The offensive player is obstructed initially when the defender comes over the top of her stick in an attempted tackle. However, she uses her stick to move the defender’s stick away in a dangerous …
NZLvGBR Follow through danger to GK
A penalty corner shot rebounds to an attacker is close proximity to the goalkeeper. The shot is driven straight at the goalkeeper and the follow-through appears to have caught him in the pads. The …
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BELvAUS PC upgrade 5m infringement angles
This is a fascinating example of a penalty corner upgrade for a 5m infringement outside the circle. First, we consider what distances the tackler and any other player who influenced the play started …
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AUSvNED GCx2 playing ball after whistle
Two instances within 45s of the same team playing the ball after the whistle and breaking down play. In both examples, the fouling player subtly moves the ball further away from the spot of the foul …
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BLRvNED GC for tripping
As the play is moving across the circle away from the controlling umpire, a chasing attacker clips the heels of the defender chasing down the ball. This may well have been blocked from the view of the …
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 …
ESPvGER Use of body after shot hits post
When a shot at goal does not touch a defender before careening off a goalpost or crossbar, the danger is the responsibility of the shooter and therefore deemed created by the attack. The goalkeeper …
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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. …
ARGvESP GC missed and free hit not taken
A reading of this play is that the whistle was blown for the free hit after the defender bumped the ball carrier and ran across his path, but it wasn’t heeded by the ARG attacker who preferred the …
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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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GERvAUT Fine line drilling vs. mishandle
The rule prohibiting dangerous play by way of “drilling” the ball at an opponent is intended to protect players’ hands, feet and faces from injury caused by balls behind played at them at high …
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NEDvAUS Early break on PC
A defender breaks early and although she does stop her forward momentum into the circle, the umpire calls for the restart immediately in order to keep things safe for everyone. When the regular pace …
AUSvNED Aerial interception outside 23m for goal
An aerial ball is outlet from the left sideline on the diagonal into the middle of the pitch. From the side angle, it appears that the AUS player infringes within 5m of the NED player standing …
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AUSvGBR Positioning staying ahead of play
The timing of the umpire’s movement here is a bit off and in the end, has her running inside her circle as the ball is moving around. When the attacker picks up her dribble, the umpire pauses and …
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ESPvARG GC 5m free hit management
A stick obstruction is called and the fouling team attempts to take the free hit quickly. The umpire whistles the correction, and an attacker takes the self-pass quickly from the point of the initial …
ESPvNED PC for foot on the line
A shot taken on the penalty corner goes between the post player’s legs, strikes the post and on its way out, hits his back heel. The correct decision here is another penalty corner rather than a …
ARGvBEL Reading attacking play
Preferred positioning has the controlling umpire well ahead of the play, turned to face the attack as it transitions into the 23m area and from an inside angle. In order to get to this spot, umpires …
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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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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CHNvNED Stick shield
The ball carrier receives the ball on the turn and moves to her left. Her dribble continues in that direction while she places her stick in between the ball at the tackler’s stick in a non-momentary …
AUSvARG VR drag flick danger
A drag flick that strikes a defender who has closed to within 5m will be judged as dangerous if it hits at knee height or above. It’s crucial that in the absence of video referral, the supporting …
CHNvBEL Long barrier or good tackle
This high-risk tackle could go either way. If you focus on the movement of the defender, they are basically set in position as the ball carrier comes in. They take a very low body position, and the …
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NEDvAUS No obstruction
When the attacker makes a moves around the tackler at the edge of the circle, they throw the ball too far towards a second defender. As they were unlikely to catch up to the ball, no disadvantage has …
INDvNED VR intentional use of the foot
This video referral gives us the opportunity to examine a decision we aren’t faced with often, which is whether a player intentionally uses their foot to play the ball. The giveaway here is the …
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NZLvBEL No attacker touch inside the circle before crossing the goal line
For a goal to be scored, an attacker must touch the ball inside the circle before it crosses the goal line. There was no touch by an attacker here, and also no defender, so the correct decision is a …
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CHNvNED Ball placement moving outside the 23m
