Explained: Reds’ draw with Roar features a player who was substituted back into the game, making it a unique A-League.
Goalkeeper Annalee Grove of Adelaide United secured a point for her team during Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Brisbane Roar at Suncorp Stadium with a series of outstanding saves.
Mariah Lee gave the Reds an early 1-0 lead from a narrow angle, but Brisbane’s four-year wait for a Liberty A-League goal at Suncorp Stadium was ended by Mia Corbin’s equalizer in the 38th minute.
If Grove hadn’t made several outstanding saves to keep Adelaide in the match until the end, the unique moment might have propelled the Roar to a significant victory at home.
In Brisbane’s goal, Lee scored the first goal after dribbling past Jenna McCormick of the Roar to go one-on-one with Jordan Silkowitz. Lee skipped past Silkowitz and reduced her angle to score, but managed to squeeze the ball home from the tightest of angles.
On minute 38, Corbin equalized the score with a brilliant cross from Leah Scarpelli that whipped off the right wing and was brushed home at the back post.
Grove twice stopped Sharn Freier in the first half, and even after the break, she proved to be a reliable stopper.
Shortly after the half, the Reds keeper deflected a shot from Hollie Palmer that appeared to be heading toward the bottom left corner. Then, less than ten minutes later, he made a strong left-hand save to deflect Freier’s close-range attempt in a one-on-one, stopping Palmer from the rebound and keeping Adelaide level.
It was Silkowitz’s turn to make a crucial save just past the 70-minute mark, stopping Rosetta Taylor’s close-range attempt that sailed wide of the mark.
Lee kept up her threat down the other end for the Reds, but her overall attacking effort was short of a second goal.
With eight points after six games, two points behind Victory in fourth place, Brisbane is still within striking distance of the top four after the 1-1 draw. Just Adelaide’s second point of the season, but it’s enough to move Adrian Stenta’s team off the bottom of the standings.
Clarified: Adelaide vs. Brisbane’s strange substitution is an A-Leagues first.
At Suncorp Stadium on Sunday night, a player who had been substituted was allowed to return to the field of play for the first time in the history of the A-Leagues thanks to a move known as a “concussion substitution.”
In the 80th minute of Adelaide’s match against Brisbane, Emily Condon replaced Alana Jancevski. In order to free up space on his bench for new outfield players, Reds head coach Adrian Stenta made two more changes. Chrissy Panagaris was one of the players removed from the bench in the final ten minutes of regulation time.
As the final siren sounded, Panagaris was knocked hard on the head in a collision and was taken out of the game again.
However, Adelaide implemented a Football Australia concussion protocol principle that hasn’t been used in the A-Leagues since the protocol’s inception as a trial run in 2021, as Stenta had already used up all four of his outfield substitutes and goalkeeper Claudia Jenkins was the only remaining unutilized substitute on the bench.
The principles of Football Australia are as follows, with Adelaide adhering to the third one on Sunday against the Roar:
In a game, each team is only allowed to use one “concussion substitute.”
Regardless of how many substitutes have already been used, a “concussion substitution” is permitted.
The “concussion substitute” is a player who has been substituted before and who may be used at any time, regardless of the number of substitutes already used, in competitions where the number of named substitutes is equal to the maximum number of “normal” substitutes that can be used.
The maximum number of “normal” substitutes that can be used in the Liberty A-League is five, and the number of named substitutes in the league is also five.
Swap! Due to concussion rules, Jancevski started, came off after 80′, and substituted on 92′. This is likely the first time in Australian national league history (#BRIvADL).This link: t.co/vW2pPUzkQA
— November 26, 2023, Andrew Howe (@AndyHowe_statto)
Read on for the process and chances to implement concussion protocols.
Process
With the exception of the situations described otherwise below, the substitution process is conducted in compliance with Law 3-The Players.
A “concussion substitution” may be made in any of the following situations: immediately following the occurrence or suspicion of a concussion; following an assessment on the field, off the field, or both; or at any other time when a concussion occurs or is suspected (including in situations where a player has been evaluated in the past and has returned to the field of play).
The referee or fourth official is notified if a team chooses to make a “concussion substitution,” preferably by using a substitution card or form with a different color.
The injured player must be accompanied to the changing room and/or a medical facility whenever feasible. They are not allowed to participate in the game in any way, including kicks from the penalty mark.
Opportunities for substitution
There is no restriction on the quantity of “normal” substitution opportunities when it comes to making a “concussion substitution.”
On the other hand, a team will only have one “normal” substitution opportunity if it makes a “concussion substitution” at the same time as a “normal” substitution.
A team cannot use a “concussion substitution” opportunity to make a “normal” substitution once it has used all of its “normal” substitution opportunities.
