HOCKEY WILL BE SPEEDED UP BY RULE CHANGES

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 15, Issue 60, 23 June 1950, Page 3

HOCKEY WILL BE SPEEDED UP BY RULE CHANGES

Interesting comment on the new rules in hockey governing the size of the circle and the variation in penalties is contained in an article by R. I. Hollands in “World Sports.”

Stating that the object of the changes is to make hockey an even faster and better game than it is new, the writer urges that the 16yard circle will offer forwards greater opportunities for scoring goals. Of recent years, the defence has tended to shadow the attack, instead of jumping in to tackle, even to the extent of retreating to the circle edge. “By this time,” continues the writer, “the exact point of the attack must be apparent and the defence descends :.n force upon the man with the ball. If they cannot take it off him, they fence him in. This feather-bed defence is hard to bt at. Even when it results in a heavy tally of corners, as it sometimes does, there is still no easy re ad for the attackers.

“The defence try to beat the player hoping to smother the shot or at least put the striker off his aim. Until now the umpire could only crder the corner to be taken again ■ —an inadequate check.”

Some countries outside Great Britain were less restrained in their methods, continued the writer. They indulged in obstruction and body checking. No one realised how far the process had gone until the 1948 Olympic Games. Fouling by defenders took place on a scale unknown io Britain.

Clearly action was imperative, so umpires were empowered to give a penalty corner for deliberate breaches inside the twenty-five. Umpires can also increase the penalty in the case of * corners and penalty corners.

“The increase in the size of the circle by 50 square yards makes it more difficult for defenders to pack •Jhe circle, but players must adapt themselves to the new conditions. They must learn to exploit the advantage by running straight, keeping distance and spreading in defence,” Mr Hollands concludes.