Hurling

Hurling
(
Irish
:
Iomnaocht/Iomint
)isanoutdoor
teamgame
ofancient
Gaelic
andIrishorigin,
administeredbythe
GaelicAthleticAssociation
(GAA).Thegamehas
prehistoric
origins,has
beenplayedforover3,000years,andisconsideredtobetheworld'sfastestfieldsport.Oneof
Ireland'snative
Gaelicgames
,itsharesanumberoffeatureswith
Gaelicfootball
,suchasthe
fieldandgoals,thenumberofplayers,andmuch
terminology
.Thereisasimilargameforwomen
called
camogie
(
camgaocht
).ItsharesacommonGaelicrootwiththesportof
shinty
(
camanachd
),whichisplayedpredominantlyinScotland.
Theobjectiveofthegameisforplayerstouseawoodenstickcalleda
hurley
(inIrisha
camn
,
pronounced)tohitasmallballcalleda
sliotar
betweentheopponents'goalpostseitheroverthe
crossbarforonepoint,orunderthecrossbarintoanetguardedbya
goalkeeper
foronegoal,
whichisequivalenttothreepoints.The
sliotar
canbecaughtinthehandandcarriedfornotmore
thanfoursteps,struckintheair,orstruckonthegroundwiththehurley.Itcanbekickedor
slappedwithanopenhand(thehandpass)forshortrangepassing.Aplayerwhowantstocarry
theballformorethanfourstepshastobounceorbalancethe
sliotar
ontheendofthestickand
theballcanonlybehandledtwicewhileinhispossession.
Providedthataplayerhasatleastonefootontheground,aplayermaymakeashoulderto
shoulderchargeonanopponent(a)whoisinpossessionoftheball,or(b)whoisplayingthe
ball,or(c)whenbothplayersaremovinginthedirectionoftheballtoplayit.Noprotective
paddingiswornbyplayers.Aplasticprotectivehelmetwithafaceguardismandatoryforallage
groups,includingseniorlevel,asof2010.Thegamehasbeendescribedas"abastionof
humility",withplayernamesabsentfromjerseysandaplayer'snumberdecidedbyhisposition
[1]
onthefield.
Hurlingisplayedthroughouttheworld,andispopularamongmembersofthe
Irishdiaspora
in
NorthAmerica,Europe,Australia,NewZealand,SouthAfricaand
Argentina
,andSouthKorea.
[1]
InmanypartsofIreland,however,hurlingisafixtureoflife.Ithasfeaturedregularlyinart
formssuchas
film,musicandliterature
.Thefinalofthe
AllIrelandSeniorHurlingChampionship
waslistedinsecondplaceby
CNN
inits"10sportingeventsyouhavetoseelive",afterthe
OlympicGames
andaheadofboththe
FIFAWorldCup
and
UEFAEuropeanFootball
Championship
.Aftercoveringthe
1959AllIrelandSeniorHurlingChampionshipFinal
between
Kilkenny
and
Waterford
for
BBCTelevision
,Englishcommentator
KennethWolstenholme
was
movedtodescribehurlingashissecondfavouritesportintheworldafterhisfirstlove,football
(soccer).In2007,
Forbes
magazinedescribedthemediaattentionandpopulationmultiplicationof
Thurles
townaheadofoneofthegame'sannualprovincialhurlingfinalsasbeing"therough
equivalentof30millionAmericanswatchingaregional
lacrosse
game".
Statistics
Rules
Ateamcomprises15players,or"hurlers".
The
hurley
isgenerally24to36inches(61to91cm)inlength.
Theball,knownasa
sliotar
,hasacorkcentreandaleathercoveritisbetween69
and72mm(2.7and2.8in)indiameter,andweighsbetween110and120g(3.9and
4.2oz).
Thegoalkeeper'shurleyusuallyhasa
bas
(theflattened,curvedend)twicethesize
ofotherplayers'hurleystoprovidesomeadvantageagainstthefastmoving
sliotar
.
Agoodstrikewithahurleycanpropeltheballover150km/h(93mph)inspeedand
[
citationneeded
]
[6]
[7]
110metres(361ft)indistance.
Aballhitoverthebarisworthonepoint.Aballthatishitunderthebariscalleda
goal
andisworththreepoints.
Asof2010,allplayersmustwearahelmet.
Playingfield
Astandardhurlingpitch
AHurlingpitchissimilarinsomerespectstoa
rugby
pitchbutlarger.Thegrasspitchis
rectangular,stretching130145metres(140160yards)longand8090m(90100yd)wide.
ThereareHshapedgoalpostsateachend,formedbytwoposts,whichareusually67metres
(2023feet)high,set6.5m(21ft)apart,andconnected2.5m(8.2ft)abovethegroundbya
crossbar.Anetextendingbehindthegoalisattachedtothecrossbarandlowergoalposts.The
samepitchisusedfor
Gaelicfootball
theGAA,whichorganizesbothsports,decidedthisto
facilitatedualusage.Linesaremarkedatdistancesof14yards,21yardsand65yards(45yards
forGaelicFootball)fromeachendline.Shorterpitchesandsmallergoalsareusedbyyouth
[8]
teams.
Teams
[
edit
]
Teamsconsistoffifteenplayers:agoalkeeper,threefullbacks,threehalfbacks,two
midfielders,threehalfforwardsandthreefullforwards(seediagram).Thepanelismadeup
of2430playersandfivesubstitutionsareallowedpergame.Anexceptioncannowbe
madeinthecaseofabloodsubstitutebeingnecessary
Ball
[
edit
]
Theballconsistsofacorkcorecoveredbytwopiecesofleatherstitchedtogether.Calleda
[9]
sliotar
,itisasubjecttostrictregulationsasregardsitssize,massandcomposition.
Helmets
[
edit
]

Astandardhurlinghelmet
From1January2010,thewearingofhelmetswithfaceguardsbecamecompulsoryforhurlersat
alllevels.Thissawseniorplayersfollowtheregulationsalreadyintroducedin2009atminorand
under21grades.TheGAAhopestosignificantlyreducethenumberofinjuriesbyintroducingthe
compulsorywearingofhelmetswithfullfaceguards,bothintrainingandmatches.Hurlersofall
ages,includingthoseatnurseryclubswhenholdingahurleyintheirhand,mustwearahelmet
andfaceguardatalltimes.Matchofficialswillbeobligedtostopplayifanyplayeratanylevel
[10]
appearsonthefieldofplaywithoutthenecessarystandardofequipment.
Timekeeping
[
edit
]
Standardhurlingpositions
Seniorintercountymatcheslast70minutes(35minutesperhalf).Allothermatcheslast60
minutes(30minutesperhalf).ForteamsUnder13andlower,gamesmaybeshortenedto50
minutes.Timekeepingisatthediscretionoftherefereewhoaddsonstoppagetimeattheendof
eachhalf.
Ifaknockoutgamefinishesinadraw,areplayisstaged.Ifareplayfinishesinadraw,20
minutesextratimeisplayed(10minutesperhalf).Ifthegameisstilltied,anotherreplayis
[
clarificationneeded
]
staged.
Inclubcompetitions,replaysareincreasinglynotusedduetothefixturebacklogscaused.
Instead,extratimeisplayedafteradraw,andifthegameisstilllevelafterthatitwillgotoa
replay.
Technicalfouls
[
edit
]
Thefollowingareconsideredtechnicalfouls("foulingtheball"):
Pickingtheballdirectlyofftheground(insteaditmustbeflickedupwiththehurley)
Throwingtheball(insteaditmustbe"handpassed":slappedwiththeopenhand)
Goingmorethanfourstepswiththeballinthehand(itmaybecarriedindefinitelyon
thehurleythough)
Catchingtheballthreetimesinarowwithoutittouchingtheground(touchingthe
hurleydoesnotcount)
Puttingtheballfromonehandtotheother
Handpassingagoal
Throwingthehurley
Scoring
[
edit
]
Scoringisachievedbysendingthe
sliotar
(ball)betweentheopposition'sgoalposts.Theposts,
whichareateachendofthefield,are"H"postsasin
rugbyfootball
butwithanetunderthe
crossbarasinsoccer.Thepostsare6.4mapartandthecrossbaris2.44mabovetheground.
Iftheballgoesoverthecrossbar,a
point
isscoredandawhiteflagisraisedbyanumpire.Ifthe
ballgoesbelowthecrossbar,a
goal
,worththreepoints,isscored,andagreenflagisraisedby
anumpire.Agoalmustbescoredbyeitherastrikingmotionorbydirectlysoloingtheballinto
thenet.Thegoalisguardedbyagoalkeeper.Scoresarerecordedintheformat{goaltotal}
{pointtotal}.Forexample,the1997
AllIreland
finalfinished:
Clare
020
Tipperary
213.Thus
Clarewonby"twentypointstonineteen"(20to19).20wouldbereferredtoas"twogoals",
never"twozero".00issaid"noscore".
Tackling
[
edit
]
Playersmaybetackledbutnotstruckbyaonehandedslashofthestickexceptionsaretwo
handedjabsandstrikes.Jerseypulling,wrestling,pushingandtrippingareallforbidden.There
areseveralformsofacceptabletackling,themostpopularbeing:
the"block",whereoneplayerattemptstosmotheranopposingplayer'sstrikeby
trappingtheballbetweenhishurleyandtheopponent'sswinginghurl
the"hook",whereaplayerapproachesanotherplayerfromarearangleandattempts
tocatchtheopponent'shurleywithhisownatthetopoftheswingand
the"sidepull",wheretwoplayersrunningtogetherforthe
sliotar
willcollideatthe
shouldersandswingtogethertowinthetackleand"pull"(namegiventoswingthe
hurley)withextremeforce.
Restartingplay
[
edit
]
Thematchbeginswiththerefereethrowingthe
sliotar
inbetweenthefourmidfielders
onthehalfwayline.
Afteranattackerhasscoredorputtheballwideofthegoals,thegoalkeepermay
takea"puckout"fromthehandattheedgeofthesmallsquare.Allplayersmustbe
beyondthe20mline.
Afteradefenderhasputtheballwideofthegoals,anattackermaytakea"65"from
the65mlinelevelwithwheretheballwentwide.Itmustbetakenbyliftingand
striking.However,theballmustnotbetakenintothehandbutstruckwhilsttheballis
lifted.
Afteraplayerhasputtheballoverthesideline,theotherteammaytakea'sideline
cut'atthepointwheretheballleftthepitch.Itmustbetakenfromtheground.
Afteraplayerhascommittedafoul,theotherteammaytakea'free'atthepoint
wherethefoulwascommitted.Itmustbetakenbyliftingandstrikinginthesame
styleasthe"65".
AfteradefenderhascommittedafoulinsidetheSquare(largerectangle),theother
teammaytakea"penalty"fromthegroundfrombehindthe20mline.Onlythe
goalkeepermayguardthegoals.Itmustbetakenbyliftingandstrikingandthe
sliotarmustbestuckonorbehindthe20mline(Thepenaltyrulewasamendedin
2015duetosafetyconcerns.Beforethistheballmerelyhadtostartatthe20mline
butcouldbestruckbeyondit.Tobalancethisadvantagethetwoadditionaldefenders
previouslyallowedonthelinehavebeenremoved).
Ifmanyplayersarestrugglingfortheballandnosideisabletocapitalizeorgain
controlofthesliotartherefereemaychoosetothrowtheballinbetweentwo
opposingplayers.Thisisalsoknownasa"Clash".
Officials
[
edit
]
Ahurlingmatchiswatchedoverbyeightofficials:
Thereferee
Twolinesmen
Sidelineofficial/standbylinesman(intercountygamesonly)
Fourumpires(twoateachend)
Therefereeisresponsibleforstartingandstoppingplay,recordingthescore,awardingfrees,
notinginfractions,andissuingyellow(caution)andred(orderoff)
penaltycards
toplayersafter
offences.
Linesmenareresponsibleforindicatingthedirectionoflineballstotherefereeandalsofor
conferringwiththereferee.Thefourthofficialisresponsibleforoverseeingsubstitutions,and
alsoindicatingtheamountofstoppagetime(signalledtohimbythereferee)andtheplayers
substitutedusinganelectronicboard.Theumpiresareresponsibleforjudgingthescoring.They
indicatetotherefereewhetherashotwas:wide(spreadbotharms),a65mpuck(raiseone
arm),apoint(wavewhiteflag),oragoal(wavegreenflag).
Contrarytopopularbeliefwithintheassociation,allofficialsarenotobligedtoindicate"any
misdemeanours"tothereferee,butareinfactonlypermittedtoinformtherefereeofviolent
conducttheyhavewitnessedwhichhasoccurredwithoutthereferee'sknowledge.A
linesman/umpireisnotpermittedtoinformtherefereeoftechnicalfoulssuchasa"Thirdtimein
thehand",whereaplayercatchestheballforathirdtimeinsuccessionaftersoloingoranillegal
pickupoftheball.Suchdecisionscanonlybemadeatthediscretionofthereferee.
History
[
edit
]

Agraphdemonstratinghurlingscoringsince1910
HurlingisolderthantherecordedhistoryofIreland.ItisthoughttopredateChristianity,having
[11]
cometoIrelandwiththeCelts. IthasbeenadistinctIrishpastimeforatleast2000years.The
[11]
earliestwrittenreferencestothesportin
Brehonlaw
datefromthefifthcentury. Inthebookby
SeamusKing"AHistoryofHurling"thereisareferencefromIrishverbalhistoryofhurlingasfar
backasthe1200B.Cbeingplayedin
TaracoMeath
.Hurlingisrelatedtothegamesof
shinty
thatisplayedprimarilyinScotland,
cammag
onthe
IsleofMan
and
bandy
thatwasplayed
formerlyinEnglandandWales.Thetaleofthe
TinBCuailgne
(drawingonearlierlegends)
describesthehero
Cchulainn
playinghurlingat
EmainMacha
.Similartalesaretoldabout
Fionn
MacCumhail
andthe
Fianna
,hislegendarywarriorband.Recordedreferencestohurlingappear
inmanyplacessuchasthefourteenthcentury
StatutesofKilkenny
andafifteenthcenturygrave
[12]
slabsurvivesin
Inishowen
,
CountyDonegal
.
Hurlingwassaidtobeplayedinancienttimesbyteamsrepresentingneighbouringvillages.
Villageswouldplaygamesinvolvinghundredsofplayers,whichwouldlastseveralhoursoreven
[13]
days.
U.S.president
BarackObama
acceptinga
hurley
fromTaoiseach
EndaKenny
Theeighteenthcenturyisfrequentlyreferredtoas"TheGoldenAgeofHurling".Thiswaswhen
membersofthe
AngloIrish
landedgentrykeptteamsofplayersontheirestatesandchallenged
eachother'steamstomatchesfortheamusementoftheirtenants.
Oneofthefirstmodernattemptstostandardisethegamewithaformal,writtensetofrulescame
withthefoundationoftheIrishHurlingUnionat
TrinityCollegeDublin
in1879.Itaimed"todraw
upacodeofrulesforallclubsintheunionandtofosterthatmanlyandnoblegameofhurlingin
[14]
this,itsnativecountry".
Graphofhurlingandgaelicfootballratioofpointstogoalsfrom1910to2015
Thefoundingofthe
(GAA)in1884inHayesHotel,Thurles,Co
Tipperary,turnedaroundatrendofterminaldeclinebyorganisingthegamearoundacommon
setofwrittenrules.In1891thefirstAllIrelandhurlingfinalwasplayedwith
Kerry
winningthe
[15]
championship.However,thetwentiethcenturysaw
Cork
,
Kilkenny and
Tipperary
dominate
hurlingwitheachofthesecountieswinningmorethan20AllIrelandtitleseach.
Wexford
,
Waterford
,
Clare
,
Limerick
,
Offaly
,
Antrim
,
Dublin
,and
Galway
werealsostronghurling
countiesduringthetwentiethcentury.
Ashurlingenteredthenewmillennium,ithasremainedIreland'ssecondmostpopularsport.An
extendedqualifiersystemresultedinalonger
,but
Cork
,
Tipperary
and
Kilkenny
havecometodominatethechampionshipandsomearguethatthe
AllIrelandhasbecomelesscompetitive.Payforplayremainscontroversialandthe
Gaelic
PlayersAssociation
continuestogrowinstrength.Theinaugurationofthe
ChristyRingCup
and
NickyRackardCup
gavenewchampionshipsandanopportunitytoplayin
CrokePark
tothe
weakercountyteams.Furtherdisseminationofthechampionshipstructurewascompletedin
2009withtheadditionofthe
LoryMeagherCup
tomakeitafourtierchampionship.
HurlingattheOlympicGames
[
edit
]
Hurlingwasanunofficialsportatthe
1904SummerOlympics
in
St.Louis,Missouri
,intheUnited
States.Inthefinal,FenianF.C.(Chicago)USAbeatInnisfails(St.Louis).Thiswastheonlytime
[16]
hurlingwasintheOlympics.
International
[
edit
]
Althoughmanyhurlingclubsexistworldwide,onlyIrelandhasanationalteam(althoughit
includesonlyplayersfromweakercountiesinordertoensurematchesarecompetitive).Itand
theScotland
shinty
teamhaveplayedformanyyearswithmodifiedmatchrules(aswith
InternationalRulesFootball
).Thematchistheonlysuchinternationalcompetition.However,
competitionatclublevelhasbeengoingonaroundtheworldsincethelatenineteenthcentury
thankstoemigrationfromIreland,andthestrengthofthegamehasebbedandflowedalongwith
emigrationtrends.Nowadays,growthinhurlingisnotedinContinentalEurope,Australia,and
NorthAmerica.
