Originally Posted by
Referee09
This will all hinge on how the referee manages the dead ball situation. The ref needs to be proactive and control the free kick. If its in the middle of the park or in your own half and a player stands over it, the referee should move him back. If he doesn't move and delays the restart of play then he is cautioned. If it's in a more advantageous position, ie: edge of 18 yard box and the attacking team signal that they want to take it quickly and the ref is happy to allow it and they then hit the wall which isn't back 10 yrds............tough, play on!! But as stated at the beginning it comes down to how the referee manages the taking of the free kick. Also remember, if a player is cautioned for this, he's cautioned for "delaying the restart of play"