If a player sets up a free hit inside the 23m line that should be taken outside and is looking to pass backwards, should the umpire interrupt play to move the hit outside the 23m, even if that …
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UKRvAUS 3pts of contact on goal
The camera work on this goal is poor but it appears that the attacker used her right hand to stabilize her body as she took a very low position and spin to deflect this ball into the goal. Note that …
NEDvBEL No advantage
This is an example of when possession isn’t accompanied by opportunity, so the better remedy is to blow your whistle. Although the ball carrier may have had the skill to dribble away from the …
AUSvNED PC upgrade for not 5m
A free hit is taken 2-3m from the circle edge with multiple defenders in play. One defender who had worked to back pedal doesn’t back off the full 5m and heads back towards the ball to attempt a …
ARGvNED No stick block
A defender claims a stick block occurs on this attacking play. As he’s chasing the ball carrier from behind, the ball carrier changes his direction from cutting to the right to going straight at the …
AUSvGBR Ball not trapped under no danger at GK
Two things to look at: what attempts did the attackers make to move the ball out of the goalkeeper’s pads on each engagement, and did they push the ball back under the goalkeeper at any point? The …
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AUSvGBR Penalty corner collision
This collision on the penalty corner is worth examining, for a variety of reasons. For context, there was a significant incident at last year’s Pro League Finals during the semi-final between these …
BELvAUS GC playing ball after the whistle
Although a green card is given, there’s an argument for a yellow due to the impact of the foul and the late stage of the game. The defender subtly kicks the ball ahead and pretends to play it …
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ARGvBEL Breakdown tackle just outside 23m
As soon as the ball popped past the planted defender near the centre line there was always going to be a breakdown tackle to stop this threatening run down the middle of the field. Note the exact spot …
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GERvKAZ Ball placement on free push
Not every free push taken away from the spot of the foul requires intervention in indoor. However, when the team in possession gains an unfair advantage by cutting out non-fouling defenders as happens …
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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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GERvAUT No advantage ball placement
Early in a match is a great time to set your standards for ball placement. When advantage doesn’t accrue after this stick obstruction foul, the umpire steps in with a clear double-whistle and …
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INDvAUS GC after long advantage for dangerous play
A lengthy advantage is played after a collision between two players. Although this is clearly a 50/50 ball that the IND captain wins the battle for, there is a little extra afterwards that shows a …
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UKRvAUS Trap for bully
The ball carrier dribbles into trouble and ends up in a stalemate with one opposing defender. When the ball doesn’t move, the umpire calls a bully for the no-fault obstruction and it takes two tries …
MASvIND Penalty stroke and yellow card given to defender for diving in front of the ball was tripped
On this play, a penalty stroke is awarded against the defender for intentionally throwing his body in front of the ball inside the circle. However, on replay it’s clear that he tripped over the leg of …
NZLvBEL Mobility in the circle
After the umpire gets caught a little close to the play on this penalty corner rebound, she makes an excellent adjustment and moves 5m off the end line in order to give herself a broader view of a …
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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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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UKRvAUS Trapped ball on board for FP
When the ball carrier gets caught without many options on the right side-board, she eventually pushes the ball into the defending player's stick and causes the trapped ball obstruction, resulting in a …
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ESPvGER Difference between a PC and PS
A shove in the back from the pursuing defender is appropriately penalized with a penalty corner. The temptation may be to give a penalty stroke because it presents as an intentional foul, but the …
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GERvAUT Advantage for attack then FHD rolling ball
Several issues of note in this passage of play: The umpire plays an advantage off the stick tackle along the side-boards. The attacker has good options available to him, including the immediate 2v1 …
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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 …
NZLvARG Playing ball after whistle
An early instance where the defending team taps the ball away has the intended effect of allowing the defenders to get back in front of the ball in numbers. Although this particular moment may not …
NZLvBEL PC attacker breaks early
As this penalty corner is being injected, the far right-side attacker breaks early into the circle. The supporting umpire communicates this to the controlling umpire over the radios and the penalty …
ESPvGBR Advantage goal
Terrific advantage played for this goal. The trick is to not only see possession but what also constitutes an opportunity for the level of skill in front of you. For most levels, a player in …