Argentina
[
edit
]
[17]
Irishimmigrantsbeganarrivingin
Argentina
inthenineteenthcentury.
TheearliestreferencetohurlinginArgentinadatesfromthelate1880sin
Mercedes,Buenos
Aires
.However,thegamewasnotactivelypromoteduntil1900,whenitcametotheattentionof
authorandnewspaperman
WilliamBulfin
.UnderBulfin'spatronage,the
ArgentineHurlingClub
wasformedon15July1900,leadingtoteamsbeingestablishedindifferentneighborhoodsof
BuenosAiresandthesurroundingfarmingcommunities.
Gamesofhurlingwereplayedeveryweekenduntil1914andreceivedfrequentcoveragefrom
Argentina'sSpanishlanguagenewspapers,suchas
LaNacin
.Aftertheoutbreakof
WorldWar
I
,itbecamealmostimpossibletoobtainhurleysfromIreland.Anattemptwasmadetousenative
Argentinemountainash,butitprovedtooheavyandlackinginpliability.Althoughthegamewas
revivedaftertheendofthewar,thegoldenageofArgentinehurlinghadpassed.
WorldWarII
finallybroughttheeratoitsclose.
IntheaftermathoftheSecondWorldWar,immigrationfromIrelandslowedtoatrickle.In
addition,nativebornIrishArgentinesassimilatedintothelocalcommunity.Thelasttimethat
hurlingwasplayedinArgentinawasin1980,whentheAerLingusHurlingClubconducteda
[18]
threeweektourofthecountryandplayedmatchesatseverallocations. Since2009,withthe
realizationofseveralSummersCampsandthevisitoftheAllStarsinDecember,hurling
returnedtobeafrequentactivityattheHurlingClub,wheremanyboysandyoungmenhave
sincebeentrainedandtaughttoplay.EventheHurlingClubareinvitedtoparticipateHurling
FestivalisorganizedwithinTheGatheringeventsorganizedbyAerLingus.Thisteamwillbe
presentinSeptember2013inthecityofGalway.Theteamconsistsof21playersfromHockey
andRugbyteams.ManyhavecontributedtothereturnhurlingasanactivityintheClub.Asan
examplewecannameAlejandroYoyoWade,JohnnyWade,Barbie,CeciliaandIreneScally,
DavidGanly,DickieMacAllister,EduardoCabreraPunter,HernanMagriniScally.SeveralIrish
haveparticipatedinmanyopportunitiestoworkwiththeskillsandeducation:JonathanLynch,
KevinO'ConnorsandMichaelConnery,whocurrentlyworkswiththeteam'strainingto
[19]
participateintheAerLingusInternationalHurlingFestival.
AustraliaandNewZealand
[
edit
]
TheearliestreferencetohurlinginAustraliaisrelatedinthebook"SketchesofGarryowen."On
12July1844,amatchtookplaceatBatman'sHillin
Melbourne
asacounterpointtoamarchby
the
OrangeOrder
.Reportedly,thehurlingmatchattractedacrowdoffivehundredIrish
[20]
immigrants,whiletheOrangemarchshiveredoutofexistence.
Severalhurlingclubsexistedin
Victoria
inthe1870sincludingMelbourne,Collingwood,Upper
Yarra,RichmondandGeelong.
In1885,agamebetweentwoSydneybasedteamstookplacebeforeacrowdofoverten
thousandspectators.Reportedly,thecontestwasgreatlyenjoyeddespitethefactthatone
[21]
newspaperdubbedthegame"TwoDegreesSaferThanWar."
ArdenStreetOval
in
NorthMelbourne
wasusedbyIrishimmigrantsduringthe1920s.Thegame
inAustralasiaisadministeredby
AustralasiaGAA
.
Britain
[
edit
]
HurlingwasbroughttoBritainbyIrishimmigrantsinthenineteenthcentury.Thegameis
administeredby
BritishGAA
.
Warwickshire
andLancashirecompeteatintercountylevelinthe
LoryMeagherCup
,competingagainstothercountiesinIreland.
London
istheonlynonIrish
teamtohavewonthe
(havingcapturedthetitlein
1901
),andafterwinningthe
2012ChristyRingCup
gainedtherighttocontesttheLiam
McCarthyCupin2013.
ThefirsteverhurlinggameplayedintheScottishHighlandswasplayedatEaster2012between
CLGMichealBreathnachandFirUladh,anUlsterselectofGaeiligoiri,aspartoftheIomain
Cholmcillefestival,naBreathnaichcomingoutvictorious.
SouthAfrica
[
edit
]
Soldierswhoservedinthe
IrishBrigade
duringthe
AngloBoerWar
arebelievedtohaveplayed
thegameonthe
veldt
.Immigrantsfrom
CountyWicklow
whohadarrivedtoworkinthe
explosivesfactoryin
Umbogintwini
,
KwaZuluNatal
formedateamc.19151916.Amajorburst
ofimmigrationinthe1920sledtothefoundationofthe
TransvaalHurlingAssociation
in
Johannesburg
in1928.Gamesweretraditionallyplayedinapitchonthesiteofthemodernday
JohannesburgCentralRailwayStationevery
EasterSunday
after
Mass
.
In1932,aSouthAfricanhurlingteamsailedtoIrelandtocompeteinthe
TailteannGames
,where
theycarriedabannerdonatedbyaconventofIrishnunsin
CapeTown
.Ontheirarrival,they
werepersonallyreceivedbythe
Taoiseach
(PrimeMinister)atthetime,
amondeValera
.
SouthAfricanhurlingcontinuedtoprosperuntiltheoutbreakof
WorldWarII
,whichcaused
immigrationfromIrelandtoceaseandmadeitimpossibletoimportequipment.Gamesofhurling
and
Gaelicfootball
wereoccasionallysponsoredbythe
ChristianBrothersschools
in
Boksburg
[22]
and
Pretoria
wellintothe1950s.Bothgameshaveallbutceasedtobeplayed.
NorthAmerica
[
edit
]
Furtherinformation:
CanadianGAA
,
NewYorkGAA
and
NorthAmericanGAA
ReferencestohurlingontheNorthAmericancontinentdatefromthe1780sinmodernday
[23]
Canadaconcerningimmigrantsfrom
CountyWaterford
and
CountyKilkenny
, andalso,inNew
YorkCity.Aftertheendofthe
AmericanRevolution
,referencestohurlingceaseinAmerican
newspapersuntiltheaftermathofthe
PotatoFamine
whenIrishpeoplemovedtoAmericain
[24]
hugenumbers,bringingthegamewiththem.
Newspaperreportsfromthe1850srefertooccasionalmatchesplayedinSanFrancisco,
Hoboken
,andNewYorkCity.ThefirstgameofhurlingplayedunderGAArulesoutsideof
Irelandwasplayedon
BostonCommon
inJune1886.
In1888,therewasanAmericantourbyfiftyGaelicathletesfromIreland,knownasthe'American
Invasion'.ThiscreatedenoughinterestamongIrishAmericanstolaythegroundworkforthe
NorthAmericanGAA
.Bytheendof1889,almostadozenGAAclubsexistedinAmerica,many
oftheminandaroundNewYorkCity,
Philadelphia
,andChicago.Later,clubswereformedin
Boston,
Cleveland
,andmanyothercentersofIrishAmerica.
Concord,NewHampshire
hasits
state'sonlyhurlingteam,sponsoredbyTheBarleyHousePub.
In1910,twentytwohurlers,composedofanequalnumberfromChicagoandNewYork,
conductedatourofIreland,wheretheyplayedagainsttheCountyteamsfrom
Kilkenny
,
Tipperary
,
Limerick
,
Dublin
,and
Wexford
.
Traditionally,hurlingwasagameplayedbyIrishimmigrantsanddiscardedbytheirchildren.
ManyAmericanhurlingteamstooktoraisingmoneytoimportplayersdirectlyfromIreland.In
recentyears,thishaschangedconsiderablywiththeadventoftheInternetandincreasedtravel.
TheBarleyHouseWolveshurlingteamfromNewHampshirewasformedwhenU.S.soldiers
returningfromIraqsawahurlinggameonthetelevisioninShannonairportastheirplane
[25]
refuelled. OutsideofthetraditionalNorthAmericanGAAcitiesofNewYork,Boston,Chicago,
andSanFrancisco,clubsarespringingupinotherplaceswheretheyconsistofpredominantly
Americanbornplayerswhobringanewdimensiontothegameandactivelyseektopromoteit
[26]
asamainstreamsport,especiallyJoeMaher,aleadingexpertatthesportinBoston.
Currently,the
MilwaukeeHurlingClub
,with300members,isthelargestHurlingclubintheworld
outsideofIreland,whichismadeofallAmericansandveryfewIrishimmigrants.The
St.Louis
GaelicAthleticClub
wasestablishedin2002andhasexpandeditsorganizationtoaneightteam
hurlingleagueinthespringandsixteam
Gaelicfootball
leagueinthefall.Theyalsohavea
30membercamogieleague.SaintLouishaswontwoNationalChampionshipsinJrCHurling
(2004,and2011),aswellastwoNationalChampionshipsinJrDGaelicFootball(2005,and
2013).The
IndianapolisHurlingClub
beganin2002,thenreformedin2005.In2008,theIndy
HurlingClubwontheJuniorCNationalChampionship.In2011,Indyhad7clubteamsandsent
aJuniorB,JuniorCandCamogieteamtonationals.Hurlingcontinuestogrowinpopularitywith
teamsnowin
Charleston,SC
,
Orlando,FL
,
Augusta,GA
,
Greenville,SC
,
Indianapolis,IN
,
Worcester,MA
,
Corvallis,OR
,
Concord,NH
,
Portland,Maine
,
Madison,WI
,
HamptonRoads,
VA
,
Nashville,TN
and
Hartford,Connecticut
.
TheGAAhavealsobeguntoinvestinAmericancollegestudentswithuniversityteamsspringing
upat
UniversityofConnecticut
,
StanfordUniversity
,
UCBerkeley
,
PurdueUniversity
,
Indiana
University
,
UniversityofMontana
andotherschools.On31January2009,thefirsteverUS
collegiatehurlingmatchwasheldbetweenUCBerkeleyandStanfordUniversity,organizedby
thenewlyformedCaliforniaCollegiateGaelicAthleticAssociation.UCBerkeleywonthematch
by1point,aswellasthemostrecentbestofthreeCollegeCup,2matchesto1.OnMemorial
DayWeekendof2011,thefirsteverNationalCollegiateGAAchampionshipwasplayed.The
IndianaUniversityHurlingClub
wonallmatchesofthetournament,andwonbyfourpointsinthe
championshipfinaltobecrownedthefirstever
U.S.NationalCollegiateChampions
.
Majorhurlingcompetitions
[
edit
]
Countiescontestingthe
AllIrelandSeniorFootballChampionship
(yellow),
AllIrelandSeniorHurling
Championship
(blue),orboth(green)
Furtherinformation:
ListofGaelicgamescompetitions
ConnachtSeniorHurlingChampionship
LeinsterSeniorHurlingChampionship
MunsterSeniorHurlingChampionship
UlsterSeniorHurlingChampionship
NationalHurlingLeague
ChristyRingCup
NickyRackardCup
AllIrelandSeniorClubHurlingChampionship
LeinsterSeniorClubHurlingChampionship
AllIrelandUnder21HurlingChampionship
LeinsterUnder21HurlingChampionship
AllIrelandMinorHurlingChampionship
PocFada
FilenanGael
Compositerulesshintyhurling
(usuallyinternationalsbetweenScotlandandIreland)
The
AllIrelandPocFadaHurling&CamogieChampionships
isanannualtournamenttestingthe
skillsofIreland'sbest
hurlers
and
camogie
players.
PocFada
is
Irish
for"longpuck".Thechampionships
aresponsoredbyMDonnelly&Co.(whohasbeenasponsorsince1996).
TheAllIrelandPocFadaFinalstakeplaceontheSaturdayoftheIrishAugustBankHolidayeachyear
(since2005).For2014thedateis2August.Thestartingtimeis11:30(Onthe2.5kmcoursetheBoys
Under16finalbeginsfirst,followedbytheCamogieFinalwiththeSeniorFinalfollowingthereafteron
the5kmcourse).
TheSeniorHurlingFinalstartsat"AnFhnaMr",Annaverna,
CountyLouth
,competitorsmustpucka
sliotar
witha
hurley
tothetopofAnnavernaMountain,"AnCide,"andonwardsto"CarnanMhadaidh"'
andafterashortbreakcontinuedownto"AnGabhln,"finishingbackat"AnFhnaMr,"Annaverna.
Thewholecoursemeasures5kilometres(3.1mi).
Tournaments
[
edit
]
SeniorsFinalAnCornSetanta(TheSetantaCup)
[
edit
]
The12competitorscompetinginthiscategoryqualifyasthe4Provincialchampions,the4Provincial
runnersup,thecurrentchampion,the2013"AllStar"goalkeeperand2invitationals(inthepast
competitorshavecomefromUSA,EuropeandSouthAfrica).
AnCornSetanta
("TheSetantaCup")isawardedtotheplayerwhotakesthelowestnumberofpucks.
Tiesarebrokenbythedistancebywhichtheplayer'slastpuckcrossesthefinishline.
History
[
edit
]
Thetournamentwasfoundedin1960byFr.PlMacSheinandtheNaomhMoninneclubbasedin
Fatima,
Dundalk
,
Louth
,withthefirstAllIrelandeventtakingplacein1961
Limerick
manVincent
Godfreythefirstwinner,outof16hurlersinvited.Thecompetitionwentoffthecalendarafter1969
beforereturningin1981with12competitors.
TheconceptofthecompetitionoriginatesintheIrishlegendof"
TinBCuailgne
"when
Cchulainn
,
whoastheboySetantasetoutfromhishomeat
DnDealgan
totheKing'scourtat
EmainMacha
hitting
hissliotarbeforehimandrunningaheadtocatchit.
In2001thePocFadawasheldat
DundalkStadium
(DundalkRacecourse)dueto
footandmouth
disease
onthe
CooleyPeninsula
,doingtwolapsofthecircuit(2miles880yards/4,023metres).The
2005tournamentwaswonbyAlbertShanahanof
Limerick
,withinternational
soccer
player
NiallQuinn
(whoplayedfor
Dublin
intheAllIrelandminorfinalof1983)alsocompeting.
Almostallofthewinnershavebeenfromthetraditionalhurlingcounties,butDinnyDonnelly(
Meath
),
GerryGoodwin(
Tyrone
),ColinByrne(
Wicklow
),PaulDunne(
Louth
),MaryHenry(
Westmeath
),2009
championGerryFallon(
Roscommon
)andthe2010championGrahamClarke(
Down
)havebeenthe
exceptions.Therecordcurrentlystandsat48pucks(anaverageof104metresperpuck),achievedby
BrendanCummins
(Tipperary)in2004.ThecurrentrecordfortheCamogiecourseisheldbyPatricia
JackmanofWaterfordwhenin2013shecompletedthecoursein27pocsand7metres(overtheend
line).Traditionallythemostsuccessfulcompetitorshavegenerallybeengoalkeepers,owingtotheneed
forgoalkeeperstopucktheballfarupthefieldinagameofhurlingbutincreasinglytherearemore
"outfield"HurlersandCamogsoutqualifyingtheirgoalkeepingcontemporariesatcountyandprovincial
finallevel.
PocFadaHallofFame
[
edit
]
Name
County
BrendanCummins
NumberofWins
Tipperary 9
Years
2004,2005,2006,2007,2008
2011,2012,2013,2014,2015
GerCunningham
Cork
MichaelShaughnessy Galway
RollofHonour
[
edit
]
PocFadaSeniors
[
edit
]
Year
Winner
1984to1990
1994to1996
County
Numberofpucks
1961
VincentGodfrey
Limerick
52
1962
OllieWalsh
Kilkenny
67
1963
OllieWalsh
Kilkenny
70
TomGeary
Waterford
DinnyDonnelly
Meath
1964
OliverGough
Kilkenny
1965
DenisMurphy
Cork
1966
FinbarO'Neill
Cork
1967
FinbarO'Neill
Cork
1968
FinbarO'Neill
Cork
1969
LiamTobin
Waterford
197080 Elevenyearhiatus
1981
PatHartigan
Limerick
1982
GerryGoodwin
Tyrone
1983
PatHartigan
Limerick
1984
GerCunningham
Cork
1985
GerCunningham
Cork
1986
GerCunningham
Cork
1987
GerCunningham
Cork
1988
GerCunningham
Cork
1989
GerCunningham
Cork
1990
GerCunningham
Cork
1991
TommyQuaid
Limerick
1992
AlbertKelly
Offaly
1993
AlbertKelly
Offaly
1994
1995
1996
1997
ColinByrne
Wicklow
1998
AlbertKelly
Offaly
1999
DavyFitzgerald
Clare
2000
ColinByrne
Wicklow
50
2001
AlbertShanahan
Limerick
49
2002
DavyFitzgerald
Clare
52
2003
PaulDunne
Louth
54
2004
BrendanCummins
Tipperary
48
2005
AlbertShanahan
Limerick
58
2006
BrendanCummins
Tipperary
52
2007
BrendanCummins
Tipperary
49
2008
BrendanCummins
Tipperary
49
2009
GerryFallon
Roscommon 60(strongwind)
2010
GrahamClarke
Down
51
2011
BrendanCummins
Tipperary
50
2012
BrendanCummins
Tipperary
39
2013
BrendanCummins
Tipperary
51
2014
BrendanCummins
Tipperary
54
2015
BrendanCummins
Tipperary
57
shortcourse2001tookplaceattheDundalkRacecourse(twoandahalfmile)duetofootandmouth
disease.Lessmountainouscourse2012TheSeniorMen'scompetitionwasplayedoverthe"Lower"
courseduetotheprevailingweatherconditionsonFinals'Day.Theystartedatthe2.5kmcoursestart
linepuckingto"AnGbhlan"andbacktothestartlinewheretheyturnedandrepeatedthecoursefora
secondtime.Thecoursedistancewasalso5km.
