Question Number: 14763

Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct 1/30/2007

RE: rec. girls High School

Darren Boynton of Saco, Maine USA asks...

How much "hand checking" is too much? There is allot of contact by these girls with the hands and in a smaller area it is tough to see it all and worry about covering the field properly. Sometimes this hand checking leads to pushing and I'm not too sure when enough is enough.

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

All I can say is there is a difference between touching and pushing (or holding for that matter). Pushing and holding apply a force, touching does not. Touching is legal, pushing and holding are fouls.

How much is too much? That will be for the referee that day to decide. She will take into account the age and experience of the players and the tone of the match. She will see the effects of the contact. She gets paid the big bucks to make the big decisions.

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hand checking can be annoying and perhaps unsettling if the hand contacts a private body part but it is not neccessasrily a foul until it gravitates to a hold or a push factor above the trivial or doubtful player acceptance referee tolerance level.

Technically it is illegal to touch the player before initiating a tackle
law 12 "tackles an opponent to gain possession of the ball, making contact with the opponent before touching the ball"
Yet as a practical application this is rarely enforced as such.

Players backing in are hand pushed away as a defensive condition as much as a marking condition when shutting down the lane .
Players will try to slingshot around their opponent and pull back or hold to do so. The arm out to hold off or the arm out to keep contact and not let the opponent turn as a piviot point.
If you see players picking away, eyes dart back or a grimace at the contact get in tighter and listen! Is retailiation possible to a percieved injustice or see if they accept it as part of the fair play standard or are fighting it and leading up to a greater use of force? Be sure your ARs are aware of the off the ball contact that impedes players from breaking away. You may not be sure when enough is enough but the players will hint at it before they decide it is. Look for the clues before the arm slaps and elbows flung show you that last one was a straw that broke the proverbial camel's back cheers

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

Touching moves the uniform, pushing dents it. Dents get a whistle.

Regards,

Answer provided by Referee Ben Mueller

Depends on factors such as: 1. Did the touch involve force, 2. Did the touch move player away from ball and/or effect play?, 3. Did the touch HOLD player from the ball, 3. Was the touch trivial or was it an attempt to disadvantage opponent, 3. Could the player have played the ball w/o making contact with opponent, 4. Are the players excepting it or are they perceiving it as a problem, 5. Does it have potential of getting out of control and escilating to larger problems.

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

Handchecking, as occurs in basketball, is most definitely NOT allowed. In soccer, it's called holding.