Field Hockey Q and A

Field Hockey Q and A (Most common questions asked):

Do guys have to wear skirts?: No.
Do girls wear shorts under their skits?: Of course. I was tempted to write 'no' in there to get more people out there watching field hockey, but I'm not one to lie.
Isn't field hockey a pretty girlie sport?: Of course not... at this point, I would usually mutter 'dumbass' under my breath for good measures.
Do you get hurt a lot in field hockey?: Yes... yes you do.

Can you use the round side of the stick?: Nope.

Why not?: I guess I'd have to say it's what makes field hockey field hockey and not a weird form of hockey on a field.

Isn't it actually 'grass hockey'?: Yeah, maybe, way back in the day when we had massive hooks on the sticks and we had bullies to start the game. Now we usually play on artificial turf. There are many different kinds, most common are water based, sand based and rubber based.
Any questions? Ignorant ones, feel free to ask.

A little history and some interesting facts about the game of field hockey

(I didn't write this up. I found it in a booklet and thought it might be interesting)

Although the origins of field hockey are lost in the annals of time, there is ancient evidence that it could be the "mother of all" stick and ball games. The Egyptians, the Greeks, the Arabs and the Persians have all been caught in the act (either in written or pictoral form) of holding a curved stick with a ball.

Taking a giant chronological leap, the first English hockey club was formed sometime before 1861 in Blackheath near London. It became a popular team sport in the 19th and 20th Centuries and spread to many countries of the British Empire and later, the Commonwealth.

In 1901 Constance Applebee of England demonstrated the sport at Harvard summer school using ice hockey sticks and baseballs. Previously, it had been abandoned by male collegians who decided the game was "too rough".

Field hockey has been a permanent Olympic sport since 1928.

Don't Know The Rules? Here Are A Few!

Positioning

There are 11 players on each team, and up to an additional 5 on the bench. There are unlimited substitutions which are allowed at any time (except when a pentalty corner is being held). The game is two 35 minute halves. Positions are similar to soccer: goalie, defense, mid-field and fowards. Various formations are used -- starting with the forwards (and ignoring the goalie)... 3-3-3-1, 4-2-3-1, 3-4-3, 5-3-2 are some examples. A GOAL can only be scored if the ball hits an attacker's stick inside the opponant's defensive circle. In field hockey, there is NO offside.

What's the free hit for?

In field hockey, the player can't:

·Kick the ball, except the goalie. It accidentally hitting the ball with your foot counts too. Sometimes though, the referee will play advantage, to keep the game going.

·Body or stick check.

·Moved to shield the ball from another player with their body.

·Tackle from behind.

·Lift the ball dangerously (into a crowd or into another person)

·Hit the ball with the rounded side of the stick.

Penalty Corners (Short Corners)

A penalty corner (also known as a short corner or shorty) is given for a foul by the defense in their own defensive circle or an intentional foul within the 23 meter area.

·No one must be in the circle before the penalty corner is taken.

·The ball must leave the circle before a shot on goal is taken and the ball no longer has to be stopped dead.

·A hit shot from a corner above the backboard is not allowed.

Ok, maybe I need to explain a short corner. If a defensemen makes a foul inside his/her own circle, it's a short corner. The offensive team can have as many people as they want around the circle. There is one at the baseline that pulls the ball out to their waiting teammates at the top of the circle. That person that receives the ball can do whatever they want with it. Take a shot, lay off, and so on. There are many plays they can do. Meanwhile, the defensive players, the opponants, can have 4 players back in the goal, along with the goalie. And they have to try and stop the play. They can't leave the line in the goal until after the pullerouter has pulled out. Does that make sense? I don't know.

Penalty Strokes (Penalty Flicks)

A penalty stroke, or penalty flick is given for:

·An intentional foul by the defense in the circle.

·A foul which prevents a goal, eg: a defender stopping the ball on the line with his/her foot.

If the ball goes over the back line (end line, or baseline)

·Off an attacking player, then a 16 yard hit goes for the defenders. This means they can take the ball up to the top of the 16 yard line directly in line to where the ball went off the endline.

·If a defending player deliberately puts the ball out off the endline, it's a shortcorner.

·Off a defending player unintentionally, then it's a long corner for the attackers... which is basically like a corner kick in soccer.

Some Dumbasses Decided They Knew What Field Hockey Was

Some interesting excerpts from a "sports" encyclopedia under the entry "field hockey"

·Each player is permitted to use one stick at a time.

·There are no limits to the amount of clothing worm by a player.

·The game is controlled by two umpires whose clothing in no way resembles that of the players.

·The object of the game is, quite simply, to get the ball into the opponent's goal and the team scoring the greater number of goals is the winner. (Oh really? That's how you win? Wow, I never knew. Yeah, thanks for coming out. And you're done.)

·Rough or dangerous play of any description is not permitted.

·Hockey is usually played in a very good spirit so that there are seldome suspensions for misconduct. (I dunno, I guess they never once watched BOYS play field hockey. My goodness.)

I guess I take field hockey too seriously or something. I don't know. I'm just tired of people making fun of it and saying it's not a real sport. It's a real skillful sport and you can just go shove it. And by by go shove it, I mean go die.