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 …
INDvBEL Proactive ball placement inside dotted line
The umpire does a great job here making a quick decision on a free hit inside the dotted 5m line, and immediately “double-tweeting” to get the players’ attention and verbally signal the correct ball …
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BLRvNED No foul on raise inside circle
As the ball is being switched across the circle through the defenders, a reception is bobbled to a small height. The nearest pressing attacker is far enough away that she is not disadvantaged or …
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ESPvNED Flashing in the circle
When the play is in the deep far side of your circle, “flashing” a few metres inside the circle towards the penalty spot is an effective and relatively safe way to get yourself a better view of the …
GERvKAZ Hit out of mid-air
A crossing pass is deflected slightly into the air on the attempted interception. It bounces once but before it settles onto the court the oncoming attacker hits is out of mid-air into the goal. The …
CHNvBEL Management of players pushing in circle
As the ball is being situated for a 23m restart, the players begin jostling for position in the circle. The umpire uses her whistle to get the players’ attention and prevents the ball from being put …
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GERvAUT Hit on long pass then deflection into defender at close range
Players are most likely to hit the ball in indoor when they are attempting a long pass that requires a high rate of speed to avoid interception. Although this hit wasn’t detected at the time, …
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BLRvNED Back-line play no trap
Here’s an alternate view on the trapped ball and how long to wait until calling the bully when the trap has occurred unintentionally. One approach is to jump quickly on the obstruction as soon …
GBRvAUS GC YC for tussle in circle
Opposing players often jockey for position in the circle before a free hit will be played towards it. After a couple of interventions in this passage of play, the message isn’t taken up and the …
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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NZLvGBR GC hitting ball away
After committing the foul, the GBR player clearly hits the ball away from the spot of the foul. Green card is awarded. To access this content, you must purchase FHU3T Green, FHU3T Green …
INDvARG VR stick obstruction no foul no bully Pibworth Rule
The initial decision on the penalty corner was a free hit for the defence. The attacking team referred it for a stick obstruction. On review, the video umpire found simultaneous fouls by both the …
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GERvAUT Drilling and 3m self-pass inside dotted line
Two distinct issues are shown in this clip. The defender dribbles himself into pressure on the left side-board and tries to drill the ball at and potentially over one of the pressing attacker’s …
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AUSvNED Recovery on PC counter
The supporting umpire would have been positioned well upfield to be properly placed to assist his colleague during the taking of the PC. Focus on anticipating the breakdown and try to predict where …
GBRvNZL Not illegal for a player to attempt to legally play the ball while on the ground
Despite the prevalence of one of the biggest urban myths about the rules, It is not illegal for a player to attempt to play the ball by legal means when on the ground in outdoor (only in indoor). The …
AUSvARG Body obstruction shield by attacker
A common area where ball carriers commit body obstruction and shield the ball from a tackle is when they’re dribbling down the left attacking channel. The ball is initially in a natural carrying …
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ESPvGER VR late stages in the circle
A video referral late in Q4 of a tied game shows on the first attempted tackle a potential push, although an argument can be made that the collision is 50/50. After a second push on the same attacker …
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AUSvBEL Aerial and advantage
An aerial goes to two players but the opposing defender is slightly in front, advantage is applied and play continues. To access this content, you must purchase FHU3T Green, FHU3T Green …
ARGvBEL Attack positioning with space
The attack begins well behind the centre line. As there are large channels for the ball to move through, the controlling umpire is very high up the pitch and close to their end line. The lack of …
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GERvKAZ Drilling no card
After a long sequence of possession where the attackers move the ball around the defensive 5 but are unable to penetrate inside, a forward attempts to force a hard pass through a set defender from …
CHNvBEL VR PS danger to GK
On this penalty corner, the goalkeeper makes a save that sits directly in front of her pads. An attacker comes in and places her stick against the ball, and eventually pushes it up against the pads …
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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INDvBEL Aerial into circle
At the apex of this aerial’s path, the attacker was actually likely the clear initial receiver of the ball, particularly given it’s high trajectory and sharp drop into the circle. However, it’s …
NZLvGBR PS for intentional foul
An attacker is sprung free entering the top of the circle. A chasing defender collides with her, taking herself to the ground and committing a stick obstruction in the process. This is clearly an …
BLRvNED Breakdown just outside attacking half
Just as breakdowns tend to be committed by defending teams just outside the 23m line in the outdoor game, the centre line is a big marker for players who are looking to avoid the team upgrade penalty …