Shinty
(
ScottishGaelic
:
camanachd,iomain
)isa
teamgame
playedwithsticksandaball.
Shintyisnowplayedmainlyinthe
ScottishHighlands
,andamongstHighlandmigrantstothebig
citiesofScotland,butitwasformerlymorewidespread,beingoncecompetitivelyplayedona
]
widespreadbasisinEngland
andotherareasintheworldwhereScottishHighlandersmigrated.
Whilecomparisonsareoftenmadewith
fieldhockey
,thetwogameshaveseveralimportant
differences.Inshinty,aplayerisallowedtoplaytheballintheairandisallowedtouseboth
sidesofthestick,calleda
caman
,whichiswoodenandslantedonbothsides.Thestickmay
alsobeusedtoblockandtotackle,althoughaplayermaynotcomedownonanopponent's
stick,apracticecalledhacking.Playersmayalsotackleusingthebodyaslongasitis
shouldertoshoulder.
Thegamewasderivedfromthesamerootasthe
Irish
gameof
hurling
andthe
Welsh
gameof
Bando
,buthasdevelopeduniquerulesandfeatures.Theserulesaregovernedbythe
CamanachdAssociation
.A
compositerulesshintyhurling
gamehasbeendeveloped,which
allowsScotlandandIrelandtoplayannualinternationalmatches.
Anothersportswithcommonancestryis
bandy
,whichisplayedonice.
Game
[
edit
]
Playingarea
[
edit
]
Theobjectiveofthegameistoplayasmallballintoagoal,or"hail",erectedattheendsofa140
to170yardlongpitch.Thegameistraditionallyplayedongrass,althoughasof2009thesport
[2]
maybeplayedonartificialturf.
Shintyfield(Winterton),Inveraray
Ball
[
edit
]
Theballisahardsolidsphereslightlysmallerthanatennisballchoppedinhalf,consistingofa
cork
corecoveredbytwopiecesof
leather
stitchedtogether.Theseamisraised.Itisverysimilar
toahurling
sliotar
inthatitresemblesanAmerican
baseball
withmorepronouncedstitching.The
ballisusuallywhite,butthereisnostatutorycolour,blackbeingacommoncolourforKyles
Athleticandfluorescentballsnowbeingavailable.
Plasticballsorsoftballsareoftenusedinyouthcompetitionssuchasthevariant,"FirstShinty".
Stick
[
edit
]
1
Theballisplayedusinga
caman
,whichisastickofabout3
ft(1.1m)longwithtwoslanted
2
faces.UnliketheIrish
camn
,ithasnoblade.The
caman
istraditionallymadeofwood,
traditionally
ash
butnowmorecommonly
hickory
,andmustnothaveanyplateormetalattached
toit.The
caman
wouldbemadefromanypieceofwoodwithahookinit,hence
caman
,fromthe
ScottishandIrishGaelicword,
cam
meaningbentorcrooked.Itcanalsobecalledastickor
club.Theslantofthefacewillvaryaccordingtothepositionthatthestickisusedfor.
Plasticcamansarecommonintheyouthvariant"FirstShinty".
Thefieldofplay
Rulesofplay
Aplayercanplaytheballintheairandisallowedtousebothsidesofthestick.Thestickmay
alsobeusedtoblockandtotackle,althoughaplayermaynotcomedownonanopponent's
stick,thisisdefinedashacking.Aplayermaytackleusingthebodyaslongasthisis
shouldertoshoulderasin
AssociationFootball(soccer)
.
Aplayermayonlystoptheballwiththestick,thechest,twofeettogetheroronefootonthe
ground.Onlythegoalkeepermayusehishandsandthenonlywithanopenpalm.Hemaynot
catchit.Playingtheballwiththeheadconstitutesafoulwhetherintentionalornotasitis
considereddangerousplay.Otherexamplesofdangerousplay,whichwillbepenalised,are
players,whilegrounded,playingtheballandrecklessswingingofthecamanintheair,which
mightendangeranotherplayer.
Aplayerdoingkeepyuppy.
Foulsresultinafreehit,whichisindirectunlessthefouliscommittedinthepenaltyarea,
commonlyreferredtoas"TheD".Thisresultsinapenaltyhitfrom20yards.
AballplayedbyateamovertheopposingbyelineresultsinagoalhitfromtheedgeoftheD,a
ballplayedbyateamovertheirownresultsinacorner.Aballhitoverthesidelineresultsina
shy.Ashintyshyinvolvesthetakertossingtheballabovehisheadandhittingtheballwiththe
shaftofthecaman.Theballmustbedirectlyoverheadwhenstrucktobelegal.
Scoring
[
edit
]
Thewinnerofagameofshintyistheteamthatscoresthemostgoals.Ateamscoresagoal
"whenthewholeoftheballhaspassedoverthegoallineandunderthecrossbar".Agoalcan
onlybescoredwiththecamanthereisnogoalwhentheball"hasbeenkicked,carriedor
propelledbyhandorarmbyaplayeroftheattackingside."Agoalcannotbescoreddirectly
[3]
fromafreehit.
Teamsize
[
edit
]
Teamsconsistof12players,includingagoalkeeper.Amatchisplayedovertwohalvesof45
minutes.Withtheexceptionofthegoalkeeper,noplayerisallowedtoplaytheballwithhis
hands.Therearealsovariantswithsmallersides,withsomeadjustmentsinthefieldsizeand
durationofplay.
Substitutions
[
edit
]
Aswithsportssuchas
football
,shintyoriginallydidnothavesubstitutes.Thesewereintroduced
inthe1960s,progressivelyexpandingtoallowamaximumofthreesubstitutionspergame.Asof
[4]
2011,arulechangeallowedforrollingsubstitutionstobemadeatseniorlevel.
Itwasalreadya
commonplacepracticeatyouthlevel.
Origins
[
edit
]
ShintyisolderthantherecordedhistoryofScotlandandisthoughttopredateChristianity.
Hurling
,whichisasimilargametoshinty,isderivedfromthehistoricgamecommontoboth
[5]
peopleswhichhasbeenadistinctIrishpastimeforatleast2,000years.
Shinty/Hurlingappears
[6]
prominentlyinthelegendof
Cchulainn
,the
Celticmythology
hero.
Asimilargamewasplayed
onthe
IsleofMan
knownas
cammag
,anamecognatewith
camanachd
.Theoldformofhurling
playedinthenorthernhalfofIreland,called"commons",resembledshintymorecloselythanthe
standardisedformofhurlingoftoday.Likeshinty,itwascommonlyknownascamnachtand
wastraditionallyplayedinwinter.
Theoriginsofthenameshintyareuncertain.Thereisatheorythatthenamewasderivedfrom
thecriesusedinthegame
shinye
,
shinyou
and
shint'ye
,otherdialectnameswere
shinnins
,
shinnack
and
shinnup
,[7]
oras
HughDanMacLennan
proposesfromthe
ScottishGaelic
[6]
snteag
.However,therewasneveroneallencompassingnameforthegame,asitheld
differentnamesfromglentoglen,includingcluichbhall(
playball
in
English
)andinthe
Scottish
Lowlands
,whereitwasformerlyreferredtoas
Hailes
,
common
/
cammon
(
caman
),
cammock
(from
ScottishGaelic
camag
),
knotty
andvariousothernames,aswellasthetermsstillusedto
refertoitinmodernGaelic,
camanachd
or
iomain
.
Thegamewastraditionallyplayedthroughthewintermonths,withNewYear'sDaybeingthe
daywhenwholevillageswouldgathertogethertoplaygamesfeaturingteamsofuptoseveral
hundredaside,playersoftenusinganypieceofwoodwithahookasacaman.In
Uist
,stalksof
seaweed
wereputtouseduetoalackoftrees.Moderncamansaremadefromseveral
laminatesof
ash
or
hickory
,whicharegluedandcutintoshape,althoughonepiececamans
werestillcommonplaceuntiltheearly1980s.Theballwastraditionallyaroundpieceofwoodor
bone,sometimescalleda
cnapag
,butsoondevelopedintotheworstedleatherballsusedtoday.
Organisation
[
edit
]
Formoreinformationregardingtheorganisationofthesport,see
In
commonwithmanysports,itbecameformalisedinthe
VictorianEra
andthefirstorganisedclubs
wereestablishedincitiessuchasGlasgowandLondonwheretherewerethousandsofGaels
[8]
resident.
In1887,ahistoricgamewasplayedbetween
GlenurquhartShintyClub
and
StrathglassShinty
Club
in
Inverness
.Thisgamewasattendedbythousandsofpeopleandwasamajormilestone
indevelopingasetofcommonrules.Thisfixturewastoberepeatedon12January2007in
Invernessastheopeningcentrepieceofthe
Highland2007
celebrationsinScotland,butwas
postponedduetoawaterloggedpitch.
Themodernsportisgovernedbythe
(
ScotsGaelic
:Comannna
Camanachd).Theassociationcameintobeinginthelate
Victorianera
inasameansof
formulatingcommonrulestounitethevariousdifferentcodesandruleswhichdifferedbetween
neighbouringglens,inthisthesportsharessimilaritieswithothersportsthatbecameorganised
aroundthistime.ThefirstmeetingoftheCamanachdAssociationwasheldin
Kingussie
in1893.
TheCamanachdAssociationmaintaineditsinitialstructureformuchofitsfirstcentury,butthe
'FutureofShinty'Reportpublishedin1981ledtoacompeterestructuringofthewayinwhich
shintywasorganisedandmanaged.That,inturn,ledtothemoveawayfromadependenceon
[9]
volunteerstogovernthesport,totheAssociation'sfirstsalariedemployeesbeingemployed.
Competitions
[
edit
]
MapofScotlandshowingNorth/Southdivideinshinty

Northtactics

Southtactics
Clubscompeteinvariouscompetitions,bothcupandleague,onanationalandalsoNorth/South
basis.Whilethetop
PremierDivision
hasbeenplayedonaScotlandwidebasissince1996,the
lowerleaguesarebasedongeography.Manyclubsrunsecondteamsthatalsocompetein
theseleaguesagainstclubswithonlyoneseniorside.
Leagueshinty
Leagueshintywasoriginallyorganisedonaregionalbasis,withdistinctcompetitionsforthe
NorthDistrictandatonetime,twoseparateleaguesforArgyll(theDunnLeague)andthe
SouthernLeague,forclubsinGlasgowandEdinburghandthesurroundingareas.Overtime,
therehavebeenmovestoamalgamateleaguesand,sincethe1980s,apushfornational
competitionatthehighestlevels.Inthemoderneraofleagueshinty,
Kingussie
havebeen
unsurpassedintheirdominationofthesportaccordingtothe
GuinnessBookofRecords
2005,
[10]
Kingussieisworldsport'smostsuccessfulsportingteamofalltime, winning20consecutive
leaguechampionshipsandgoing4yearswithoutlosingasinglefixtureintheearly1990s.This
unmatchedrunofdominancewasendedon2September2006byrivals
Newtonmore
,who
defeated
ObanCamanachd
20toensurethatKingussiecouldnotcatchtheteamatthetopof
the
PremierDivision
.However,Newtonmorewereunabletoreplacetheirneighboursas
champions,asthefirstpostKingussiechampionswereconfirmedas
FortWilliam
,whosealed
thetitleon30September2006havingwontheirgamesinhandoverNewtonmore.Kingussie
regainedthetitlein2007.Since2010,Newtonmorehasbeenthedominantleagueforce.
Cupshinty
[
edit
]
Leagueshintyhasalwaysbeenseenasbeinglessimportantthancupshintyandthepremier
nationalcompetitionremainstheScottishCuportheCamanachdAssociationChallengeCup
(the
CamanachdCup
forshort)whichhasalsobeendominatedbyKingussieinthelasttwenty
years.TheotherdominantteaminshintyhistoryhasbeenNewtonmore,
Kingussie
'snear
neighbours.However,thesetwoteamsonlymetintheCamanachdCupFinalforthefirsttimein
1984asbefore1983thecompetitionwasdesignedtoensurethefinalwasaNorth/Southaffair.
The
MacaulayCup
stillpreservesthisguaranteedNorth/SouthFinal.Therearealsonational
equivalentsfortheCamanachdCupforintermediateandjuniorteams.Therearealsoregional
cupsforbothseniorandjuniorteamsthe
MacTavishCup
istheseniorcupfortheNorthandthe
GlasgowCelticSocietyCup
istheonefortheSouth.
Therearealsomanycupsthatareplayedasannualeventsbetweentwolocalrivals,the
Lovat
Cup
between
Lovat
and
Beauly
isthemostprestigiousofthese.
Playingseason
[
edit
]
Shintywastraditionallyplayedthroughthe
winter
,basedaroundthetraditionofthe"Iomain
Challainn",where
NewYear
wasmarkedbyagamebetweenneighbouringparishes.The
summer
wasleftfreeforseasonalworkandfriendlytournaments.TheWinterseasonalwaysran
over,however,andmanyteamswouldfindthemselvesfinishingthepreviousseasononlyweeks
beforethenextonewouldstart.
In2003,shintyclubsvotedforatrialperiodoftwoyearsofasummerseasonfromMarchto
October,withaviewtomovingpermanentlytosummershintyiftheexperimentwasjudgedtobe
asuccess.Despiteoppositionfromthe"BigTwo",
Kingussie
and
Newtonmore
,andothersmall
groupsinthegame,an
EGM
inNovember2005votedbyanoverwhelmingmajority(wellover
therequiredtwothirds)tomakesummershintythebasisuponwhichthegamewould
[10]
proceed.
Therehavebeenteethingproblemssincethemovetosummershinty,withacoupleofteams
beingculpablefortheseasonrunningoverintoNovemberandDecember.Season2010sawthe
leagueseasonfinishedbythefirstweekendinOctober,almostonschedule.
Shintydoesstillgetplayedduringthewinter,in
UniversityShinty
whichteamscompeteforthe
secondmostvaluabletrophyinScottishsporttheLittlejohnVaseandinNewYearfixtures,the
mostprestigiousofwhichisthe
LovatCup
,playedbetweenBeaulyandLovat.
[1]
Mediacoverage
Localpapers,suchasthe
WestHighlandFreePress
,
TheButeman
,the
ObanTimes
andthe
DunoonObserverandArgyllshireStandard
,haveindepthshintyreports.TheInvernessbased
mediareduceshintycoveragetoonesummaryofthewholeweekend'sactionasdonational
newspapers,suchasthe
SundayHerald
andthe
SundayPost
.Theonlysignificantnational
presscoverageisofthe
CamanachdCup
final.
Thefirstevershintymatchbroadcastliveontelevisionwasthe1964CelticSocietyCupFinalin
[11]
1964. AlthoughCamanachdCupfinalsandinternationalshavebeenshownovertheyears,
2006markedthefirsteverregularTVdealforshintywithmatchesbeingshownontheBBC
Sportsshow
Sprs
.ThiswasthenfollowedbytheSTVshow"AnCaman".
2009sawtheCamanachdAssociationsignadealwith
BBCAlba
tobroadcastallnationalfinals
aswellastheMarineHarvestFestival.TheMacAulayCupandCamanachdCupfinalwerealso
shownon
BBCTwo
.Thereisalsoanincreasingamountofshintyontheinternet,withvarious
clipsgarneringattentiononvideositessuchas
YouTube
.2011wasadisappointingyearforTV
coverageoutsideoftheusualgames,but2012sawseveralgamesfilmedliveonBBCAlba.
Thesportisgivenalotofexposureon
BBCRadionanGaidheal
bytheprogramme,Sprsna
Seachdain,althoughEnglishlanguageradiointerestisusuallyrestrictedtothebigeventsinthe
year.CommentaryontheCamanachdCupFinalisprovidedinbothEnglishandGaelic.
ShintyoutsidetheHighlands
[
edit
]
NowpredominantlyaHighlandgame,therearealsoclubsfoundin
Aberdeen
,
Aberdour
(
Fife
),
Edinburgh
,
Glasgow
,
Perth
,
Cornwall
,
Oxford
andeven
London
.
UniversityShinty
isapopular
sectionofthesport,withalmostallScotland'smainuniversitiespossessingateam.Historically,
GlasgowUniversity
,
AberdeenUniversity
and
EdinburghUniversity
haveviedforsupremacy,but
inrecentyears,
StrathclydeUniversity
,
RobertGordon'sCollege
,
DundeeUniversity
,andthe
UniversityofSt.Andrews
haverisentoprominence.Itisalsoplayedinthe
BritishArmy
,with
The
ScotsShintyClub
keepingalivethetraditionofthegamebeingplayedintheForces.
