Field hockey can be confusing for the observer. With frequent whistles and a multitude of officials’ signals, the game can appear somewhat haphazard and random to the unfamiliar eye. In reality, though, field hockey is a fast-paced game that relies heavily on skilled plays, quick passing, and good teamwork. Once one gets past the initial confusion over the rules, the game is very exciting to watch.

To clear things up a little bit for the average RPI student, who better to ask than seniors Amanda Lund, Sarah Salinger, and Laurie Young? Each has played for all four years, racking up accolades along the way. Young, a midfielder, and Lund, a goalie, were each named to the All-New York State Second Team last year.

They were also very eager to explain some of the intricacies of their sport.

Field Layout and Game Format
The field measures 100 yards by 60 yards, with lines separating the field into quarters. There are goals at either end of the field, measuring 12 feet wide, seven feet high, and four feet deep.

There are two half-circles around the goal on each side of the field, as well, with a 16-yard radius. In order for a goal to count, it must have been either shot from or touched by an offensive player in those areas.

The game is played in two 35-minute halves with a running clock. Simply put, whichever team manages to outscore the other wins. In case of a tie at the end of regulation, teams play two 10-minute, sudden-death overtimes.

On Offense
A field hockey stick has a contoured shaft and toe. The left side of both is flat, and the right is rounded. Surprisingly, there are no left-handed sticks. Players are only allowed to make contact with the ball with the flat end of their stick. “You have to turn the stick over to play it on that side,” stated Young.

For legal moves, though, almost anything goes. “As far as dribbling, you can pretty much do anything,” said Young. The important thing for players to remember when dribbling the ball is to keep moving. “If I stop for any moment, that’s obstructing [the defender] from the ball,” added Young. “I can’t stop. I can spin through it, and keep going.” She also noted that stopping with the ball and obstructing the defender from the ball is a fairly common call. The officials will signal obstruction by crossing both arms over their chest.

When dribbling, lifting the ball is somewhat of a gray area, left up to the officials’ discretion. “Technically, you can lift the ball as high as you want as much as you want, as long as it’s not into other people,” said Lund. “If I stood here and lifted the ball straight up into the air, and it landed directly behind you, that’s legal. But if I try to lift it through you; that’s not allowed.”

LAURIE YOUNG DUCKS while Amanda Lund demonstrates an illegal high stick. While there is no specific rule about how high a player may lift her stick, fouls are typically called at the officials’ discretion. On a free hit, for example, a player may raise the stick as high as she pleases. If there are players in the vicinity, a player who raises her stick to a dangerous height will be whistled.

Defense

The key idea on defense is to play the ball. When the defender gets either her body or stick involved in the play aside from playing the ball, the officials will call a foul, regardless of intent.

“One of the big calls is hacking,” said Lund. The officials signify a hack by bringing a hand down on the other forearm. “That gets called a lot.”

“If it hits a defender’s feet, that’s a turnover,” she added. A kick is noted by the official motioning toward the foot with the hand.

In comparing field hockey to ice hockey, defending the carrier is quite different. In ice hockey, a defender can body check an opponent, tie up the carrier’s stick, lift the carrier’s stick, kick at the puck, or generally obstruct the carrier without much danger of having a penalty called. Field hockey, however, relies on precise stick-handling, and requires that the defender go right after the ball.

“You’re supposed to have real good control of your body in this sport,” said Lund. “You really can’t lean on anyone. You can’t hold on to them, you can’t elbow—anything like that.” 

AMANDA LUND (LEFT) HACKS Laurie Young. A defending player may not hit an offensive player’s stick with her own, regardless of intent. A defender also may not hit the other player with her stick, kick at the ball, or obstruct the ball-handler. Any of these offenses result in a free hit for the attacking team, or if the foul took place within the defensive circle, a penalty corner. These offenses are typically not called, however, if they would provide a disadvantage to the attacking player.

Goalie Guidelines
When thinking of a hockey goalie, many will picture a heavily padded, masked figure diving around, making quick glove saves, and causing stoppages in play by covering up the ball. The field hockey goalie, on the other hand, isn’t allowed to create stoppages in play by covering up.

“I can’t end the play in any way…All I can do is stop the ball. If I fall and it ends up under, or if I dive and it gets underneath me and I don’t get it out fast enough, that’s a penalty shot,” said Lund.

Within the circle, the goalie is free to kick the ball. Lund, in fact, can often be seen booting the ball out of the defensive end when the pressure is on­.

Her hand and arm gear is a little different, as are the rules for using them. “I have a glove that goes around my hand in the form of a fist for my stick hand, and I have a big square one on the other.

“All I can do with my hand is stop it and bring it down to the ground. If I break the plane of my wrist at all, that’s a penalty shot,” she added.

Fouls, Free Hits, and Penalty Corners
Any of the aforementioned fouls will typically have one of two consequences: A free hit or a penalty corner.

On a free hit, the official will blow the whistle, and point in the attacking direction of the team receiving the hit. No player on the opposite team can be within five yards of the ball when hit. The player who strikes the ball may not be the next person to touch it after the hit.

“For a free hit, girls can take full swings,” said Young. Since there are no players in the vicinity for a free hit, the player striking the ball can wind up as much as she wants.

Any foul or infraction that takes place within the circles at the ends of the fields, a penalty corner is awarded instead. The official points at the goal with both arms to signify this. For the corner itself, the ball is placed on the goal. One attacking player hits the ball to a teammate just outside the circle. “It has to come out of the circle. Then you can bring it back in to score,” said Salinger.

All attackers, though, must be outside the circle before the hit is taken.

“The defense has four and a goalie. The offense can have as many as they want,” Salinger added. On defense, a maximum of five defenders may be behind the goal line at the start of the corner, while the remaining defenders must be beyond the center line.

Sometimes, if a foul call would not be to a player’s advantage, the officials may let the call go. “If you kick it, and I get it right back, they might not call it, because it would be to my disadvantage,” said Young.

“If you commit a foul, and it’s not to your advantage, they also might not call it,” Salinger added, “Like if you kick it backwards.”

Third-Party Obstruction
Many other sports rely on picks, screens, or other types of body blocking to get openings on offense. In field hockey, though, no such blocking is allowed. “You can’t have another teammate make a pick for you,” commented Salinger.

An example of this that gets called in games quite often takes place during a pass. If a player that is being closely guarded by a defender passes the ball, she is not allowed to position her body in a way to prevent that defender from chasing the receiver of the pass. When this happens, the officials will award a free hit to the defending team. An official will demonstrate third party obstruction by opening and closing the forearms (while crossed) in front of the chest.

Recap
Field hockey is a fun, exciting sport to watch. While fouls are frequently called, the pace of the game is still quick and intense. Typically, fouls are pretty simple to understand, and once the average observer tackles the initial learning curve, the enjoyment of watching the sport increases greatly.

This story orignally ran in the September 28, 2005 edition of the Rensselaer Polytechnic.  It is used with permission.