DR . BILL STEFFEN // MEMBER SINCE 1989 DAN WOOG // MEMBER SINCE 1983

In our ongoing series of ethical dilemmas posed to soccer coaches — designed to promote the discussion of ethics among members — the United Soccer Coaches Ethics Committee has another dilemma for coaches to consider .

You are coaching a U14 boys ’ team at a good level . Your team is playing a league game against a team of similar ability . The referee is 18 years old and has informed you it ’ s their first time in the middle as an official at this level .

Late in the game , the official calls a penalty kick for your team due to a trip in the box ; you did not see any contact at all .

The other team surrounds the official , livid . The opposing coach is irate as well . You tell your team to move away and not get involved . As they come near you , you hear the player who was the subject of the call tell his teammates , laughing , “ Did you like my dive ? No one even touched me ! Now watch me score !”

Several questions enter your thinking :

» Do you allow the player “ fouled ” to take the penalty kick ?

» Do you select a different player to take the penalty kick ?

» Do you tell your player to intentionally miss the penalty ?

» If you tell your player to intentionally miss , are you concerned about disrespecting the official and / or the game ?

» Would your thinking be different if the score was 0-0 or 5-0 ( your favor )?

Please think about what you would do as the coach in this scenario . Please discuss the situation and your thinking with colleagues . The United Soccer Coaches Ethics Committee would appreciate hearing from you regarding the actions you might take in this situation .

Email your thoughts to ethics @ unitedsoccercoaches . org Selected responses may be presented in following Soccer Journal articles .

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