LondonCamanachd
isalongestablishedshintyclubinEnglandfirstestablishedintheVictorian
era.TheydonotplayleaguematchesbutdosometimescompeteintheBulloughCup.They
havehistoricallybeenattachedtotheSouthDistrict.Theywentintoabeyancein1992,butwere
reconstitutedin2005.TheyplayedthefirstofficiallyrecognisedshintymatchoutsideScotlandin
80yearsonSaturday22July2006against
theHighlanders
.Theynowcompeteannuallyinthe
EnglishShintyChampionshipsagainstrivalsCornwallaswellasplayingshintyhurlingmatches
andorganisingsporadicfriendliesagainstvisitingteams.
28December2010sawIrelandholditsfirstdedicatedshintymatchinWestmeath,with
participationfromplayerswhohaveplayedthe
CompromiserulesShinty/Hurling
.
[2]
A
CornwallShintyClub
wasestablishedin2012playingtheirfirstgameon21April2012against
Londonthematchfinishedadraw.TheyalsoenteredtheStAndrew'sSixestournamentin
2012.Followingthis,inDecember2012,twomoreCornishclubswerecreatedthefirstbeingthe
CombinedUniversitiesofCornwallandthesecondbeingMabe.Thesetwoteamsputforward
theirbestplayerstoplayfortheCornwallShintyClub.
Therewasateamin
Northallerton
inthe1970s,whichcompetedinsixasidesandon1August
2012arevamped
NorthallertonShintyClub
wasformed.Theclubishopingtodrawinafew
formerplayers,butwantstofocusonraisingawarenessofthegameinYorkshireandbringing
newlocalplayersintothegame.
ShintywaspreviouslyplayedwidelyinEnglandinthe19thcenturyandearly20thcentury,with
teamssuchasLondonScots,BoltonCaledonianandCottonopolis
NottinghamForestF.C.
was
[12]
establishedbyShintyPlayers.
Since2012Londonhashostedtheannual"LondonShintyFestival"whichhasbeenattendedby
Cornwall,London,Oxford,StAndrewsuniversityladiesteam,andtheScots.Itisanopen
tournamentheldinlateSeptemberaftertheShintyseasonisfinishedtoallowanytraveling
teamstheopportunitytoattend,
Since2013,acombinedEnglishShintyAssociationsidehasenteredtheBulloughcup,being
beatenin2013byTayforthandthenin2014byBallachulish.
Shintyisalsospreadingto
NorthAmerica
thoughoriginallyplayedinthe18thand19thcentury
byScottishimmigrants,thesportdiedout.However,itisenjoyingarevivalteamssuchas
NorthernCaliforniaCamanachdClub
(NCCC),CentralCaliforniaCammanchd(CCC)),and
OregonShintyCamanachd(OSC)playat
HighlandGames
andothervenuesacrosstheUSA.
SeeShintyinNorthAmerica.orgotoUSCamanachdat
http://www.uscamanachd.org
.
Shintyandhurlinginternationals
[
edit
]
Inrecognitionofshinty'ssharedrootswithhurling,anannualinternationalbetweenthetwo
codesfrom
Scotland
andIrelandisplayedonahomeandawaybasisusing
compositerules
.In
recentyears,theIrishhavehadtheupperhand,buttheScotswonthefixturenarrowlyin2005
andagainin2006,thistimeat
CrokePark
,
Dublin
,albeitwiththeIrishfieldingweakerplayers
fromthesecondtier
ChristyRingCup
.Scotlandmadeitfourinarowwhentheywonin2008.
Inpopularculture
[
edit
]
BillyConnolly
suggestedinSeptember2009thatshintyshouldbecomeScotland's
nationalsportbecausethe
Scotlandfootballteam
'sperformanceshadbeenso
[13]
bad.
Runrig
havereferredtoshintyinseveralsongs,"Recovery","PrideoftheSummer"
andmostexplicitlyinthesong"
ClashoftheAsh
",whichisspecificallyaboutthe
sport.
Theaccordionist
GaryInnes
hasalsoplayedforScotland8timesatshinty.
Someshintyplayershaveassertedthat
Quidditch
,thefictionalsportinthe
Harry
Potter
bookandfilmseriesby
J.K.Rowling
wasinspiredbyshinty.
TheTVseries
HamishMacBeth
featuredashintymatchasanintegralpartoftheplot
oftheepisode"MoreThanAGame",withrealshintyplayers,DallasYoungof
KingussieandNeil"Ach"MacRaeof
KinlochshielShintyClub
,playingpivotalroles.
AshintytrainingsessionisshowninthesecondepisodeoftheBBCseries
Monty
Halls'GreatEscape
.
AshintygameisshownontheStarzTVshowOutlanderinepisode4TheGathering.
A"shintyball"ismentionedbyAustralianCelticPunkbandtheRumjacksintheir
2010song"AnIrishPubSong."Thesongisatongueincheekcommentaryonthe
explosivepopularityof"Irishpubs"inAustralia.
Shinty iomainorcamanachd inScottishGaelicwasintroducedtoScotlandalongwithChristianity and

the Gaelic language nearly two thousand years ago by Irish missionaries. Indeed, it is worth noting,
1,400 years after StColumba'sdeath,that the venerableSaint issaid to have arrived onthese shores
asaresultofalittlelocaldifficultyatanIrishhurlingmatch.(2)
While shinty'splace inworldsporthas beenrecognisedintermsof its historicalpedigreeandconnection
with its cultural cousin of hurling in Ireland,itsprovenanceworldwide anditssignificanceasoneofthe
cultural anchors which emphasised the "Scottishness" of Gaels forced abroad has been consistently
underestimated,ifnotignoredcompletely.
Shinty,or some similarversion of stickandballgames,hasbeenplayedthroughtimevirtuallyUKwide,
from windswept St Kilda to the more hospitable and gentler plains of the Scottish Bordersfromthe
Yorkshire moors to Blackheath in London. It is a game of great antiquity. It islinked(not alwayswith
complete accuracy) to golf and ice hockey, and is also to be found in a much wider space fromthe
plainsofMontevideo in the midnineteenth century, to Toronto andCanada's Maritime Provincesfrom
the blistering heat of New Year's Day in Australia 150 years ago, to Cape Town and also the
warravagedwastesofEuropethroughtwoWorldWars.
Shinty, as with many other aspects of Highland heritage (notably the Gaelic language) has been
frequently threatened:by Statute,theinfluence ofSabbatarianismfollowingtheReformation,thesavage
dislocation of the Highland Clearances and in more modern times, by harsh economic reality and a
fallingbirthrate.
Thispaperwill,indefiningshinty'splaceandspaceinworldsport:
1Summarisetheoriginsofthegamenowknownasshinty
2Establishitspresenceworldwide
3FocusonitsprovenanceinEngland
4Reassessshinty's"placeandspaceinworldsport".
Themoderngameofcamanachd(shinty),isplayedtothefollowingrules(insummary):
The field of play is rectangular, not more than 170 yards (155 metres) nor less than 140 yards (128
metres) and its breadth not more than 80 yards (73 metres)norlessthan 70 yards (64 metres),with
minimalistmarkings.
Scoringisbygoalswhich consistoftwouprightposts,equidistantfromthecornerflagsand12feet (3.66
metres) apart, joined byahorizontal crossbar, 10 feet (3.05metres)fromthe ground. The goal has a
netattachedtotheuprightsandcrossbars,asinAssociationFootball.
The ball is spherical, made of cork and worsted inside, the outer cover of leather or some other
approved material, not more than eight inches (20 cms) and not less than 7.5 inches (19 cms) in
circumference. The weight of the ball at the start of the game should not bemore than3ounces(85
gms)norlessthan2.5ounces(70gms).InprevioustimesballshavebeenmadeofIndiaRubber,wood,
lemons, sheep droppings and sheep's vertebrae basically anything which could be hit with a wide
varietyofcurvedsticks.
Players'equipment and apparel, apartfromtheobviousstick(knownas a caman)isalsominimal: shin
guardsandstripsbasically,safetybeingparamount.Helmetsand faceguardsarenowmorecommon,
lahurlingandcricket,andhelmetsarecompulsoryforcertainyoungerplayers.
The caman must conform to the followingstandard:theheadmustnotbeofasizelargerthancanpass
through a ringwith a diameterof2.5inches (6.3cms) no plates, screws, ormetalinanyformshall be
attached to or form part of the caman. (The Irish game ofhurlingallows such attachments.) Aplayer
whose caman is broken during a game may play the ball before obtaining a replacement caman,
providingthebrokencamanisnotdeemeddangeroustohimselforanotherplayer.
Origins
There is no doubt that shinty (or more accurately, some early form of the stick and ball game) was
played in pagan times, but whether it was, as has been suggested 3 "a recognisable relic of a very
ancient, pagan, magical fertility rite", I doubt, although the folklore collector Reverend Robert C.
MacLagan, in somewhat bizarre fashion, also postulated some phallic significance in relation to the
shintystick.(4)
As Anne Ross details inherimportantThe PaganCelts, (5)board games were verypopular amongst
the ancientCelts, andno doubthelpedtopass the longevenings. Fieldgameswerealsoencouraged.
CChulainn, thegreatest of all the Irish heroes, excelled atsuch games. Originally knownas Stanta,
he won his name by driving a ball through the foaming mouth of a dog, forcing the brute's entrails
through the otherend. Thisprodigiousfeat,we aretoldinTinBoCuailgne(TheCattleRaidofCooley),
ensuredthatthewomenof Ulster wentforthtomeethim "stark naked" and bared theirbreasts to him.
Ourherowas,accordingtothetale,"placedinthreevatsofwatertoquenchtheardourofhiswrath".(6)
Hurling,shinty'ssportingandcultural cousin,hassuchadistantancestrythat itisimpossibletopindown
itsorigins.Accordingto theevidenceof Irishmythandlegend, thegamehaditsdevotedfollowersmore
than a thousand years beforeChrist. Thefirst recordedreferencedates to the Battleof Moytura, near
Cong,CountyMayo, in 1272 BC between the native Fir BolgandtheinvadingTuathaDeDanann,who
were demanding half the country. When the request was refused, a battle was inevitable. While the
sides were preparing forthefray itwasagreed to have ahurlingcontestbetweentwentyseven of the
best players from eachside. The matchbegan.Many ablow was, predictably,dealton legs andarms
"till their bones were broken and bruised and they felloutstretched ontheturf and the matchended."
The Fir Bolg won, fell upon their opponents, and then slew them.(7) There was also Sgthach, the
warriorqueenwhotrained the Irish heroesinthesouthend oftheIsleof Skye.Theheroesarrived, with
threeboundsacross theIrishSea,toperform theirlegendaryfeatstaleswhicharebrilliantlysatirisedby
FlannO'BrieninhisSnmhdeun("AtSwimTwoBirds").
We know that the Tailtean Games, said to be the oldest recorded organisedsports in the world,were
held inIreland as far backas approximately1800BC,andthattheywentonuntil1180AD.Stick andball
games wouldhave been central totheir performance.Buteven beforethat,asBennyPeiserpointsout,
the Egyptians aretobe foundplayinggameswith what appear tobesticksand ballssome4,000 years
ago.(8) The earliest historicalevidenceregardingthestickand ballgamesoftheGael is tobefoundin
an Irish document dating to the twelfth centurya version ofthe deeds of the ubiquitousC Chulainn,
wherethewordcamanisclearlyseen.(9)
Thegameathome
In Scottish terms, the earliest written reference to shinty or "schynnie" isin1589, in the KirkSession
RecordsofGlasgow.(10)TheClubofTrueHighlandersregardedshintyasbeing:
undoubtedly the oldest known Keltic sport or pastime. The game is also called Cluich bhall, shinnie,
shinty, bandy, hurling, hockey, and at one time was a universal and favourite game of the whole of
Keltland....The origin of this game is lost in the midst of ages...indeed, it is said,and, nodoubt,with
great truth, that the game of Camanachd, or club playing, was introduced into the Green Isle by the
immediate descendants of Noah. On such authority we may rationally conclude thatit was playedby
NoahhimselfandifbyNoah,inallprobabilitybyAdamandhissons.(11)
The Book of the Club of True Highlanders is a remarkable piece of workpublished by the Societyof
TrueHighlandersin1881.TheClub'saims,accordingtooneshintyhistorian,were:
buried beneath an antheap of balderdash about supporting the "Dress, Language, Music and
Characteristicsofour illustriousand ancient raceintheHighlandsand Isles ofScotland."... They held
threeday hunts, Gothic theatricals, balls and Highland Games at which cows were first felled with a
hammer,thentorntopiecesandbarbecued.(12)
Editedby C. MacIntyreNorth, the book (published in twovolumes) isa mostfascinatingtextrelatingto
several (sometimes completely spurious) aspects of Highland and Gaelic culture and is apparently
basedonmaterialallegedlygatheredinthe1870s.(13)
The term "shinty" itself requires some explanation. Iomain,ormorelatterlycamanachd,weretheGaelic
terms, meaningdriving.This is"An EnglishView of Shinty"in1893, the yearthegametookonthefirst
vestigesofitsorganisedform,withtheestablishmentoftherulingbody,theCamanachdAssociation:
Camanachd is not an orchid nor is itanewbiologicaleccentricity,nor the latest freak of pathological
nomenclature. It isa recreation.In Scotland thereare three gameswhichcanbestclaimtobe nativeto
the soil golf, curling and shinty and the greatest of these is shinty, whereof the Gaelic name is
camanachd....(14
"Shinty"(or its variantsshindy,shinnie,shindigetc), however,hasprovedmuch more contentious, and
the general view isthat it is derived from the Gaelicsinteag a "leap,bound".Shinnie, infactisheldto
be the older of the two (around 1600) with shintie replacing it some 100 yearslater.According to the
sport'sfirstrealhistorian,FatherNinianMacDonald,OSB:
Hurling orhurley became the English equivalent used inIreland (whichmust becarefully distinguished
from Hurling as practised in Cornwall). In Cheshire we find "baddin," in Lincolnshire "crabsow," in
Fifeshire "carrick," in Dorsetshire "scrush,"and in Gloucestershire "not"(from the knottypieceofwood
used as a ball). In other districts we find "chinnup, camp, crabsowl, clubby, humney, shinnup,
shinneylaw,shinney,"andsoon.(15)
Shinty is still, strictly, an amateur game. While sponsorship maybe a relativelymodernconcept in its
delivery of support to thesport, itis clear that the patronageoffered bythe lairds andgentrywas well
established across the Highlands, and indeed Scotland, in the nineteenth century. Sir Aeneas
MacKintoshdescribedtheCamackor Shintymatchesas follows,inhis"NotesdescriptiveandHistorical,
PrincipallyrelatingtotheParishofMoyinStrathdearn",publishedin1892.
Playingat Shiney isthusperformedanequalnumberofmendrawnupon oppositesides,havingclubs
in their hands, each party has a goal, and which party drives awooden ball to their adversaries(sic)
goal, wins the game, which is rewarded by a share of a cask of whiskey, on which both parties get
drunk. Thisgame is often playedupontheice,byoneparishagainstanother,when theycometoblows
ifintoxicated,theplayers(sic)legsbeingfrequentlybroke,maygiveitthenameofShiney.(16)
Given the presence of the aqua vitae, it should be no surprise that there was no event of greater
importance in connection with the celebration ofthe advent oftheNewYear in the Highlands thanthe
New Year's Day ShintyMatch.Alexander Campbell,inhis epicpoemTheGrampian'sDesolate(1804),

addedthefollowingnotestohisoriginalworkasafootnote:
Acaskofwhiskystrong,thevictor'sprize:
The rural sports and pastimes of the Gaelarefasthastening intodesuetude. Of the veryfewofthose
gymnastic exercises that still remain, wrestling, putting the stone, and shinny, or shinty (creatan) are
practised occasionally. The latter exercise, of which I have attempted a description,is by far the most
activeandarduousof our rural pastimes.Shinnyis agameperformedwithawoodenball,andsticksor
clubs crooked at one of the extremities, for the purpose of hitting the ball with more address and
certainty.(17)
It was usual in the Highlands to have the principal games of shinty at New Year or Old New Year,
although other festivals were also marked in other areas ofthe countryas well. These contestswere
often between two districts or parishes, with no limit to the numbers taking part. Players arrivedand
departedatwill,andoftenmatchescontinuedfromtheforenoonuntildarknessfell.
Therewas a tradition inBeauly nearInvernessthatprizesoftentooktheformof "right"or"monopoly"of
raiding nearby farmers' stocks or produce without opposition. The practice was continued in some
Highland areasintheearly1900sbyyoungerboyswherethemajorprizeforopposingshintyteamswas
the right to raid, without permission, the best farm's vegetable plot at Halloween.(18) More
conventionally, however, side bets were often placed by lairds, and the games held, (most usually
without rules,but sometimeswith aspecific caveat),werenomorethanameansofsettlingold(ornew)
scores.
MrsM MacLeodBanks,inherBritishCalendarCustoms,drew heavilyonthe workofNinianMacDonald
andMacLagan.Sheintroducesshintythus:
Shinty.The chief game in ScotlandatNewYear was Shinty,or Shinny,thesecondprobablytheoldest
form of the name. Played with a bent or curved stick, the caman, its Gaelic name wasCamanachd,
shortened to Cammock it was also known as Iomain, driving, though this name applied as well to
football,oranygameinwhichaballwasdrivenforward.(19)
Mrs Banks then goes onto reproduce somevaluable source material relating to the games in the oral
tradition andespeciallytheTales,andtherules,particularlytheselectionofthecaptains.Sheconcludes
byadvising that "Apiperplayedbeforeandafterthegame... Attheendthechief,orlaird, gaveadinner,
or, failing him, a number were entertained at the house of a mutual friend.Intheevening a ballwas
given,opentoall."(20)
One of the best sources fordeterminingshinty's"place andspace" isthedictionary. For example, the
DictionaryoftheOlderScottishTongue:
(schinnie,)/shinnie/ shiny/ shinye, n, [Obscure. Cf. Gaelic sinteag a skip, a pace, later Scots shinty
(1769) thegame,(1773) the stick, 18th centuryEnglishshinney (1794)the stick.] Agameplayedwitha
stickcurvedatone endlikeahockeystickandusedforstrikingaball,also,thestickitself.[Withrespectt
totheKirkyeard,that therbe noplayingatgolf, carrict, shinnie (LiberColl.Glasgow,p.lxviiishinny],in
the HighKirk,or Kirjkyard,or Blackfriar Kirkyeard, eitherSundayor weekday 1589 GlasgowKirk S.
