PRESEASON GUIDE
SOCCER 2014 Stop Clock, Player Departs C
BOB MESSINA
larifying that possibly injured goalkeepers and field players must leave the field if the referee stops the clock highlighted the changes made by the NFHS Soccer Rules Committee at its Jan. 27-29 meeting in Indianapolis. The NFHS Board of Directors subsequently approved the changes. If the referee stops the clock for an apparent injury to a field player or goalkeeper, the field player or goalkeeper will have to leave the field (3-3-2b 2). The field player may be replaced and the goalkeeper must be replaced. The committee is aware of the special nature of the goalkeeper position. A team’s second-string goalkeeper may be far less skilled than the primary goalkeeper. But balancing the studentathlete’s long-term health against a few minutes off the field is their primary concern. “The committee wants to make sure that players who are apparently injured are evaluated by a coach or an appropriate health-care professional,” said Mark Koski, NFHS director of sports, events and development and soccer rules editor. “The overriding concern is minimizing risk to all students.” Yes, there will be instances where a goalkeeper simply “has the wind knocked out” of him or her. The referee cannot immediately determine the extent of the goalkeeper’s injury and stops the clock to speak with the athlete — who now needs to come off the field, goalkeeper or not. If the injured player is a field player, he or she may be replaced. If the injured SEE “INJURY” P. 2
The goalkeeper (on the ground) is injured and needs medical attention. Because play and the clock have been stopped to attend to the injured player, the goalkeeper must be replaced with either a substitute goalkeeper or a field player with the appropriate jersey for a goalkeeper. High school official Dave Dillard, Torrence, Calif., beckons on the team’s coach and/or medical personnel to attend to the player.
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