[St_Thomas_Aquinas]

WHY DON’T THEY JUST STOP THE CLOCK WHEN THERE IS A PENALTY, INJURY, GOAL, OR BALL-IN-THE-STANDS, and end the game or the half when the standard time expires? Define, by rule, when the clock stops, and stop it. Strip the refs of this arbitrary power to add as much time as they want.

The ref is supposed to do that, AFAIK. He's the official timekeeper.

[Steve_Seattle]

"The ref is supposed to do that, AFAIK. He's the official timekeeper."

And that's the problem. It should be like American football, i.e., let the ref stop the play when deemed necessary, but then stop the official, public clock, rather than let the ref keep track of it on his private watch. Notice that the official stoppage time is always in full minutes? That cannot be accurate.