Although it’s rare, it is possible for players to make successful and clean tackles from behind their opposition. It’s important to make no assumptions and focus on the defender’s stick and body to …
ARGvNED Verbal warning to captain to calm players
After a minor collision, two players have some “afters”. The umpire stops time, brings over the captain of the initiator and presumably asks for her assistance in controlling her players. Taking care …
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ARGvNED PS VR for stick shield denied
A penalty stroke is called on this tackle, and the defending goalkeeper requests a review on the basis that the attacker shielded the ball with his stick. There is a turn made but at real speed, …
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ESPvARG Extreme set of quick decisions and shots on the penalty corner and management
In this extraordinary sequence there are several shots, saves and near fouls. Notice the initial position of the umpire on the penalty corner injection, which is close to the end line; this serves him …
ARGvNED Playing ball away for PC upgrade after aerial mistrap
A player mistraps the reception on the aerial and clearly plays the ball off her own foot. She then pokes the ball away in a subtle but cynical motion to ensure the opposition can’t take a quick free …
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ARGvNED Infringing 5m from behind
The defender runs through the 5m zone as the attacker was taking the free hit. In making an estimate based on the less than 2s and only 2 steps from the taking of the self-pass and the point of …
CHNvNED GC playing ball after the whistle
At this level of play, a quick and subtle touch by the offending team after they’ve committed the foul and the whistle has gone can eliminate the chance for their opposition to take a quick free …
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AUSvGBR Stick over the head
An attacker attemps to place pressure on a defender who has recovered the ball, but swings his stick over his head from behind. A quicker whistle on these situations can help avoid the ball carrier …
INDvAUS VR Goal for obstruction on GK
This AUS penalty corner goal goes to a video referral for the obstruction on the goalkeeper. It can be very difficult to track so many crucial pieces, especially when you as the controlling umpire are …
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NZLvESP Aerial attacker no control
On the aerial reception, the initial receiver isn’t given 5m to control a difficult aerial coming from overhead. The defender infringes the 5m immediately after the first touch, resulting in a quick …
ARGvNED Defender hits umpire with PE after PC
After a penalty corner concludes, a defender discards her protective glove and inadvertently throws it at and strikes the umpire with it. Although the rule does prohibit players from throwing any …
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ESPvGBR Proactive ball placement on free hit
Understanding when to do a little extra communication at the right moments will assist with both flow and your rapport with the players. A free hit is quickly given as the ball crosses into the 5m …
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NZLvESP Aerial not given for initial receiver
There are several moving pieces in this aerial, and shows the difficulty in parsing out exactly 5m of clear space for an initial receiver. In tracking the reception area prior to the ball arriving, …
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AUSvNED No third party obstruction
After playing a quick self-pass, the ball carrier meets a defender and passes the ball over the oncoming defender’s reverse stick. Although his path is blocked by the defender’s body, the ball has …
CHNvBEL Near corner movement positioning
Note the umpire’s movement patterns along the end line as the play develops on her near sideline. She shifts herself out of the lane of the closer set of players who could block her view, a few steps …
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NZLvGBR Long barrier upgrade PC
As the ball carrier comes into contact, the defender plants his feet, placing his stick and his back lower leg on the pitch. The long barrier he creates increases the area with which he’s able …
ESPvGER Green card intentional use of foot
A green card is given for this intentional use of the foot after the defender moves his back foot towards the ball after being beaten on the dribble. Watch for the player moving their foot into the …
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NZLvGBR Back stick no goal
A back stick shot is correctly called in the first instance by the umpire. The slowly looping trajectory of the ball contrasts with the pace of the stick swing, a good indicator that energy has been …
NZLvUSA YC after long advantage
A yellow card is shown after a long advantage was played. Note the communication between the two umpires as the trail confirms over the radio they should as a team come back for the card. The trail …
GBRvAUS PC upgrade playing ball after whistle
A defender plays the ball off her foot on a missed trap and after the whistle has sounded, pushes the ball well away from the spot of the foul. The two exacerbating factors are the obviousness of the …
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AUSvGBR GK clearance intentional off end line
Watch the path of movement of the goalkeeper’s arm as she attempts the clearance, which travels too directly off the end line. This is deemed intentional by the umpire and play is restarted with …
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ARGvNED No third party obstruction
This situation doesn’t result in a third party obstruction as the defender wasn’t within playing distance, preferring to take a more oblique angle to channel the ball carrier into his far corner. …
ESPvNED Diving tackle
A diving attempt at the ball takes the ball carrier to ground. Questions to ask yourself include: from what angle did the defender approach (were they behind and trying to stop the play, or making an …
ESPvBEL Advantage while player turning away from attacking goal
The umpire reads the potential available to the fouled player very well and although he is moving away from the attacking goal at the time of the foul, he does have a great option for the pass out to …
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NZLvGBR 5m infringement FH GC
After the free hit is given, the fouling player never disengages from the channel and interferes immediately and continuously with the self-pass. A green card is the result. To access this …