16 Oct. in Wodrow Life of Mr David Weems 14inBiog. Coll. II(Maitland Club1845).] Thebairnes of
France havetheexerciseofthetap,thepery,thecleking,and (insteadofourgouf,which theyknownot)
they haveshinyes 16657Lauder Journal,125,He didtransub Himselfto ball, the Parliament to club,
Which will him holl when rightteasedat ane blow Or els SirPatrickwillbe the shinniegoec1690Bk.
Pasquils181.21
InJamieson's Etymological DictionaryoftheScottishLanguage(1825) shintyistobefoundsandwiched
between"Shinnock"and"Shiolag":
SHINNOCK,s.Thesamewithshinty,agame,Loth.
SHINTY,s.1.Agameinwhichbats,somewhatresemblingagolfclub,areused.
InLondon this gameis called hockey. It seemsto bethe samewhich is designed not inGloucest.the
name being,borrowed from the ball, which is"madeofaknotty pieceofwood"Gl.Grose.Thegameis
alsocalledCammon.V.CAMMOCK.(22)
Perhaps more surprisinglyhowever, the EnglishDialectDictionary(EDD)recordsthefollowing:shinham
in thenorthofEngland,shinninsandshinnopinYorkshire, andshinnyand shintyin thenorthofEngland
generally, and asfarsouthas Lincolnshire, NottinghamshireandGloucestershire.EDDmentionsshinty
being played in Workington in Cumberlandaslate as 1888,whentwo boyswerefined for playing the
game in the street and a third "was let off, having been well thrashed by his parent". Finally, EDD
records shinnop, as wellas meaning the ballandstickgame "totripanyone up on the ice"intheEast
RidingofYorkshire,possiblyindicatingthegamehavingbeenplayedthereonice.(23)
The Oban Times of 8 January, 1870 devoted eighteen column inches to an article on "New Year
Customs in the West Highlands". As many asforty peoplewithstickswoulddotheCalluinnround(as it
was known in Gaelic) it states, the sticks being used as "joists and supports" eventually! The grand
finale,thearticletellsus,istheshintymatch"usuallyabouttena.m.onNewYear'smorning":
Every ablebodied male inhabitant, from both sides of the country, for a distanceofmany mileseach
way,meeton a common near the centre of the parish, whereagreat matchofplaying the clubisheld
between the two sidesofthedistrict... Ihaveseen asmanyas 2,000men engagedinthesecontests,
besidesa vastnumberofvisitors.Usuallythe stakesweresimplythehonourof eitherhalfofthedistrict,
but occasionallya hogshead of whiskeywasgiventothewinners bytheproprietor. Thisliberalityledto
such scenes of drinking, and sometimes of fighting, that in recent years he wisely refrained from a
presentinthetrainofwhichwereconsequencessodisagreeable.
Even then, however, shinty was of much wider interest than just being the expression of some local
conflict, or a landlord's patronage. The view fromoutside and it is animportant onefor a number of
reasons wasas follows in ThePenny Magazineof31 January 1835.Producedby the Societyforthe
Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, the Magazine'scover provides us with auseful visual representationof
shintyasitwasperceivedatthetime:(24)
IntheHighlandsof Scotlanditiscustomaryforpersonstoamusethemselves,inthewinter season,with
agamewhichiscalled"shinty".Thissport has aconsiderable resemblancetothatwhichisdenominated
"hurling" in England,and whichStruttdescribes under thatname.Theshintyisplayedwith asmallhard
ball, which is generally made of wood, and each player is furnished with a curved stick somewhat
resembling that which isused bygolfplayers... Largepartiesassemble during Christmasholidays,one
parish sometimes making a match against another. In the struggles between the contending players
manyhardblowsaregiven, andmorefrequentlyashinisbroken,orbyrarerchancesomemoreserious
accidentmayoccur.
This account ofshintymaybeshortonspecificsintermsof locationandidentity,buttheformulaused in
the descriptionofplayis important because of the detail itrevealsof thegame its rulesandrationale.
The social aspect and the standing of the individuals taking part is also significant, as well as its
confirmationthatthegamewasplayedaspartoftheChristmasfestival.
It should be noted that therewasa veryactiveshintyscene south ofHadrian's Wallinthenineteenth
century. The pages of the Highlander newspaper, particularlyin the late 1870s and early 1880s, read
more like an account of English Premier league football matches with details of games and frequent
references to Birmingham, Manchester Camanachd, Old Trafford, the Highland Camanachd Club of
London,Cottonopolis,Bolton,NottinghamForestandStamfordBridge,tonamebutafew.
The LondonCamanachdClubhad directlinksthroughprecedingclubsinthemetropolistotheHighland
Camanachd Club of London, which was formed in March 1878. This was not,however, the first club
establishedinEngland.Thatsingularhonourbelongsto Cottonopolis,Manchester,theCamanachdClub
formed prior to December, 1875. The Manchester Camanachd Club held interclub matches on
Christmas and New Year's Days and they also played a 30aside game against a local Scottish
organisation, the Manchester and Salford Caledonian Club, on Christmas Day, 1877. The Bolton
CaledonianCamanachdClub wasformed on19December1877, withmorethan50members.Thefirst
meeting between the clubs did not takeplacetill 8 February 1879 at Old Trafford, Manchester, where
the home team was victorious. Several matches between the two clubs were played in the following
yearsincluding oneatBolton forthebenefitofthelocal infirmary.Itisnot certain whentheManchester
andBoltonclubsceasedplayingshinty.ThelastknowncontestbetweenthetwowasinApril1881.(25)
The Highlander isnottheonlyvaluablenewspaperthough.TheInvernessCourierof23June1841tells
usthat:
Highlanders in Londonwere greatly interested in a shinty matchorganisedbythecommitteeof abody
which called itself`TheSociety of TrueHighlanders'. Thematch tookplaceinCopenhagen Fields,`an
extent of rich meadow landlyingon the outskirts of Islington.'Therewas muchenthusiasm andkeenly
contested games. It issaid that before the gathering halftheglensofLochaberhadbeenransackedfor
shintyclubs.
Thegameabroad
The feverish activitywhichcharacterises shinty in Scotlandand England in the midnineteenth century

was matchedinthefarthestflungcornersoftheglobeeventuallyinafantasyworldofCeltictwilight,as
wereadintheInvernessCourierof13July1842,relatinganaccountofamatchon4 April,ontheplains
ofMontevideo:
After sideswerecalled, andafewotherpreliminariesarranged,playingcommenced,andwascarriedon
with greatspirit till fourP.M., when the playerssat downonthegrassandpartookofanasadodecarvo
con cuero (beef roasted with the hide on,) and plenty of Ferintosh (Aldourie and Brackla being
scarce.)(26)
Dancingthenfollowed, andmuchelsebywayofcelebration. Similarsceneswerealsoenactedfromthe
Cape of Good Hope to Toronto in Canada,to New York,where a team was formed in 1903.27 Inthe
summer of1995, Effie Rankine ofNorthUist,who has stayedinMabou, Cape BretonIsland sincethe
1970s, recited for me a versionofthepoem"Tiugainna dh'iomain"("Comeandplay shinty")hermother
had learned in NorthUist.She alsorecitedthis short New Year verse from Mabou itself, whichshows
howthetraditionsurvivedontheothersideoftheAtlantic.
DuanChalluinn
OidhcheChullainn,Challainn,chruaidh
Thinigmile'mdhuangutigh
Mis'AlasdairMacIainMhir
Gabhaidhmimranleisamhran
Gabhaidhmiantmleisanaran
Agusgabhaidhmiantaranleisfhin
A'chailleachchsagach,chsagach
Nagerrd'rdag
leigastaighmi.(28)
This verse was originallyrecitedforEffiebyJohnnieWhiteofCapeMabouandrelated totheturnofthe
century. When Effie askedabout the traditionof celebrating New Year,Johnniereplied"'S enacamain
abh'acaa'bualadhnantighean""itwasshintystickstheyhadhittingthehouses."
This remarkable transference and survival of the oral tradition is explained by the dislocation of
thousands of people from the Highlands to the far sides of the world during the infamous Highland
Clearances. The songs and stories which survived (and sustained) the mass movement of Highland
people in the nineteenthcentury, (particularly during the 1830s,1840sand1850s),arethemainsource
for the delineation ofoneof the mostinterestingaspects ofshinty'sspaceandplace.Canadahasbeen
reasonably well dealt with, although there isstill scope for further work onthesurvival ofthecustoms
andpastimesinAlbaNuadh(NovaScotia)inparticular.(29)
However,oneofthestandardworksonthehistoryofScotsinAustraliastates:
Some other Scottish sports have not taken onat all. (Curlingrequiresfrozenlakes,which areinshort
supply in this country. Shinty is very similar to the Irish game of hurling, and some Highland shinty
playersmayhaveformedthekindredgameinAustralia,butshintyitselfisunknown.)(30)
This is a complete misrepresentation of the facts and a distortion of what actually happened. The
earliest evidence I have so far located of shinty actually being played inAustralia isinthePortPhillip
Patriotof6January1842.
Shinty. On New Year's Day a splendid game at the good old Scotch game of shinty cameoff onMr
Donald McLean's farmontheMerri Creek.AbouttwentystalwartHighlanders rangedoneitherside,and
the game wassokeenlycontestedthatafterafourhours'struggleunderthebroilingheat ofthemidday
sunthepartieswerefaintowithdrawthegame,neitherpartybeingabletogainthevictory.
Two year'searlier, thejournalof the ArgyllshirefarmerNielBlackrevealsthat the"broilingheat"may,in
fact,havebeentoomuchfortheGaelswhowishedtoindulgeintheirtraditionalNewYearpastime:
The modein which the New Yearwaswelcomed out here wasto keepupaconstant firingbutwasnot
troubledwith first footing.We hada quiet New Year,differentindeedfromanyIhadeverseenbefore. I
dinedwithEddington but there was nopartyineither place.It would have been hardworkheretoplay
theShintyordanceintheheatwehavehadatpresentbutIthoughtitmightbedone.(31)
Perhaps the most convincing evidence of shinty's translation to Australia is a watercolour painting
ascribed tothe Scot John Rae in 1842.The scenedepictedappearstoshow shinty beingplayed.It is
oneof aseriespaintedbyRae,a Scotsmanwhoapparentlyarrived inSydneyinDecember1839,ayear
after the "StGeorge", thevessel whichleft Obanin1838, packedwith Badenochfolk,andforwhichthe
Gaelic song "Guma Sln do na fearaibh"32 was composed. The Oxford Companion to Australian
Sport33 captions the same picture: "Hockey is supposedly depicted in this 1842sketch by John Rae
entitledAGamelikeHockeyinHydePark,Sydney."
FurtherevidenceofshintyinAustralia at this time is to befoundintheHamiltonSpectator,inthepoem
"Shinty",byOssian Macpherson(34)whoapparently wrote itwheninLondon in 1842.Itis remarkable
for its similarity to other poems of the period, including material from Leabhar Comunn nam For
GhidhealTheBookoftheClubofTrueHighlanders.
Compare, for example,this from MacphersoninAustralia, drawing on hispoem,"Shinty",commending
theestablishmentofaCaledonianSocietytoScotsoftheneighbourhood:
Getup,up,ilkHielan'wight:
Themagpiecoos,themornisbright:
Seizethecamac:graspittight,
Anhastenawa'toshinty.
Thendrainthequaich,fillagain,
Loudlyblawthemartialstrain,
An'welcomegiewi'michtan'main,
ToguidauldHielan'shinty.
withthis,fromTheBookoftheClubofTrueHighlanders:
Deiltak'theglass!Giemeacapp,
ThatImaydrinkaheartdrap
Inhealthtoilkahonestchap
Whalosesthatgameofshinty.(35)
It comes as no surprise then when one finds that in Geelong, Victoria, a society was established by
Highlanders to maintain the culture and traditionsoftheir people."Comunn naFeinne" (TheFingalian
Society)lastedfromthe1850s tothe 1940s and featuredshintyatitsNewYeargatherings,particularly
initsearlyyears.(36)
To goback 300years on the American Continent,itisworthnotingintermsofplaceand spacethatthe
Araucanians tookhorsesfromtheSpaniardsin themid1500sandmovedfrequentlybetweenArgentina
and Chile, fighting the Spaniards onthecoast andfleeing tothemountainsfor refuge. Secureintheir
mountainretreats,weknowtheAraucaniansfoundtimeforsportandrecreation.(37)
Returning to Canada, the exact degreetowhich shinty influencedthedevelopmentofsticksportsthere
is one which isthematterof some debate,albeitthat the argumentisverymuchperipheraltothemain
difference of opinion about who,exactly,"invented" the gamewhich is now called "ice hockey".There
can be little doubt but that shinty was a contributory influence to the development of the sport: the
indigenous Indian population were playinggamescalled"shiney" in hundredsofdifferentforms across
thecontinentbeforetheGaelsarrived.(38)
It iswell known toothat when settlers from Wester Ross arrivedinPictou,NovaScotiain1773,aboard
the vessel"Hector", therewasa piperin the company.(39) Whethertheassembledmasses had taken
time to pack shinty sticks amongst what little possessions they could take with them is extremely
unlikely.Thereis little doubt, however, that once theygottoCanada,theytookupwheretheyleftoffat
home in many respects. Theirsports andpastimeswere just aboutallthey had in the faceofextreme
adversity asthestoreof songs whichhassurvivedshows.It appears,however,that thepeopleadapted
assoonand as bestthey could intryingcircumstances.Indeed, inthefaceofdifficultiesvisitedon them
by certain members of the clergy, notably Reverend Norman MacLeod(40), thehorrors ofthe natural
environmentmayhavepaledintoinsignificance.
This songwaswritten byAlexander MacDonald,(AmPainterMr the BigPainter), sonofDonald and
SarahMacDonald,whowasbornin1829,anddiedinAntigonish,NovaScotia,in April1910.BigDonald
moved from Lochaber in Scotland to Mabou c.1816. The song details how "young people's past still
seemtobe largely the traditionalones music andsong at waulkings andweddings,thecelebrationof

Calluinnandshintyplaying."
Buchridheilarduan
AnuairnaCallainn,
'Smoluaidhnafirnach'eilbe,
Abheireadhdhuinnduais
Bhofhuaimnancaman
Guluath'sa'ghloin'aira'bhrd.(41)
Finally, in relationtoshintyinCanada, Irefer toabook called GamesandSongsofAmericanChildren.
It was printed originally in Toronto in 1883 and reprinted again in 1963. Item number No 136 is
"Hockey".
This sport is also called Shinny. The ballis struckon the groundwitha bent stick,the objectbeing to
driveitovertheenemy'sline.Thegameismuchplayedontheice,ashasbeenthecasefromtheoldest
times in the North for this is doubtless a descendant of the games with bat and ball described in
Icelandic Sagas.Thenameof "BatandBall",alsogiventothissport,indicatesthatinmanydistricts,this
wastheusualwayofplayingballwiththebat.
Captain Archibald MacRa Chisholm of Strathglass, first Chief of the Camanachd Associationclaimed
thathe hadplayed shinty in North America"withourcousinsandrelationsinCanada,during the winter,
on skates,withasplendid field of ice, 300mileslong, 200miles wide,andtheiceatleast 10feetthick".
(42) If the gamewe knowtodayasshintyhadpenetratedtheCanadianconsciousnesstotheextent just
detailed, then it can safely be assumed that the ancient and noble game is very much part of the
developinghistoryofsportinCanada.
Survival
One of the mostfamous early depictionsofshintyplayisapaintingcalledAHighlandLandscapewitha
Game of Shinty. It is believed to have been painted around 1840, and was attributed to D. Cuncliffe
(182655) and A. Smith of Mauchline (1840) by Father Ninian MacDonald in the frontispiece of his
famousbookShinty. Thepainting containsalltheelementsof the(fictional)Highlandsceneofthetime,
with a shinty match the central action, pipers, dancers and Lairds set in an idyllic and completely
overromanticisedHighlandGlen.
Shinty is often regarded as having retreated to the Gidhealtachd (Highlands of Scotland) by the
nineteenthcentury.From thereit was reintroducedtotheLowlandsbypeoplewho wereencouragedor
forced to move south. One example is the children at New Lanark, and this also appears to be the
explanation for an active shinty clubin the Vale ofLeven in the 1870s certainlyit wasHighlandersin
exile who played in the matches which wereheld in Glasgowand Edinburgh(andmuchfurther afield)
fromthe1870sonwards.