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BLRvNED 3m self-pass centre line and not intentionally off back-line
Two points on this play to examine. The first is that the passage begins with a centre-line restart after the ball is played unintentionally off the back-line by a defender. Although initially …
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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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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 …
BLRvNED Supporting high
The play moves into the high left corner for the supporting umpire/far deep corner for the controlling umpire. The support moves up very high and close to the opposite back-line in order to assist …
ARGvNED No stick block 2
A stick block is called against the attacker who appears to move his stick across the ball in a blocking motion. On the reverse angle, you can see more clearly when you focus on the defender’s stick …
ESPvARG Aerial dangerous on way up and management
An aerial is thrown dangerously on the way up, so the free hit is awarded at the take off rather than the receiving area. The umpire then takes a moment to manage this dissent by stopping time and …
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AUSvNED Aerial across circle supporting umpire help
Some excellent cooperation on display on this attacking aerial across the circle. The ball travels across the pitch to a receiving area clearly occupied by an attacking teammate. A defender is in the …
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INDvBEL Back stick
The defender attempts to clear the ball out of his end but mishits on his reverse. This is not danger but, as he goes over the ball, uses of the back of the stick. To access this content, …
NZLvARG GC breakdown just outside
The umpire deems this foul to be intentionally committed just outside the circle, and gives a green card at the same time. Given the physical nature of the breakdown, this is a good time to send the …
NZLvBEL GC for reckless tackle from behind
The attacker makes a good reception under tight marking and releases down the sideline. Her defender chases from the left side but is significantly behind. The ball is being carried well out in front …
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GERvAUT Flashing circle positioning
Just as in outdoor, flashing to the penalty spot or even higher inside your circle can give you a terrific view around and away from the goalkeeper when the ball is on the far side and low in the …
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NZLvBEL Management of tempers
There are a couple of little nigglies shown by the players here. The controlling umpire double-tweets to get a pause in the play in order to talk to the players, keeping her voice calm. The supporting …
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 …
NZLvGBR No stop on the free hit
The ball deflects off the surrounds and back towards where it needs to be taken on the sideline. The attacker takes the ball in full flight and doesn’t stop the ball. Given where the defenders are, …
BELvNZL Breakdown worth a card?
Although the defender may not have planned to go to ground in this situation, was she sufficiently reckless with her body and presented enough danger for this stopping body obstruction that a card …
AUSvBEL Stick obstruction by attacker on swing through
Before getting the pass away, a defender is able to successfully poke the ball away from the attacker, who swings through anyway. Although there is a loud clash of sticks, the contact is created by …
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ARGvNED Aerial into D
An aerial is launched into the circle safely over the heads of the players with established positions, falling into a landing area where only a solitary attacker was making a great cut for the ball. …
ARGvNED Obstruction kicking stick away
This is an excellent pick by the umpire of an obstruction that goes unpenalized too often. As the attacker carries the ball towards the baseline, she kicks the stick of the defender away from the only …
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USAvNED Transition positioning getting caught
A common positioning mistake is for umpires to get caught ball-watching on difficult decisions like aerials. Without knowing exactly where she began at the 15m free hit, it’s likely the umpire is too …
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NZLvBEL Third-party obstruction
An unusual third-party obstruction goes unspotted in the deep far corner of the attacking 23m. The defender was within playing distance and attempting to get to the ball when #28 passed off the ball …
NZLvUSA VR Backstick goal
This goal goes to a team video referral. Note the amount of spray at the impact point of the stick to the ball, which is the result of the ball being driven into the ground. Also, the looping, slow …
ESPvGBR Patient whistle on smaller fouls inside the circle
Showing patience inside the circle when little incidents occur can show dividends when an umpire has a thorough understanding of the skill level of the players involved. There is a minor bump by the …
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USAvNED Transition positioning
This is an excellent piece of positioning by the far side umpire. After the ball carrier evades a tackle, the umpire anticipates a route one pass and is already a full quadrant ahead of the play and …
AUSvNED stick block
A very subtle stick block gives the ball carrier two steps of clearance to get spacing in the circle to try to attempt a shot. Notice the stick moving over the ball and then the movement to the left …
ARGvNED Danger to the goalkeeper
The goalkeeper makes a save, resulting in the ball momentarily sitting balanced on the side of her leg guard. As the goalkeeper attempts to move the ball, which ended up falling between her pad and …