Umpires' Briefing for Indoor Hockey 2009

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[keely]

The Umpires' Briefing for Indoor Hockey 2009 has just been added to the FIH Umpires' Briefings on WorldHockey.org.

Of particular interest:

• guidance on implementing timeouts (page 11)
• sefl-pass guidance which mirrors that in the outdoor briefing (pages 13-16)
• clarification that moving a free hit back from where the offence occurred to outside the attacking half in order to play the ball directly into the circle should not be permitted (page 15)

[redumpire]

The Indoor Briefing has now been amended very slightly and version 2 issued.  The version number is clearly shown on the front page, along with the date of the change; and the changes themselves are highlighted in yellow text on page 14 of the briefing, which now states:

Free pushes
For free pushes (including restarts after the ball has travelled over the side-boards) taken by the attacking team inside their attacking half
of the pitch:-

• At a ‘self-pass’ the ball must travel at least 3 metres from the point of the free push (not necessarily in a single direction) before the
taker himself can play the ball into the circle

• Alternatively: -

• the ball must be touched, deflected or pushed by any other player before it enters or can be played into the circle; or
• the ball must touch the side-board before it can be played into the circle by any player

(The underlined words above are the new addition.)

[NicfromSweden]

thanks redumpire

this is what we have played after in the swedish league so far

[peterwins]

Looking at the new wording, I am still a little confused on one point.  Can the taker legally play a pass straight off the boards that then bounces into the circle?  My original understanding was yes, but the briefing states

the ball must touch the side-board before it can be played into the circle by any player

which seems to imply someone playing it after it touches the sideboard.  Is this just poor wording?

How is it played in Sweden, Nic?

peter

[keely]

We had this same debate with the wording in the outdoor rules. The phrase "played into the circle" equates to the more colloquial possibility, "go into the circle".

If you go back to the wording in the rule book, it helps:

13.2(h) from a free push awarded to the attack within the half of the pitch they are attacking, the ball must not be played into the circle until it has travelled at least 3 metres or has been touched by a player of either team other than the player taking the free push or has touched the side-board.

In the context of the "a or b or c" phrasing, I think it's more obvious that it is legal for the player taking the free push to push the ball off the boards into the circle. If the requirement was that another player from either team had to play it into the circle after the player taking the free push touches it, then the whole sideboard issue is redundant. It's covered by option B so they wouldn't even mention it separately.

Make sense?

[peterwins]

Keely

thanks.  this seems to be one case where the rule is clear and the briefing stirs up a little mud!

Peter

[keely]

Given how hard we manage to make things on the forum, I can see how it happens!