AUSvARG Fair block tackle
A defender moves early into tackling position and makes a block tackle from a stationary position. As she’s deflecting the ball out of bounds, the attacker is unable to adjust her running path and …
NZLvBEL No danger and cooperation
A defender makes a great save on the goal line, hitting away a deflection made by an attacker from her knees. Although the ball could have been seen as dangerous, the attacker had put herself in that …
NZLvBEL Fussy ball placement late in game
Within the last minute or so of the game, there are two examples where being overly fussy about ball placement breaks up the flow of the attack. A team defending a lead loves when an umpire clamps …
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NZLvESP Verbal warning for dangerous use of stick
The umpire warns the fouled attacker about flicking his stick up in reaction to the stick obstruction foul. In isolation, this is an excellent intervention. However, we’ve already seen a green card …
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GERvESP Ball intentionally played off back-line
Description to follow To access this content, you must purchase FHU3T Green, FHU3T Green 365, FHU3T Yellow 365 or FHU3T Yellow. …
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GBRvAUS Rolling ball on free hit reversed
The attacker is awarded a free hit a few metres inside the sideline, also inside the 23m area. She retrieves the ball which is rolling towards the sideline, and continues the roll without any change …
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ESPvARG GC 5m aerial infringement breakdown
The initial receiver of the ball is an attacker in navy, standing just in front of the 23-metre line. He is sandwiched by two defenders. One defender possibly unintentionally infringes by coming from …
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NEDvAUS VR PS reversal
A penalty stroke is given for this tackle inside the circle, and goes to VR. The foul was initially given for the body contact on the tackle made by the AUS defender, which was reckless and took the …
ARGvNED Body shield on circle entry
In this lead-up down the left side, the ball carrier’s continuing movement sidestepping and using the body to block the defender’s stick amounts to an obstruction that isn’t called in this instance. …
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BLRvNED Duck!
Despite your best efforts, sometimes the ball will spin in unexpected directions after rebounding off the side-boards. Becoming a pylon can sometimes be your best defence! To access this …
ARGvNED GC breakdown stick obstruction
A long pursuit by a defender leads to two breakdown tackles and one green card. To access this content, you must purchase FHU3T Green, FHU3T Green 365, FHU3T Yellow 365 or FHU3T Yellow. …
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ESPvGER Sideline vs free hit ball placement
The ball carrier deftly flips the ball off a defender’s foot and it careens off the sideline. No free hit is, as near as we can hear, called by the umpire, but when the attack puts the ball back in …
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NZLvESP Dangerous breakdown tackle upgraded plus card
An upgraded team penalty is given after this breaking tackle in a dangerous position just outside the circle. At this point in the game with the physical play and previous cards that have been given, …
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NZLvUSA GC reckless tackle
This tackle comes in from behind and the stick hits the ball carrier on the leg. An advantage is played to the out of bounds play at the far end, and the umpire from the near side stops play and …
NEDvAUS VR self on goal stick interference by attack
The umpire takes a self-referral on this go-ahead goal, which is a crucial decision to take when the defending team has already lost their right to refer. The question may initially have been whether …
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BLRvNED Drilling on cross pass
The attacker receives a ball in the bottom left corner and attempts to send a hard pass across the circle to a teammate. A defender is set at a close and near to 3m distance, and the ball is sent …
NEDvAUS Turnover drill
It’s a small detail but makes a mammoth difference in the end positioning result. When the ball is turned over in the midfield, the umpire immediately turns to sprint hard towards her own circle. When …
BLRvNED Good goal no 3 pts
Another big decision on a goal in this game as the clock is ticking down. The turning moment here is the diving deflection from the top of the circle, and the question is whether that player had three …
ARGvNED YC breakdown tackle
A yellow card is awarded for this breakdown of play that comes, as it frequently does, after a turnover in possession. This was the second card to ARG for a breakdown, and the 4th card overall. …
ARGvUSA Third party obstruction on PC
The difficulty in detecting third-party obstruction on the penalty corner attack is that you’re concerned with whether the ball has left the circle and defenders being struck with the initial shot, …
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ESPvARG No goal obstruction on the GK
On this nullified goal, an attacker is not only standing in front of the goalkeeper but creating significant contact with him as the shot is being taken on goal, pushing him off balance and …
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AUSvNED Obstruction body shield
The attacker approaches the top of the circle just as 3 defenders converge to all cut off his pathway to the goal. The defender to the attacker’s left, in particular, has good positioning and a …
NZLvUSA Ball placement accuracy and flow
The umpire corrects the ball placement after the free hit had been taken, forcing the ball to be replaced and flow is broken. Also of note is reading whether the potentially incorrect ball placement …
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CHNvBEL Body shield on left circle top
An attacker carries the ball towards the top left (far) side of the circle as a defender approaches from the front. The attacker drops the ball behind her body just as the defender attempts to make …
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INDvNED Green card for breakdown stick tackle
Either just before or on the 23m line, a defender throws in a tackle that lands halfway up the ball carrier’s stick. These tackles can be dangerous so it’s a good time to show a green card and try to …
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