Free Kicks (Required Distance Infractions)

These Q&As are from the IFAB "Simplified Laws of the Game" document.

Q: An opponent is less than 9.15 m (10 yds) from a free kick when it is taken and interferes with the kick?
A: Unless the referee plays the advantage, the kick is retaken and the offending player is shown a yellow card.

Q: An opponent is less than 9.15 m (10 yds) from a free kick, but the kick is taken quickly and the opponent did not have time to move into a position that respected the required distance?
A: If there is no interference, play continues.

Q: An opponent is less than 9.15 m (10 yds) from a free kick, but the kick is taken quickly and the opponent did not have time to move into a position that respected the required distance?
A: If there is no interference, play continues. If the opponent interferes with the kick, then it is retaken. If the free kick is taken and the ball is then intercepted, play continues.

These Q&As have me thinking...
Say there is a foul and the defender backs up say 7-8 yds from the spot of the free kick and stands there making his one-person "wall". He has time to move back 10 yards but stops around 7-8 yards. The attacker does not ask for 10 yards and takes the free kick and and the defender jumps and gets a piece of the ball with his head. Is that anything? Is the kick retaken? A yellow card? We can play with these distances if it matters. Say for example, the defender only moves back 4-5 yards and you ask him to keep going and he stops at around 7-8 yards. Is the kick retaken? Yellow card? What if the attacker takes the kick and the defender was only 5 yards away standing patiently and the attacker didn't ask for 10 and you didn't tell him to move back?

Why does the answer to the 3rd question say...if the opponent interferes, the kick is retaken. If the kick is intercepted, play continues. Isn't intercepting the kick considered interfering?

So I guess my overarching question is what are some tricky scenarios with free kicks that require a retakes and yellow cards and some that don't require a retake? Often players back away and they aren't sure if they are exactly 10 yards away and I don't want to get too involved because I want the attacker to have the opportunity to play quickly if they desire. Any thoughts on this? Thanks

I think that the crucial difference between interference and interception is the fact that interference happens in the 9.14m radius, while interception is at 9.15 or beyond - as in to say, the moment the ball crosses the invisible line it then counts as interception rather than interference.

I was told many times before I became an AR from various mentors and the like that you should have a "feeling" for the distance, not necessarily mark it with my steps, and if I do - I should surely have measured my steps at home. But I think that a retake is when the interference is clear after proper measurements were made (even if improper) and that should result in a brandished caution and retake, that's my take on trying to eliminate tricky situations, anything else is the fault of the referee and depends on if it was caught or not.

I would also then say with tricky situations ... maybe implement "the spirit of the game"? Does YOUR MISTAKE that YOU CAUGHT lead into a caution, OR what some would recommend - I messed up, I didn't measure properly, I will now - I caught it in its infancy and will now merely give a verbal warning that going past the 9.15 m line will lead to a caution. Albeit then I also ponder, do you stop play even if you made a mistake (wasn't the fault of the defender) but the interference has led to the defender losing the ball somehow due to a bad touch and has led to either SPA or DOGSO for the same attacking team, do you pull it back or not?

I think the 'Q's are all statements and not questions (having a '?' doesn't make them so). So not having a question makes it hard to say if the 'answer is right. And yes, being a referee does make one that extra bit pedantic, especially this one.

NOVARef said:

Say there is a foul and the defender backs up say 7-8 yds from the spot of the free kick and stands there making his one-person "wall". He has time to move back 10 yards but stops around 7-8 yards. The attacker does not ask for 10 yards and takes the free kick and and the defender jumps and gets a piece of the ball with his head. Is that anything? Is the kick retaken? A yellow card? We can play with these distances if it matters. Say for example, the defender only moves back 4-5 yards and you ask him to keep going and he stops at around 7-8 yards. Is the kick retaken? Yellow card? What if the attacker takes the kick and the defender was only 5 yards away standing patiently and the attacker didn't ask for 10 and you didn't tell him to move back?

Click to expand...

For this I would refer to law 18. If it looks/feels roughly like 10 yards and no one, including the referee hasn't said anything the there is no issues, even if it is say 7 yards. If the ref has said go further back but he is still stationary then retake and a card. If it is obvious it is not 10 yards (say 4 yards) then card and retake.

NOVARef said:

Why does the answer to the 3rd question say...if the opponent interferes, the kick is retaken. If the kick is intercepted, play continues. Isn't intercepting the kick considered interfering?

Click to expand...

For me this looks like bad wording. Interference in this context means touching the ball or impacting an opponent. All interferences outside 10 yards are legal (well, except fouls etc). However in a QFK situations some interferences inside 10 yards are also legal as per law. I suspect the answer refers to those legal inside 10 yards as interception. That has not been made clear.

NOVARef said:

So I guess my overarching question is what are some tricky scenarios with free kicks that require a retakes and yellow cards and some that don't require a retake? Often players back away and they aren't sure if they are exactly 10 yards away and I don't want to get too involved because I want the attacker to have the opportunity to play quickly if they desire. Any thoughts on this?

Click to expand...

Short of writing a big article, retake and card situations usually become obvious. The more experience you have the better the feel you get for it. If you have doubt then allow play to continue. Avoid having to make a decision that you can't sell by managing the situation using voice before and after the kick is taken. For me, the most important skill here is the ability to sell whatever decision you make.