Friday List of Little or No Consequence #230

Breaking all the rules

11 Players Whose Actions Brought About Changes In The Laws And Administration Of The Game

1. Wilson (The Wednesday)
So proficient at one-handed throws that the two-handed throw was introduced (1888)

2. Bob Whittingham, Marshall McEwan, English McConnell (Chelsea)
Bought by Chelsea in the final few weeks of the 1909/10 season in a desperate attempt to stay in Division 1; it failed and a March 16 transfer deadline was imposed from then on (1910)

3. Leigh Roose (Arsenal)
A goalkeeper and early football celebrity, notorious for his forward runs, prompting a change to restrict keepers to handling only in their area (1912)

4. Dickie Downs (Barnsley)
Players now require the referee's permission to return to the field after he ran back on the pitch and stopped a goal in the Cup Final (1912)

5. Sam Chedgzoy (Everton)
Almost scored a goal by dribbling the ball from a corner, prompting the law change that corner kickers may only touch the ball once before another player does (1924)

6. Bill McCracken (Newcastle United)
Whose offside trap was so proficient, it led to a change in the offside law so that only two defending players needed to be behind the ball rather than three (1925)

7. Tom Farquharson (Cardiff City)
Became famous for his ability to save penalties by charging at the penalty taker from the back of his net. Goalkeepers must now stay on their line during a penalty (1929)

8. George Eastham (Newcastle United)
Frustrated by Newcastle's reluctance to release him to join another club, Eastham went on strike and subsequently took his case to court. The judge ruled in his favour, ending the clubs' right to retain players' registrations at the end of a contract (1963)

9. Willie Young (Arsenal)
His cynical tackle on Paul Allen, when the West Ham youngster only had the goalkeeper to beat in the 1980 FA Cup Final, brought about the 'professional foul' rule (1982)

10. Jean Marc Bosman (RFC Liege)
His legal action allowed players the freedom to join other clubs for free at the end of their contracts. Also ended restrictions on the number of foreign players in a team (1995)

11. Pele (Santos)
His 'paradinha' penalty technique, named after the short pauses made by samba bands, ultimately led to a law being brought in before the last World Cup to stop the growing number of players doing their own version (2010).