It has not hithertobeen properly recognised,however, that acontinuoustradition existsforshintysouth
of the Highland Line until the second half of the nineteenth century. There is extensive evidence of
shinty as a children's game in the Lowlands,particularly inand aroundEdinburgh untilabout 1850.In
1816members ofthe BurgessGolfingSociety complainedthattheirplayonBruntsfieldLinkswasbeing
madehazardousbyshintyplayers.(43)
Thereis also a significant corps ofvisual evidence confirming shinty's existencein thecityatthe same
point.David Octavius Hill'sA view of Edinburgh from the north ofCastleRock,showingtheCastle,the
New Townand the Firth of Forth, dates toapproximately1860.(44) Hill's panoramic vista ofEdinburgh
showsa group ofyouthsplayingshintyatthe westendofPrincesStreetGardens.Thereisalso Charles
AltamountDoyle'sDuddingstonLochpainting(1876),whichclearlyshowsshintyplayinEdinburgh.(45)
It was in situations suchas thesenodoubtthatthelawwasmostofteninvokedagainst shinty andother
sports. Shinty,as with many other aspectsofHighlandheritage, and the Gaelic languageinparticular,
hasbeenfrequentlythreatened byRoyal edicts againstpopular and "uncontrollable" games,as wellas
by the Sabbatarianism which followed the Reformation, outlawing the playing of sports on the day of
rest, andthe rapiderosion of the Highlandwayoflife. Clearlythisinterventionoftencame onan official
basis, with policemen having an obvious role in stopping shinty. The County Police orders for
Edinburghshirein1842includedthefollowing:
Many complaints having been made of boys playing at "shinty or football" upon thepublicroads,the
Constableisdirectedtoputanimmediatestoptoit.(46)
ThelawwasinvokedagainstshintyinOban,Argyllshire,in1843:
And be it Enacted, That every personshallbe liable to a penaltyofnotmorethanfortyshillingswhoon
anyroad, bridge, orquaywithinthelimitsofthisActshall commitanyofthefollowingoffences(thatisto
say,)
Every person who shall fly any kite, or play at shinty, football, or other game, to the annoyance of
passengers.(47)
The value of statutory evidence lies, of course, in its authenticity, as opposedtothebogus nature of
much contained in, for example, the Book of the Club of True Highlanders. That charge cannot be
levelled against another volume which greatly enhances our knowledge of the "intriguing web with
waywardstrands"thatisshinty.(48)
One of the finest historical expositions of shinty, its time, place and context, as well as Gaelic
vocabulary, isby thefamous scholar AlexanderMacBain of Inverness. However, the man to whomwe
owe the greatest debt of all was AlexanderLittlejohn, a Londoner of Scottish originswhodonatedthe
fabulous Littlejohn trophy and AlbumtotheUniversityofAberdeen,thetrophyforplaybetweenstudent
teamsfromtheScottishuniversities.(49)
Conclusion
A series of hugely interesting and memorable exhibitionsmatches100 years agowere the immediate
catalyst leading to the formation of the Camanachd Association, shinty's ruling body. The game has
developedfroma seriesofloosely organised clubsand structures, intoa reasonablyefficientlyrunand
progressive organisation with around forty clubs of varying strengths competing on a regular basis,
commandingnationalmediaattentionandsignificantsponsorship.
Shinty has approximately 2,000 players and between 2,500 and 3,000 members of the Camanachd
Association, with teams playing at various levels from primary school age to senior (adult). The
Association has a turnover of approximately 100,000 annually. In Ireland, the Gaelic Athletic
Association(GAA),amultimillionpoundbusiness,administers anorganisationofover200,000players
a ratio of 100 hurlersforeveryshintyplayer.However,Scotland remainunbeatenbyIrelandinthefour
full international matches in the compromise game of shinty/hurling played between 1993 and 1996,
includinganhistoricfirsteverwinonIrishsoilbytheScotsatthatfourthmeeting.
Shinty in its organised form hascomealongwaysinceitfoughttosurviveintheGlensoftheHighlands
andmuch further afield,inpublicparksas far from its mainheartlandasWimbledon, Manchester,and
even in Aberdeen, wheretheNorth of Spey Club, met on the links on 1 January 1849, "forconducting
thelongestablishedCelticgame".
The game is being dragged, often kicking and screaming, into the twentyfirst century round a
roundabout, rather than at the crossroads, I would venture. Developments such as Team Sport
Scotland's initiative see shinty once again making inroads into many of the urban areas where, 100
yearsago,itwasplayedwithgusto.
The sport's dilemma is, however, whether to promotetheancientsportoftheGaelasamodern,vibrant
game, orto preserve it as a quaintaspect of Highland culture. It has,afterall, survivedtheravages of
two World Wars and has also seen offthemany economic disasters which have beset the Highlands
decisions takenbyexecutives ofmultinational oil companies in the US, or Admiralsoftheirnavyto set
sail forhome.The falling birthrate andschool closuresarebutanotherhistorical afflictionaffectingthe
gameinruralareas.
Shinty's players and administrators regard their sport, quite rightly in my view,as one ofthegreatest
games in the world.Forlifeforceandcontinuingsuccess,however, the gamemustcontinuetoaspireto
skill and spectacle at the highest level. Shinty is also one of Scotland's truly national indeed
international assets, which has an important, and hitherto largely undervalued pedigree and
provenance worldwide. For too long now historians, and particularly sports historians, have at best
undervalued,atworstignored,shinty'srightfulplaceandspaceinworldsport.
The
Shinty/HurlingInternationalSeries
isanannualsportscompetitionplayedannually
betweenthe
Irelandnationalhurlingteam
(selectedbythe
)and
Scotlandnationalshintyteam
(selectedbythe
).Theseriesisconducted
accordingtotherulesof
Shinty/Hurling
,whichisa
hybridsport
consistingofamixtureofrules
fromthe
Scottish
sportof
Shinty
andthe
Irish
sportof
Hurling
.
Matchesareplayedatmen'ssenior,men'sunder21andwomen'slevels,with
Ireland
having
[1]
hadthemostsuccessinrecentyears,winningthelastsixseniorseries.
History
[
edit
]
ThefirstknowninternationalfixturebetweenaScottish
shinty
teamandIrish
hurling
team
occurredin1896,whentheLondonCamanchdandLondonGAAlocalclubsmetinafriendly.
Thefollowingyear,thefirstofficialseriesfeaturinganamalgamationofrulesfrombothsports,
occurredat
CelticPark
inScotlandbetweenGlasgowCowalandDublinCeltic.Internationaltests
betweenallScotlandandallIrelandteamswereplayedintermittentlypriorto
WorldWarII
,
thoughtheantiBritishsentimentoftheGAApreventedaformalisedseriesfromoccurringuntil
[2]
the1970s.Itwasnotuntil2003thatthe
andthe
GaelicAthletic
Association
committedtoayearlyseries,thoughinrecentyearstheserieshasbeenchanged
[3]
fromasingletestseriestoatwotestaggregatepointsseries.
In2013,asport,knownas
Iomain
,whichincorporatesastickthatiscreatedspecificallyforthe
hybridgame,wastrialledat
CrokePark
,withaviewtoitbeingintroducedasareplacementfor
[4]
[5]
thecurrentseries.Currently,thescoringsystemoperatesasfollows:
Goal=3points
Over=2points(ifstruckfromafreeorfrommorethan65metres)
Over=1point(fromgeneralrunofplay)
Results
[
edit
]
Men(200309)
[
edit
]
Tournam
ent
2003
Onetestmatchperyear
Date
Host
nation
25
October
Scotla
nd
Result
Ireland
59
Venue
BughtPark
,
Inverness
Winner
Ireland
Referen
ce
Scotland
113
2004
16
October
Ireland
Ireland
310
Ratoath
,
CountyMeath
Draw
Report
Scotland
47
2005
8
October
2005
Scotla
nd
Scotland
48
Ireland
211
BughtPark
,
Inverness
Scotland
2006
2007
5
Novem
ber
2006
Ireland
13
October
Scotla
nd
Scotland
213
CrokePark
,
Dublin
Scotland
Ireland
25
Scotland
410
AnAird
,
Fort
William
Scotland
Ireland
011
2008
18
October
Ireland
Scotland
110
NowlanPark
,
Kilkenny
Scotland
Ireland
19
2009
31
October
Scotla
nd
Ireland
28
BughtPark
,
Inverness
Ireland
Scotland
18
Men(2010present)
Tournam
ent
2010
2011
Twotestmatchesperyear,pointscombinedonaggregatetodetermineserieswinner
Date
Host
nation
30
Octobe
r
Irelan
d
13
Novem
ber
Scotla
nd
22
Octobe
r
Irelan
d
Result
Ireland
215
Venue
CrokePark
,
Dublin
Scotland
216
Scotland
37
Aggregate
score&series
winner
Ireland
win721to
523on
aggregate
BughtPark
,
Inverness
Refere
nce
Report
Report
Ireland
56
Ireland
116
Scotland
28
Geraldine
Park
,
Athy
Ireland
win325to
319on
aggregate
Report
2012
29
Octobe
r
Scotla
nd
20
Octobe
r
Scotla
nd
27
Octobe
r
Irelan
d
Scotland
111
BughtPark,
Inverness
Report
Ireland
29
Scotland
29(19)
BughtPark,
Inverness
Ireland
310
(25)
Ireland
811
(51)
Ireland
win1121
(76)to612
(42)on
aggregate
Cusack
Park
,
Ennis
Report
Report
Scotland
43(23)
2013
26
Octobe
r
Irelan
d
Ireland
412
(24)
CrokePark,
Dublin
Scotland
212
(18)
2
Novem
ber
Scotla
nd
Scotland
014
(14)
Ireland
win527(42)
to226(32)
onaggregate
BughtPark,
Inverness
Report
Report
Ireland
115
(18)
2014
18
Octobe
r
Scotla
nd
Scotland
314
(23)
BughtPark,
Inverness
Ireland
28(14)
25
Octobe
r
Irelan
d
Ireland
218
(24)
Scotland
08(8)
PaircEsler
,
Newry
Ireland
win426(38)
to322(31)
onaggregate
Report
Report
2015
24
Octobe
r
Scotla
nd
Scotland
315
(24)
BughtPark
,
Inverness
Ireland
28(14)
21
Novem
ber
Irelan
d
Ireland
210(16)
Scotland
win
523(38)to
418(30)on
aggregate
CrokePark,
Dublin
Report
Report
Scotland
28(14)
Women
[
edit
]
Thewomen'sgameisalsoreferredtoasShinty/
Camogie
.Thefollowingisanincompletetableof
recentresults(missingresultsfrom201113).
2003Oct25Ireland59Scotland113Inverness
2004Oct16Ireland310Scotland47Ratoath
2005Oct8Scotland48Ireland211BughtPark,Inverness
2006Nov9Scotland213Ireland25CrokePark,
2007Oct13Scotland410Ireland011AnAird,FortWilliam
2008Oct18Scotland110Ireland19NowlanPark,
[6]
2009Oct31Ireland22Scotland00BughtPark,Inverness
2010Oct30Ireland69Scotland22Ratoath
2014Oct28Scotland42(12)def.Ireland16(9)
[7]
[8]
Alltimestandings
Men
Country Serieswon Matcheswon
Ireland
Scotland 4
1
10(of18)
7(of18)
Totalscores
2
47191(354)
39186(315)
Updatedpost2015firsttest
1
Onedrawhasoccurredin2004
Goalsin2012seriesworth5points
Therulesofthecompositesportaredesignedtoallowforneithersidetogainanadvantage,
eliminatingorimposingcertainrestrictions.Thegoalsarethoseusedinhurling,with3pointsfor
agoal(inthenetunderthecrossbar)and1pointforashotoverthecrossbar.Astationaryball
takenstraightfromthegroundandshotoverthecrossbarscores2points.Forthe2012
InternationalSeries,agoalbecameworth5pointsinanefforttoincreasethenumberofgoals.
Thiswasrulewasabandonedforthe2013series,infavourofthetraditionalmodelof3pointsfor
agoal.
Playersmaynotcatchtheballunlesstheyarethegoalkeeper(oradefenderonthelinefora
penalty)andthismustbereleasedwithinthreesteps.Playersmaynotkicktheball,butcandrag
theballwiththeirfoot.
Althoughthereisastatutorysizefortheballtobeusedinthegames,thereisoftenacustomof
usinga
sliotar
inonehalfandashintyballintheother.Eachhalflasts35minutes.
History
[
edit
]
Thefirstgamesplayedwerechallengematchesbetween
LondonCamanachd
and
LondonGAA
in1896andGlasgowCowalandDublinCelticin1897and1898,withthefirstgameplayedat
CelticPark
.[1]
However,therewasthenahiatusuntilScottishrepresentativeteamsandIrish
sidestookplaceinthe1920s.FollowingintermittentinternationalgamesbetweenScotlandand
anallIrelandteambeforethe
SecondWorldWar
,controversyaroseasthe
BritishGovernment
putpressureuponthe
toceasefromcooperatingwiththe
Gaelic
[2]
[3]
AthleticAssociation
,disapprovingoftheirperceivedantiBritishviewpoint
However,universitiesinbothcountrieskeptthelinkgoingafterthewarandthisledtoa
resumptionofinternationalfixturesbetweenthetwocodesinthe1970s.
AfteralongrunofIrishsuccesses,Scotlandwonfourfixturesinarowfrom2005untilIreland
reclaimedthetitlein2009.Scotland'ssuccesseshavebeenmarredbyalackofinterestfroman
Irishperspective.Unlikethe
internationalrulesfootball
testsbetweenAustraliaandIreland,few
playersfromthetopflightcountiesparticipateintheeventthoughinrecenttimesthistrendhas
buckedandmorehigherrankedIrishplayershaverepresentedtheirnation.
2007alsosawtheuseofcompromiserulesasawayofdevelopingthe
Gaelic
languagesin
Irelandand
Scotland
bythe
ColumbaInitiative
.Ateamcalled
Alba
,madeupofScottishGaelic
speakers,played
MchaelBreathnachCLG
,from
Inverin
,
Galway
.Theprojectwasrepeatedin
[4]
2008.
TheGaelicspeakersinternationalwasplayedforathirdtimein2010inPortreeinthe
IsleofSkyeon13February2010.
TherearealsoScottish/Irishwomen'sandunder21ssideswhichhavecompetedagainstone
another.
In2009,thefirstfullshinty/hurlingmatchintheUnitedStatestookplacebetween
Skye
Camanachd
andthe
SanFranciscoRovers
.
In2010,thefixturewasplayedat
CrokePark
beforethe
internationalrulesfootball
gameand
thenareturnlegwasplayedatthe
BughtPark
twoweekslater.
On28April2012theinauguralmatchbetweentheteamsof
IrishDefenceForces
andthe
British
Army
wasplayedat
BughtPark
inaidof
PoppyScotland
.
Cammag
isa
teamsport
originatingonthe
IsleofMan
.Itiscloselyrelatedtothe
Scottish
game
of
shinty
andissimilartothe
Irish
hurling
.OncethemostwidespreadsportonMan,itceasedto
beplayedaround1900aftertheintroductionof
associationfootball
,[2]
thoughithasexperienced
arevivalinthe21stcentury.
[2]
Equipmentinvolvesastick(
Manx
:
camman
,meaning"littlecurvedthing")andaball(
crick
or
crig
)withanythingbetweenfourandtwohundredplayers.Sometimeswholetownsandvillages
tookpart,orevenplayedeachother.The
cammag
canbeanystickwithabentend,andis
similarindesigntothe
caman
in
shinty
,bothunliketheIrishcamn,havingnoblade.Agorse
woodcammag,ifofsuitablesizeandshape,wasaverymuchtreasuredpossession.The
crick
canbemadefromcorkorwood,andvariedfromcirculartoeggshaped,sizedfrom
approximatelytwoinchesincircumferenceto
thesizeofafist
.Oldaccountstellthatthecrick
[3]
wassometimescoveredinclothorleather.
TheManxword
Cammag
,asinmodernScottishGaelicandIrish
camn
,isderivedfromthe
[4]
Gaelicrootword
cam
,meaning
bent
.
Cammagseasonstartedon
HunttheWrenDay
(26December)andwasonlyplayedbymen(of
allages)duringthewinter.Corris'sClose(nowAtholStreet)wasthechiefplayinggroundinthe
townof
Peel
.
Inmoderntimes,anannualmatchofcammagisplayedin
StJohn's
.
Recentmatches
AnopenCammagmatchisplayedonBoxingDay/
HunttheWrenDay
(26December)onthe
TynwaldfieldatStJohn's.MatchesareheldbetweentheNorthandtheSouthoftheisland.
ResearchbyDavidFisherinthearchivesofManxNationalHeritageclarifiedthattheNorthern
linehistoricallyranfromtheGrandIslandHoteltoNiarbyl,southofPeel.Thegameusuallystarts
at2p.m.,andisplayedoverthree20minuteperiods.
Teamsareinformalandunregulated,oftennumberingmorethan50people(bothmalesand
females)onthefieldhistoriccommentarycitesmatchesplayedwithanywherebetweenfour
[5]
andtwohundredplayers.
Inrecentyears,thematchhasbeenrefereedbylocalradio
presenterJohnKaneenwhorevivedthegameinrecentyears.Playingequipmentissupposedto
consistofabentstick,thoughtherearemanyvariationsonthedesign.Thegameisaphysically
demandingcontactsport,andprotectiveequipmentisadvised.
Thegameusuallyrevolvesaroundacentralpack,wherealargenumberofplayersareconfined
inasmallspace,andtheballcannotmovelargedistances.Breakoutattacksdowntheopen
wingsoccasionallytakeplace,thoughthelargenumberofplayersinthecentreofthefield
makesitdifficulttoattackthestakedoutgoalsfromoutsidepositions.
