot take any further part in the game, except
when the referee drops a clanger'.
Dick Sawdon Smith