Hockey Rule Change effective immediately

13.2.c: when a free hit is awarded to the attack within the 23 metres area, all players other than the player taking the free hit must be at least 5 metres from the ball, except as specifically indicated below for attacking free hits awarded within 5 metres of the circle.

13.2.f: from a free hit awarded to the attack within the 23 metres area, the ball must not be played into the circle until it has travelled at least 5 metres or has been touched by a player of the defending team.

So what does this actually mean?

This change will mainly affect free hits taken in the red hashed area below.

The change has been implemented in order to stop the ball being 'touched' by an attacking player for a secondary attacker to then run onto or hit the ball hard into the circle (see the video below). To make things clearer, the ball can enter the attacking circle when:

• the ball has been passed or dribbled five metres by the player who takes the original free hit
• a secondary attacking player who was over five metres away from the original free hit location moves the ball five metres from the original free hit location
• a defender who was originally 5 metres away from the ball makes contact with the ball

If the above move occurred after the 26th February 2016, a free hit would be awarded to the defending team. The above is seen as a clarification more than a rule change, and should help to avoid unfair play and any potential dangerous play.