The2005StJohn'smatchresultedina42winfortheNorth,despitebeingheavilyoutnumbered
byaSouthernsidethatincludedPeelforthesecondtime.TheNorthmanagedtocontrolthe
gamebyholdingtheballinthecentrepack(wherearelativelysmallnumberofplayershave
accesstotheball),andplayingasoliddefensivegame.ScorersfortheNorthwereDavid
Fisher(2),EanRadcliffeandRoyKennaugh.
The2006StJohn'smatchresultedina44draw,theNorthcomingbackfroma42deficitatthe
endofthesecondperiodtodrawthematchlevel.RefereeJohnKaneendecidedthattheSouth
shouldholdthecupuntilthe2007match.
The2007matchresultedina51winfortheSouth.
The2008matchresultedina54winfortheNorth.TheNorthcloseda41deficitinthefinalthird
ofthematchtodrawlevelatfulltime,thenscoredinthesuddendeathperiodtowinthematch.
ScorersfortheNorthincludedEanRadcliffe(pushovergoal),RobTeare,PaulRogersandJole
Fisher(2goals).
The2009matchresultedina43winfortheNorth.TheSouthledby20attheendofthefirst
period,butfailedtoholdontotheirlead.Attheendofthefinalperiod,thematchwasdrawnat
33,andwenttoextratime.TheNorthscoredtowinthematch43.Thematchwasanintensely
physicalgamethatincludedmanygroundmauls.
The2010matchresultedina32winfortheSouth.ThegamewasrefereedbyDavidFisher,
JohnKaneenandStewartBennett.Thematchwasdominatedbyamuchlargersouthernside,
includingfourgoalkeepersatonepoint,buttheNorthheldonfora22drawattheendofthe
thirdhalf.ScorersfortheNorthwereJoleFisherandEanRadcliffe,whilstwellknownplayer
John"Dog"Collisterkeptgoal.Thematchwenttosuddendeath,whichwaswonbytheSouth
whomassedforapushovergoal.
The2011matchresultedina30winfortheSouth.Thesouthernsideheldthemajorityof
possession,andtheSouth'smuchlargernumbersmeantthatthenorthernsidewasonthe
[6]
defensiveformuchofthematch.
The2012matchwasalandslide94victoryfortheNorth,thelargestscoreinrecentmemory.
Heavyrainmeantchallengingconditions,butthesideswereevenlymatchedformostofthe
gameanduntilthethirdhalf,thescoreremainedat44.TheNorthsecuredvictorywitha5goal
streakinthelasthalfforaconvincingwin.ScorersfortheNorthincludedOliTrainorandEan
Radcliffe(3).
The2013matchwasonceagainmiredincontroversyasscoringwasdisputed,acommonthing
inCammagmatchesalthoughtheSouthputthreegoalsoverthelinetotheNorth'stwo,referee
PaulCallisterruledthatitwasunclearwhetheranearlygoalfortheSouthshouldhavebeen
allowedduetobeingtoohighoverthekeeper,andthatalategoalfortheSouthhadbeenkicked
overtheline,whichwouldbedisqualifiedasallscoringhastobewiththestick.Scorersforthe
NorthwereJohnFaragherandEanRadcliffe,inthefaceofsuperbgoalkeepingfromtheSouth
whichdeniedtheNorthanotheroverwhelmingvictory.AftertheonesidedvictorybytheNorthin
the2012match,itwasdecidedthattheSouthshouldholdthecupfortheyear.
2005:North42South
2006:North44South
2007:South51North
2008:North54South
2009:North43South
2010:North22South
2011:South30North
2012:North94South
2013:South32North(2Southerngoalsindoubt)
IsleofManCammagAssociation
InJanuary2014itwasannouncedthattheIsleofManCammagAssociationhadbeenfounded
toactasthegoverningbodyforthegame.Within18monthsitisexpectedthataleagueof7
teamswillbecreated.Eachteamwillplayeachotherathomeandaway,meaningeachteamwill
play12games.TheruleswillbesetoutintheIsleofManCammagAssociationhandbook.The
firstgameisexpectedtotakeplaceonJuly5,2015.
Bando
isateamsportrelatedto
hockey
,
hurling
,
shinty
,and
bandy
whichwasfirstrecordedin
[1]
Wales
intheeighteenthcentury.Thegameisplayedonalargelevelfieldbetweenteamsofupto
thirtyplayerseachofthemequippedwitha
bando:
acurveendedstickresembling
thatusedinfield
[1]
hockey
.Althoughnoformalrulesareknown,theobjectiveofthegamewastostrikeaballbetween
[1]
twomarkswhichservedas
goals
ateitherendofthepitch.Popularin
Glamorgan
inthenineteenth
century,thesportallbutvanishedbytheendofthecentury.Nowaminoritysport,thegameisstill
playedinpartsofWaleswhereithasbecomeanEastertradition.
History
Bandoisbelievedtohavecommonoriginswith
bandy
.Thegamewasfirstrecordedinthelate
eighteenthcentury,andin1797atraveller
enroute
from
Cowbridge
to
Pyle
noted'theextraordinary
barrenness'ofthelocalityin
ash
and
elm
trees,hardwoodsidealforbandobats,andcameacross
[2]
hordesofpeoplehasteningtotheseashoretowatchagameofbando.Whereasthestickswere
[3]
[4]
madeofhardwood,theball,knownasa"colby",wasnormallyof
yew
,
box
or
crabapple
.Thesport
wasoftenplayedbetweenlocalvillages,withfiercerivalriesinthewestofGlamorganbetween
Baglan
,
[5]
Aberavon
and
Margam
andinmidGlamorganbetween
Pyle
,
Kenfig
and
Llangynwyd
.Edward
Matthewsof
Ewenni
recordsthatnooneabovetheageoftwelvemonthwouldbeseenwithoutabando
[2]
stick.
Althoughmanypreindustrialgamesarerecordedtobelawlessaffairswithhaphazardrules,the
contraryappearstruewithbando.Onceachallengeofagamewasmadebetweenvillages,wagers
werenormallysetwhichdemandedanagreedsetofrules,includingthenumberofplayers,normally
[6]
between20and30andthesizeoftheplayingarea.Matthewsrecordsaplayingareaof200
yards
,
[6]
withthegoalmarkersateachendsettenyardsapart.Despiteasetofrules,thegamewasstillopen
[7]
toviolentplaywithplayersoftenusingtheirbandostickstostriketheiropponents.
Oneofthemorenotableteamsofthetimewerethe'MargamBandoBoys',ateamwhoplayedon
AberavonBeach.TheteamarecelebratedinamacaronicballadcalledtheMargamBandoBoyswritten
[1]
intheearlierpartofthenineteenthcentury.
MargarmBandoBoys
,(firstthreeverses)
DuepraisesI'llbestow
Andalltheworldshallknow
ThatMargamvalourshallkeepitscolour
WhenKenfig'swatersflow
Ourmaster,straightandtall
Isforemostwiththeball
Heis,weknowit,andmustallowit,
Thefastestmanofall
Letcricketplayersblame,
Andseektoslightourfame,
Theirbatandwicketcanneverlickit,
Thisancientmanlygame
BandoisbelievedtobethefirstmassspectatorsportofGlamorganandWales,andin1817amatch
[5]
betweenMargarmand
NewtonNottage
attractedover3,000spectators.Thesportremainedpopular
throughoutthecenturywithnotablepersonalitiesknowntoplaythesportincludingpreacher
JohnElias
[8]
andfuture
primeminister
,
DavidLloydGeorge
.Thesportcontinuedtobeplayeduntilthesecondhalf
ofthenineteenthcentury,butwasbeginningtobereplacedbyothersports.Thegamesurvivedinthe
[6]
AberavonareauntilthedeathofTheodoreTalbot,thecaptainoftheMargamBandoBoysin1876.
Talbot,thesonof
ChristopherRiceManselTalbot
andheirtothe
MargamEstate
wasasupporterofthe
sport,andhisdeathcoincidedwiththecomingoftheMansel,AvonValeandTaibachtinworks.The
employeesturnedtoanewsportspreadingthroughsouthWales,
rugbyunion
,with
AberavonRugby
[6]
FootballClub
formingin1876.
NowaminoritysportthegamesurvivesasanamateurgameinpartsofWales,andsomesmallscale
attemptshavebeenmadetorevivethegameinthecountry.Despitehavingnoreligiouslinkswith
Easter,thesportbecomeatraditiononthedateaspartofsomeparishfestivals.
Bandy
isateam
wintersport
playedon
ice
,inwhichskatersusestickstodirectaballintothe
opposingteam'sgoal.Basedonthenumberofparticipatingathletes,bandyisthesecondmost
[3]
popularwintersportintheworld,only
icehockey
ismorepopular.
Thesportisconsideredaformof
hockey
andhasacommonbackgroundwith
association
football
,
icehockey
and
fieldhockey
.Likeassociationfootball(soccer),thegameisnormally
playedinhalvesof45minuteseach,thereareelevenplayersoneachteam,andthebandyfield
isaboutthesamesizeasafootballpitch.Itisplayedonicelikeicehockey,butlikefieldhockey,
playersusebowedsticksandasmallball.
Ifitisverycoldorifitissnowing,thematchcanbebrokenintothirdsof30minuteseach.Atthe
extremelycold
1999WorldChampionship
somematcheswereplayedinfourperiodsof15
minuteseachandwithextralongbreaksinbetween.IntheWorldChampionshipsthetwohalves
canbe30minuteseachforthenationsintheBdivision.
Avariantofbandy,
rinkbandy
,isplayedtothesamerulesbutonafieldthesizeofanicehockey
rinkandwithfewerpeopleoneachteam.Bandyisalsothepredecessorof
floorball
,whichwas
inventedwhenpeoplestartedplayingwithplasticbandyshapedsticksandlightballswhen
runningonthefloorsofindoorgymhalls.
History
Russianmonasteryrecordsdatingbacktothe10thto11thcenturiesrecordgameswhichmay
beancestorsofbandy.Agamethatcouldberecognizedasessentiallymodernbandywas
playedinRussiabytheearly18thcentury,althoughtherulesuseddifferedfromthosethatwere
inventedinEnglandatamuchlaterdate.Throughoutmoderntimes,Russiahaskeptatop
positioninthebandyarea:asoneofthefoundingnationsofthe
InternationalFederation
in1955,
andasfieldingthemostsuccessfulteamintheWorldChampionships.Russiansseethemselves
asthecreatorsofthesport,whichisreflectedbytheunofficialtitleforbandy,"Russianhockey"
().
Thefirstmatch,whichlaterhasbeendubbedtheoriginalbandymatch,wasamatchheldat
The
CrystalPalace
inLondonin1875.However,atthetime,thegamewascalled"hockeyonthe
[4]
ice",probablyasitwasconsideredanicevariantof
fieldhockey
.
Thename"bandy"comesfromBritain,whichhasplayedanimportantroleinthedevelopmentof
thesport.
Bando
,agameplayedin
Wales
inancienttimes,issimilartobandy.Itwasplayed
throughoutthecountryinvaryingformsandisstilltobefoundinsomeareas.Theearliest
exampleofthe
Welshlanguage
term
bando
occursinadictionarybyJohnWalterspublishedin
177094.Thegamebecameparticularlypopularinthe
Cynffig
Margam
districtofthe
Valeof
Glamorgan
wherewidestretchesofsandybeachesaffordedampleroomforplay.Asawinter
sport,Britishbandyoriginatedin
theFens
of
EastAnglia
wherelargeexpansesoficeformedon
floodedmeadowsorshallowwashesincoldwinters,andskatingwasatradition.Membersofthe
BuryFenBandyClub
publishedrulesofthegamein1882,andintroduceditintoothercountries.
Thefirstinternationalmatchtookplacein1891betweenBuryFenandthethenHaarlemsche
Hockey&BandyClubfromtheNetherlands(aclubwhichafteracoupleofclubfusionsnowis
named
HCBloemendaal
).Thesameyear,theNationalBandyAssociationwasstartedin
[4]
England.
ThefirstevernationalbandyleaguewasstartedinSwedenin1902.Bandywasplayedatthe
NordicGames
in1905andbetweenSwedish,FinnishandRussianteamsin1907.A
European
[4]
championship
washeldin1913witheightcountriesparticipating.
Thelocationofhighestaltitudewherebandyhasbeenplayedisinthecapitalofthe
Tajik
[7]
autonomousprovinceof
GornoBadakhshan
,
Khorugh
.
Asof2015nationalfederationsexistinseveralnations,includingAfghanistan,Argentina,
Armenia,Australia,Belarus,Canada,CzechRepublic,China,Denmark,England,Estonia,
Finland,Germany,Hungary,India,Ireland,Italy,Japan,Kazakhstan,Kyrgyzstan,Latvia,
Lithuania,Mongolia,theNetherlands,Norway,Poland,Russia,Serbia,Somalia,Sweden,
[8]
Switzerland,Ukraine,andtheUnitedStates.
Historicalrelationshipwithfootballandicehockey
Bandyasaprecursorto
icehockey
hashadsomeinfluenceonhockey'sdevelopmentand
historymainlyinEuropeanandformerSovietcountries.Whilemodernicehockeywascreated
inCanada,agamemoresimilartobandywasplayedinitially,afterBritishsoldiersintroducedthe
gameinthe19thcentury.Atthesametimethatmodernicehockeyruleswereformalizedin
BritishNorthAmerica
,bandyruleswereformulatedinEurope.AcrossbetweenEnglishand
Russianrulesdeveloped,withthefootballinspiredEnglishrulesdominant,togetherwiththe
Russianlowborderalongmostofthetwosidelines.
BeforeCanadiansintroducedicehockeyintoEuropeinthelate19thcentury,"
hockey
"was
anothernameforbandy,andstillisinpartsofRussiaandKazakhstan.
WithfootballandbandybeingdominantsportsinpartsofEurope,itwascommonforsports
clubstohavebothpopularbandyandfootballsections,withathletesplayingbothsportsbut
duringdifferenttimesoftheyear.SomeexamplesareEnglishNottinghamForestFootballand
BandyClub(todayknownjustas
NottinghamForestF.C.
)andNorwegian
StrmsgodsetIF
and
MjndalenIF
,withthelatterstillhavinganactivebandysection.
Duringallofthe20thcentury,bandyremainedalongsideicehockeyinsomeEuropean
countries,especiallyinSweden,Finland,andNorway.Icehockeybecamemorepopularthan
bandyinmostofEuropemostlybecausehockeybecameanOlympicsport,butbandydidnot.
AthletesinEuropewhohadplayedbandy,switchedtoicehockeyinthe1920stobeableto
competeintheOlympics.Thesmallericefieldsneededforicehockeyalsomadetheicehockey
rinkseasiertomaintain,especiallyincountrieswithshortwinters.Ontheotherhand,icehockey
wasnotplayedatallinthe
SovietUnion
untilthe1950s.BandyplayersinRussiastartedtoplay
hockeytocompeteinternationally,whentheSovietUnionwantedtocompetewiththewest.The
typicalEuropeanstyleoficehockey,withflowingandlessphysicalplay,representsaheritageof
bandy.
Namesofthesport
ThesportsEnglishnamecomesfromtheverb"tobandy,"fromthe
MiddleFrench
bander
("to
strikebackandforth"),andoriginallyreferredtoa17thcenturyIrishgamesimilartofieldhockey.
[16]
Thecurvedstickwasalsocalleda"bandy."
[4]
Oldnamesforbandyare
hockeyontheiceor
hockeyonice
.Sincethemid20thcenturythe
termbandyisusuallypreferredtopreventconfusionwith
icehockey
.
Thesportisknownasbandyinmanylanguagesthoughthereareafewnotableexceptions.In
Russianbandyiscalled"Russianhockey"()ormorefrequently"hockeywitha
ball"(x)whileicehockeyiscalled"hockeywithapuck"(x)or
morefrequentlyjust"hockey".InBelarusian,UkrainianandBulgarianitisalsocalled"hockey
withaball"(o,'andrespectively).InArmenian,
Kazakh,KyrgyzandUzbek,bandyisknownas"ballhockey"(,,
,andkoptoklixokkeyrespectively).InFinnishthetwosportsaredistinguishedas
"iceball"(jpallo)and"icepuck"(jkiekko).InEstonianandHungarian,bandyisalsocalled
"iceball"(jpallandjglabda,respectively),althoughinHungarianitismoreoftencalled
"bandy"nowadays.
Games
Matchbetween
HelenelundsIK
and
AIK
atSollentunavallenin
Sweden
in2006
Bandyisplayedonice,usingasingleroundball.Twoteamsof11playerseachcompetetoget
[17]
theballintotheotherteam'sgoalusingsticks,therebyscoringagoal.
Thegameisdesignedtobeplayedonarectangleoficethatisthesamesizeasa
soccer
field.
Bandyalsohasotherrulesthataresimilartosoccer.Eachteamhas11players,oneofwhomis
a
goalkeeper
.The
offside
ruleisalsoemployed.Agoalcannotbescoredfromastrokeinorgoal
[19]
throw,butunlikesoccer,agoalcannotbescoreddirectlyfromastrokeofforcornerstroke.
Allfreestrokesaredirectandallowagoaltobescoredwithoutanotherplayertouchingtheball.
Theteamthathasscoredmoregoalsattheendofthegameisthewinner.Ifbothteamshave
scoredanequalnumberofgoals,then,withsomeexceptions,thegameisadraw.
