Stuart Lustigman Column
With all the bad weather I, like many others, spent more time than usual watching TV in general and, of course, football, in particular. I decided that, from a referee's perspective, there are two aspects of the game that really annoy me. The first is when a fouled player requires the physo's attention and then has to leave the field of play, thus reducing his team to ten men while they take the free kick. Perhaps the player who perpetuated the foul should accompany him? The second is cautioning a scorer for celebrating a goal by removing his shirt. This was originally outlawed because of political slogans on the undergarment. It is now considered unsporting behaviour for a player to either remove his shirt or cover his head with his shirt (but OK for some supporters!). What is the problem?
While on the subject of refereeing, here's an interesting question. Can a goalkeeper involved in a dropped ball in his own penalty area use his hands? See answer below.
Last weekend was an interesting one for my family. My youngest son had a hernia operation; my middle son was struggling with a knee problem and my eldest son broke his ankle playing in the Maccabi Masters League. It looks like that at the moment I am the only adult male member of the Lustigman dynasty fit to play football!
I am organising two exciting tours for October and December 2010. In October a masters (40+) team will participate in the 3rd Maccabi World Union International Veterans Football Tournament in Israel which involves a full programme of playing and touring. In December an over 45s team will travel to Sydney, the host city for the Maccabi Australia International Games which includes some 20 sports using many of the facilities from the 2000 Olympics. If you would like further details please contact me stuartlustigman@aol.com.
Answer. A goalkeeper can use his hands once the dropped ball has touched the ground.
