I have no idea as to why this marking is on the pitch. Could somebody clear it up. Why is it there? Thanks.
It marks 10 yards from the penalty spot so the ref can easily see if a player is too close when a penalty is being taken. I t has the same purpose as the centre circle.
Cheers, my Mrs asked me yesterday and I was none the wiser. Couldn't think of a reason. So it is only for the pens then?
As far as I know. In the old days it also let Richard Johnson know that he should have had a shot by the time he reached it but I don't know if more recent players use it for that purpose.
NZ is quite correct, the D marks 10 yards from the penalty mark. To get technical, (and hopefully we all know this anyway but...) but a penalty kick is a direct free kick and all players except for the nominated penalty taker and the defending team goalkeeper have to be behind the penalty mark, outside the penalty area and at least 10 yards from the ball when the kick is taken. Law 14, rarely enforced properly by referees as we all know, the 'charge' into the area by the other players usually ignored particularly when the penalty is 'scored' when technically it should be retaken depending on whom the referee judges to have entered the area prior to the kick being taken.... fuller explanation available on request. I am a qualified referee.
Amazingly enough the "D" or Penalty Arc as it is correctly known was only introduced in 1937 - presumably it was up to the referee to ensure compliance with the 10 yards away rule for penalty kicks up to then. Well it still is, but you know what I mean.....
I just tried it out on Mme to see if she had received the right training when I took her to the Vic for all of the home games. Glad to say that she knew straight away why it was there.
LOL... all football laws are written in imperial measurement save for one amendment which was recently introduced and is a metric measurement.... anybody know it? (without looking it up - I'll be watching!!!)
Either that or it's the length of studs. Anyway, all versions of the book of the laws of football do have the metric equivalents of each of the measurements.
They all have metric equivalents but they were originally written with imperial measurement... hence 9.14m not 10m. It is to do with throw-ins, is a fairly recent development probably down to Rory Delap at Stoke and his missile like projectile throw ins where defenders would stand on the touch line jumping up and down in front of him. So the defending player now has to stand two metres in from the touchline so as not to impede the throw. It is the only distance that is not written with any reference to an imperial measurement because all the other laws of football were written before the UK introduced metric measurements. Hence a goal is 8ft tall by 8yards wide internally. 10 yards wide if your name is Stuart Atwell as we all know!
