How would soccer go withoout off side?

[Blues2001]

I was just wondering how you thought the game of soccer would manage if off side was gotten rid of. It happened in hockey about 7 years ago and I'm pretty sure its been a success.

But what about soccer?

Would it be a success, with more goals and less stoppages?

Or wouldn't it work, and would it just change the game too much?

 

[Hmmmmm]

Well speaking from personal experience Id say it would be awesome. In our weekly games our fowards are constantly being caught off side. If it was gone then we might beat teams by more than 1 or 2 goals.
But on the other hand it is very handy for us defenders.

 

[Blues2001]

ggrrr! A typo in the subject header!

 

[CDFCLad]

I don't think it should be abolished. It was brought in originally because players were just hanging in the box and scoring at will in the late 1880's or something. Players like Niall Quinn, Tony Adams and Japp Staam wouldn't even leave the 18 yd box due to their strength and height.

However a line being drawn across the 18 yd box (or halfway in opposition territory) all the way across the ground and no offsides before it........perhaps a good idea. I'd like to see some sort of experimentation with it, but no abolishment altogether.

 

[Shinboners]

The original offside rule required 3 players (usually the goalkeeper and two defenders) to be between the most forward attacking player and the goal. But that rule was changed when the Arsenal (who else? ) sides of the 30s would exploit the rule by making sure that one of the defenders would be in line with the most forward opposition player...and so, when the ball was about to be played forward, that defender would take a step, thus causing the offisde.

I also remember reading somewhere that during the 40s or 50s, there was a line drawn across the pitch as described by CDFC Lad, and what they found was that instead of they types of scores that we're used to, they found that most games would have at least 10 goals being scored. In the end, the powers that ran the game decided not to adapt the rule.

 

[CDFCLad]

A FIFA youth tournament in the mid-90's used the 18 yard offside experiment, but I can't remember how it went or what tournamnet it was

 

[GOALden Hawk]

Originally posted by CDFCLad
A FIFA youth tournament in the mid-90's used the 18 yard offside experiment, but I can't remember how it went or what tournamnet it was

I'm pretty sure it was a underage World Cup in the USA (where else). I think it worked reasonably well, but in the end not that many more goals were scored, and the linesman had problems determining what was offside and what wasn't (still, there's nothing new there! )

 

[QT]

Leave it the same

Im sick of FIFA making new rules every year. Leave it the way it is before they completely ruin the game!

 

[Fat Red]

A comment about the change in hockey.

Overall it has worked really well. It has led to an increase in goalscoring, but not a ridiculous one. From what I see the average hockey game would have between 3 and 6 goals scored. So you get scores like 2-2, 3-0, 3-1 and in blowouts you might get 5 or 6 to 0 or 1. I haven't played in a scoreless draw for 3 or 4 seasons, and my team usually finishes middle of the table.

This has made the game more interesting, fairer (less likely that a fluke goal against the play decides a match) and with much fewer draws.

However they are different games. The hockey goalkeeper probably has a better chance than the soccer one of beating a player 1-on-1 because the goal is smaller and the hockey player can only shoot from inside 16 yards.

I'm not sure if it would work for soccer--but it's been a great change for hockey in my opinion.

 

[Blue Blood]

The problem is if they scrap the rule the opposition players would just stand in front of the keeper all day.That is they would stand on the goalkeepers toes all day so the keeper would never see the shot coming.Making you miss out on all those great saves you see.Soccer isn't just about watching goals being scored.It's about being entertained,just like any sport.

 

[Dipper]

Yeah,
If you got rid of the off side altogether you would end up with teams just playing long, long balls into the box from their own half & huge forwards would become the norm.

I think in American Major League Soccer in the 70's they put the offside line at half way in each half but I'm not sure how it worked,although I reckon it could go quite well.

The thing with offside is that it is the key to how football is played & though some games are ruined by teams packing their defence & using the offside rule to thier advantage defensively it is the rule that creates great players & makes them so valuable.If there was no offside a lot more goals would be scored & players with all round qulaities would be favoured ie players who could run, defend, score head & basically do a bit of everything but whilst offside is there you need real quality players to break it & create goals that's why Zidane went for £46m.These playes Zidane & Maradonna are so highly prized because they have the skill to break a tight game which few others possess.Even very good players like Beckham & Viera don't possess the skill to break a really tight,off side dominated game regularly & so the appreciation of the trully great/skillfull players is increased.
The reason that the goal in football is cheered more than a score in any other sport is because it is such a difficult thing to do & so they are appreciated more & stick longer in the mind.

Shinboners,
it's good to see that you know you're football history as my beloved Arsenal were the first to exploit the old off side law as George Graham's side were to do again in the late 80's early 90's(who can forget the whole Arsenal back four arms raised appealing to the linesman for offside?)but it worked as the 30's side won 5or 6 titles & a couple of FA cups before Hitler ruined things for us.

 

[Shinboners]

Cheers Dipper. And you'd be happy to know that I've stood outside your beloved Highbury. I've seen a game at Old Trafford (Manchester United 1 Everton 0...it was the game right after Sir Matt Busby had passed away) and Anfailed (Thieving Bin Dipping Granny Stabbing Scouse Bastards 0 Bristol City 1 in the FA Cup and that was Graeme Souness's last game as manager of the T.B.D.G.S.S.Bs ).

 

[Fat Red]

What a surprise to see an Arsenal supporter defending the low-scoring nature of soccer.

 

[Dipper]

Originally posted by Fat Red
What a surprise to see an Arsenal supporter defending the low-scoring nature of soccer.

Hehe-well I know Arsenal are never going to shake off the boring tag but for the last 5 years or so we've actually been amongst the leading scorers & one of the most attractive/attacking sides in England.

But it is the low scoring nature of the game that makes it so thrilling & makes goals such memorable things.Everyone I know who is a football fan can remember great goals but can also remember important goals that might actually have been crappy to look at.It's this that sets football apart from multiple scoring sports, with basketball being the worse example whereby teams just score & then the oppostion run up the other end & reply with a score themselves to me this is actually less exciting than games of football where the score is often 0-0 or 1-0 because the anticipation of a goal is everything-the knowledge that you may not actually see a goal scored that day makes them all the better when one is scored.