SportsMaze

What changes the result

The rules behind the moments commentators get excited about. They build on the beginner rules.

I · Intermediate · 21 rules · Step 2 of 4

How is a goal scored?

  1. What happens after a goal is scored in hockey?The clock stops, and play restarts with a centre pass by the team that conceded.

How does a match work, and how is it won?

  1. Who starts a hockey match, and how?A coin toss decides the start.
  2. When does the clock stop in hockey?The clock stops after a goal, after a penalty corner or penalty stroke is awarded, for a goalkeeper substitution and whenever the umpire stops play for something like an injury.

What can players do with the stick and the ball?

  1. Can you lift the ball in hockey?Yes, with a flick or a scoop, as long as it is not dangerous.
  2. Who gets the ball when it falls from the air in hockey?The first player to receive a falling aerial ball has the right to it.
  3. What counts as dangerous play in hockey?Any use of the stick, ball or body that is dangerous or leads to danger is an offence.
  4. What is obstruction in hockey?Obstruction is stopping an opponent from playing the ball by putting your body or stick between them and the ball, backing into them or blocking their way.
  5. How can you tackle in hockey?A tackle must be made with the stick, from a position where the tackler can play the ball without any body contact.

How does play restart?

  1. What are the rules for an attacking free hit inside the 23?When the attack gets a free hit inside the 23-metre area it is attacking, every other player, teammates included, must be 5 metres from the ball.
  2. What happens when the ball goes out over the side-line?The team that did not touch it last restarts play where the ball crossed the line, using the free hit procedure.
  3. What happens when the ball goes over the back-line without a goal?It depends on who played it.
  4. Why didn't the umpire blow for that foul?Because stopping play would have helped the team that broke the rule.

Penalty corners and penalty strokes

  1. How high can a penalty corner shot be?If the first shot at goal is a hit, it must cross the goal-line no higher than 460 mm, the height of the backboard, or be heading in at that height.
  2. What happens when a defender runs out too early at a penalty corner?A defender who crosses the back-line before the ball is played is sent beyond the centre-line and cannot be replaced, and the corner is taken again.
  3. Why was a penalty stroke given?A penalty stroke is given when a defender's offence in their own circle prevents a probable goal, or when a defender deliberately fouls an opponent in the circle who has the ball or a chance to play it.
  4. How is a penalty stroke taken?The ball goes on the penalty spot, 6.40 metres from the goal.

What do the green, yellow and red cards mean?

  1. Where does a carded player go, and when can they come back?A suspended player sits in a set place off the field and returns only when the umpire, or in tournaments the technical official, says the time is up.

Who plays, and who can come on?

  1. How do substitutions work in hockey?Hockey uses rolling substitutes: players can come off and go back on as often as the team likes, at any time except during a penalty corner.
  2. What can a hockey goalkeeper do that other players can't?Inside their own circle, with the stick in hand, a goalkeeper can use the stick and any part of the body to stop or play the ball in any direction, including kicking it.

Who decides, and what is unfair play?

  1. Who controls a hockey match, and what do the signals mean?Two umpires control a hockey match, each mainly responsible for one half of the field and for all circle decisions, corners, strokes and goals at that end.
  2. How does the video referral work in hockey?Where a video umpire is used, each team gets one referral in normal time, plus one in a shoot-out.
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