Theprimaryruleisthattheplayers(otherthanthegoalkeepers)maynotintentionallytouchthe
ballwiththeirheads,handsorarmsduringplay.Althoughplayersusuallyusetheirsticksto
movetheballaround,theymayuseanypartoftheirbodiesotherthantheirheads,handsor
armsandmayusetheirskatesinalimitedmanner.Headingtheballwillresultinafiveminute
penalty.
Intypicalgameplay,playersattempttopropeltheballtowardtheiropponents'goalthrough
individualcontroloftheball,suchasby
dribbling
,passingtheballtoateammate,andbytaking
shotsatthegoal,whichisguardedbytheopposinggoalkeeper.Opposingplayersmaytryto
regaincontroloftheballbyinterceptingapassorthroughtacklingtheopponentwhocontrolsthe
ball.However,physicalcontactbetweenopponentsislimited.Bandyisgenerallyafreeflowing
game,withplaystoppingonlywhentheballhasleftthefieldofplay,orwhenplayisstoppedby
the
referee
.Afterastoppage,playcanrecommencewithafreestroke,apenaltyshotoracorner
stroke.Iftheballhasleftthefieldalongthesidelines,therefereemustdecidewhichteam
touchedtheballlast,andawardarestartstroketotheopposingteam,justlikefootball'sthrowin.
Therulesdonotspecifyanyplayerpositionsotherthangoalkeeper,butanumberofplayer
specialisationshaveevolved.Broadly,theseincludethreemaincategories:forwards,whose
maintaskistoscoregoalsdefenders,whospecialiseinpreventingtheiropponentsfrom
scoringandmidfielders,whodispossesstheoppositionandkeeppossessionoftheballtopass
ittotheforwards.Playersinthesepositionsarereferredtoasoutfieldplayers,todiscernthem
fromthesinglegoalkeeper.Thesepositionsarefurtherdifferentiatedbywhichsideofthefield
theplayerspendsmosttimein.Forexample,therearecentraldefenders,andleftandright
midfielders.Thetenoutfieldplayersmaybearrangedinthesepositionsinanycombination(for
example,theremaybethreedefenders,fivemidfielders,andtwoforwards),andthenumberof
playersineachpositiondeterminesthestyleoftheteam'splaymoreforwardsandfewer
defenderswouldcreateamoreaggressiveandoffensivemindedgame,whilethereversewould
createaslower,moredefensivestyleofplay.Whileplayersmayspendmostofthegameina
specificposition,therearefewrestrictionsonplayermovement,andplayerscanswitchpositions
atanytime.Thelayoutoftheplayersonthepitchiscalledtheteam's
formation
,anddefiningthe
team'sformationandtacticsisusuallytheprerogativeoftheteam'smanager(s).
Rules
[
edit
]
Overview
Thereareeighteenrulesinofficialplay.Thesamerulesaredesignedtoapplytoalllevelsof
bandy,althoughcertainmodificationsforgroupssuchasjuniors,veteransorwomenare
permitted.Therulesareoftenframedinbroadterms,whichallowflexibilityintheirapplication
dependingonthenatureofthegame.The
BandyPlayingRules
canbefoundontheofficial
websiteofthe
FederationofInternationalBandy
.[18]
andareoverseenbythe
RulesandReferee
Committee
.
Playersandofficials
[
edit
]
Themakingofahistoricbandyball,fromtheoriginalcorkonthelefttothefinalballpaintedred.To
thefarrightisamodern
bandyball
.
Thegoalkeeperhasnostick
Eachteamconsistsofamaximumof11players(excludingsubstitutes),oneofwhommustbe
thegoalkeeper.Ateamoffewerthaneightplayersmaynotstartagame.Goalkeepersarethe
onlyplayersallowedtoplaytheballwiththeirhandsorarms,buttheyareonlyallowedtodoso
withinthepenaltyareainfrontoftheirowngoal.Thoughthereareavarietyofpositionsinwhich
theoutfield(nongoalkeeper)playersarestrategicallyplacedbyacoach,thesepositionsarenot
definedorrequiredbytherulesofthegame.
Anynumberofplayersmaybereplacedbysubstitutesduringthecourseofthegame.
Substitutionscanbeperformedwithoutnotifyingtherefereeandcanbeperformedwhiletheball
isinplay.However,ifthesubstituteenterstheicebeforehisteammatehasleftit,thiswillresult
inafiveminuteban.Ateamcanbringatthemostfoursubstitutestothegameandoneofthese
islikelytobeanextragoalkeeper.
Agameisofficiatedbyareferee,theauthorityandenforceroftherules,whosedecisionsare
final.Therefereemaybeassistedbyoneortwoassistantreferees.
Equipment
[
edit
]
Thebasicequipmentplayersarerequiredtowearincludeapairof
skates
,a
helmet
,amouth
guardand,inthecaseofthegoalkeeper,afaceguard.Theteamsmustwearuniformsthatmake
iteasytodistinguishthetwoteams.The
skates
,sticksandanytapeonthestickmustbeof
anothercolourthantheball.
Inadditiontotheaforementionedequipment,variousprotectionsareusedtoprotectknees,
elbows,genitalsandthroat.Thepantsandglovesmaycontainpadding.
Thebandystick
[
edit
]
Abandystickandball
ThestickusedinBandyisanaturalpartofthesport.Thestickshouldbemadeofanapproved
materialsuchaswoodoranothersimilarmaterialanditshouldnotcontainanymetalsorsharp
partswhichcanhurtthesurroundingplayers.Thebandystickshouldbecrookedandthebendof
thebladeissplitupinto5differentdimensions,where1hasthesmallestbendand5hasthe
most.Bend4isthemostcommonsizeinprofessionalbandy.Thebandystickshouldnothave
similarcolourstotheball,suchasorangeorpinkitshouldbenolongerthan127centimetres
[20]
(50in),andthebreadthshouldnotexceed7centimetres(2.8in).
Field
[
edit
]
Mainarticle:
Bandyfield

Standardfieldmeasurements
SwedishU17playeronacornerstroke.
Thesizeofa
bandyfield
is4565metres(148213ft)by90110metres(300360ft),which
totalsto4,0507,150squaremetres(43,60077,000sqft),oraboutthesamesizeasa
football
pitch
andconsiderablylargerthanan
icehockeyrink
.Alongthesidelinesa15cm(6in)high
border(vant,sarg,wand,wall)isplacedtopreventtheballfromleavingtheice.Itshouldnotbe
attachedtotheice,toglideuponcollisions,andshouldend13metres(3ft3in9ft10in)away
fromthecorners.
Centeredateachshortlineisa3.5m(11ft)wideand2.1m(6ft11in)highgoalcageandin
frontofthecageisahalfcircularpenaltyareawitha17m(56ft)radius.Apenaltyspotislocated
12metres(39ft)infrontofthegoalandtherearetwofreestrokespotsatthepenaltyarealine,
eachsurroundedbya5m(16ft)circle.
Acentrespotdenotesthecenterofthefieldandacircleofradius5m(16ft)iscenteredatit.A
centrelineisdrawnthroughthecentrespotandparallelwiththeshortlines.
Ateachofthecorners,a1m(3ft3in)radiusquartercircleisdrawn,andadottedlineispainted
paralleltotheshortlineand5metres(16ft)awayfromitwithoutextendingintothepenaltyarea.
Thedottedlinecanbereplacedwitha0.5metre(1ft8in)longlinestartingattheedgeofthe
penaltyareaandextendingtowardsthesideline,5metres(16ft)fromtheshortline.
Durationandtiebreakingmeasures
[
edit
]
Astandardadultbandymatchconsistsoftwoperiodsof45minuteseach,knownashalves.
Eachhalfrunscontinuously,meaningthattheclockisnotstoppedwhentheballisoutofplay
therefereecan,however,makeallowancefortimelostthroughsignificantstoppagesas
describedbelow.Thereisusuallya15minute"halftime"breakbetweenhalves.Theendofthe
matchisknownasfulltime.
Therefereeistheofficialtimekeeperforthematch,andmaymakeanallowancefortimelost
throughsubstitutions,injuredplayersrequiringattention,orotherstoppages.Thisaddedtimeis
commonlyreferredtoas
stoppagetime
or
injurytime
,andmustbereportedtothematch
secretaryandthetwocaptains.Therefereealonesignalstheendofthematch.
Inleaguecompetitionsgamesmayendinadraw,butinsomeknockoutcompetitionsifagame
istiedattheendofregulationtimeitmaygointoextratime,whichconsistsoftwofurther
15minuteperiods.Ifthescoreisstilltiedafterextratime,thegamewillbereplayed.Asan
alternative,theextratwotimes15minutesmaybeplayedas"goldengoal"whichmeansthatthe
firstteamthatscoresduringtheextratimewinsthegame.Ifbothextraperiodsareplayed
withoutascoredgoal,apenaltyshootoutwillsettlethegame.Theteamsshootfivepenalties
eachandifthisdoesn'tsettlethegame,theteamsshootonemorepenaltyeachuntiloneof
themmissesandtheotherscores.
Ballinandoutofplay
Undertherules,thetwobasicstatesofplayduringagameare
ballinplay
and
balloutofplay
.
Fromthebeginningofeachplayingperiodwithastrokeoff(asetstrikefromthecentrespotby
oneteam)untiltheendoftheplayingperiod,theballisinplayatalltimes,exceptwheneither
theballleavesthefieldofplay,orplayisstoppedbythereferee.Whentheballbecomesoutof
play,playisrestartedbyoneofsixrestartmethodsdependingonhowitwentoutofplay:
Strokeoff
Goalthrow
Cornerstroke
Freestroke
Penaltyshot
Faceoff
Ifthetimerunsoutwhileateamispreparingforafreestrokeorpenalty,thestrikeshouldstillbe
madebutitmustgointothegoalbyoneshottocountasagoal.Similarly,agoalmadeviaa
cornerstrokeshouldbeallowed,butitmustbeexecutedusingonlyoneshotinadditiontothe
strikeneededtoputtheballinplay.
Freestrokesandpenaltyshots
[
edit
]
Freestrokescanbeawardedtoateamifaplayeroftheoppositeteamoffendsanyrule,for
example,byhittingwiththestickagainsttheopponent'sstickorskates.Freestrokescanalsobe
awardeduponincorrectexecutionofcornerstrikes,freestrikes,goalthrows,andsoon.orthe
useofincorrectequipment,suchasabrokenstick.
Ratherthanstoppingplay,the
referee
mayallowplaytocontinuewhenitscontinuationwill
benefittheteamagainstwhichanoffencehasbeencommitted.Thisisknownas"playingan
advantage".Therefereemay"callback"playandpenalisetheoriginaloffenceiftheanticipated
advantagedoesnotensuewithinashortperiodoftime,typicallytakentobefourtofiveseconds.
Evenifanoffenceisnotpenalisedbecausetherefereeplaysanadvantage,theoffendermay
stillbesanctioned(seebelow)foranyassociatedmisconductatthenextstoppageofplay.
Ifadefenderviolentlyattacksanopponentwithinthepenaltyarea,apenaltyshotisawarded.
Certainotheroffences,whencarriedoutwithinthepenaltyarea,resultinapenaltyshotprovided
thereisagoalsituation.Theseoffencesincludeadefenderholdingorhookinganattacker,or
blockingagoalsituationwithaliftedskate,thrownstickorgloveandsoon.Also,thedefenders
(withtheexceptionofthegoalkeeper)arenotallowedtokneelorlayontheice.Thefinal
offencesthatmightmandateapenaltyshotarethoseofhittingorblockinganopponent'sstickor
touchingtheballwiththehands,arms,stickorheadabovetheshoulders.Ifanyoftheseactions
iscarriedoutinanongoalsituation,theyshallbeawardedwithafreestrokefromoneofthe
freestrokespotsatthepenaltyarealine.Apenaltyshotshouldalwaysbeaccompaniedbya5
or10minutespenalty(seebelow).Ifthepenaltyresultsinagoal,thepenaltyshouldbe
consideredpersonalmeaningthatasubstitutecanbesentinforthepenalisedplayer.Thisdoes
notapplyintheeventofaredcard(seebelow).
Warningsandpenalties
[
edit
]
Blue:10minutespenalty,red:
matchpenalty
.
Atenminutespenaltyisindicatedthroughtheuseofabluecardandcanbecausedby
protestingorbehavingincorrectly,attackinganopponentviolentlyorstoppingtheballincorrectly
togetanadvantage.
Thethirdtimeaplayerreceivesapenalty,itwillbeapersonalpenaltymeaningheorshewill
misstheremainderofthematch.Asubstitutecanenterthefieldafterfiveortenminutes.Afull
gamepenaltycanbereceiveduponusingabusivelanguageordirectlyattackinganopponent
andmeansthattheplayercanneitherplaynorbesubstitutedfortheremainderofthegame.A
matchpenalty
isindicatedthroughtheuseofaredcard.
Offside
[
edit
]
The
offside
ruleeffectivelylimitstheabilityofattackingplayerstoremainforward(i.e.closerto
theopponent'sgoalline)oftheball,thesecondtolastdefendingplayer(whichcanincludethe
goalkeeper),andthehalfwayline.Thisruleisineffectjustlike
thatofassociationfootball
.
International
[
edit
]
Russia
inthe
WorldChampionships2012
WorldChampionships
[
edit
]
The
BandyWorldChampionship
formenwerefirstheldin1957andtheneverytwoyears
startingin1961,andeveryyearsince2003.Currentlytherecordnumberofcountries
participatingintheWorldChampionshipsisseventeen.Sincethenumberofcountriesplaying
bandyisnotlarge,everycountrywhichcansetupateamiswelcometotakepartintheWorld
Championship.Thequalityoftheteamsareveryvarying,however,withonlysixnations,the
SovietUnion,Russia,Sweden,Finland,Norway,andKazakhstan,everhavingwonanymedals
(evenallowingforthefactthatRussiaessentiallyjusttookoverfromtheSovietUnionin1992).
Finlandwonthe2004worldchampionshipin
Vsters
,whileallotherchampionshipshavebeen
wonbythe
SovietUnion
,Russia,orSweden.
InFebruary2004,Swedenwon
thefirst
WorldChampionshipforwomen
,hostedinFinland,
withoutconcedingagoal.In
the2014women'sWorldChampionship
Russiawon,forthefirst
timetoppelingtheSwedesfromthethrone.
Therearealso
YouthBandyWorldChampionship
indifferentagegroupsforboysandyoung
menandinoneagegroupforgirls.Theoldestgroupistheunder23championship,
BandyWorld
ChampionshipY23
.
OlympicGames
[
edit
]
Althoughbandywasthe
demonstrationsport
atthe
VIOlympicWinterGames
in1952(
Oslo
,
[21]
Norway),andis
IOC
accepted, ithasnotbecomeanofficial
Olympicsport
.Onlythreeteams
played
bandyatthe1952WinterOlympics
:Finland,NorwayandSweden.
BandywaseventuallyrecognisedbytheIOCin2001.ThethenIOCPresident,
JacquesRogge
,
[22]
wasveryimpressedwithbandywhenhesawitforthefirsttimein2006.
In2010itwasreportedthatFIBpresident
BorisSkrynnik
believedbandywouldbeonthe
[23]
programmeforthe
2014WinterOlympics
in
Sochi
, butthisdidnothappen.
NikolayValuyev
saidinFebruary2015therewasagoodchanceforinclusioninthe
2022WinterOlympics
if
[24]
Almatywouldwinthebiddingprocess, butinJuly2015the2022Gamesweregivento
[25]
[26]
Beijing. ThereisarumourthoughthatbandycanbeincludedinBeijing2022. The

Russian
[27]
OlympicCommittee
isworkingtowardstheinclusionofbandyintheWinterOlympics.
YouthOlympicGames
[
edit
]
[28]
Atthe
2016WinterYouthOlympics
,bandywillbeademonstrationsport, whichwillconsistof
[29]
amatchbetweennationalyouthteamsofNorwayandSweden.
AsianWinterGames
[
edit
]
Thefinalofthe
bandytournamentatAsianWinterGames
between
Kazakhstan
and
Mongolia
Atthe2011
AsianWinterGames
,opentomembersofthe
OlympicCouncilofAsia
,bandyfor
menwasincludedforthefirsttime.WithJapanasanewFIBmember,theinternational
federationisworkingtowardsincludingbandyalsointhenextgamesin
SapporoObihiro2017
.
[30]
AccordingtoBorisSkrynnik,itwasconfirmedforinclusion. However,attheofficialsitethere
[31]
isnosignofbandy.
Friendlies
[
edit
]
Thenationalteamsalsomeetforfriendlygamesfromtimetotime.Finland,NorwayandSweden
usuallyplayRussiainthe
RussianGovernmentCup
.TheUSAandCanadameetforfriendlies
onceayear.
ThecentralEuropeanteamsCzechRepublic,Germany,HungaryandtheNetherlandsmetfora
fournationcompetitioninJanuary2014
,aneventwhichisintendedtoberecurrent.Itiscalled
[32]
CoupeNorselandisscheduledforJanuary2016nexttime.
WorldCup
[
edit
]
TheWorldChampionshipsshouldnotbeconfusedwiththeannual
WorldCup
in
Ljusdal
,
Sweden,whichhasbeenplayedannuallysincethe1970sandisthebiggestbandytournament
forelitelevelclubteams.Itwasplayedindoorsin
Sandviken
from2009to2011becauseLjusdal
hasnoindoorarena.ItisplannedtobeinLjusdalagainonceanindoorarenahasbeenbuilt.
WorldCupmatchesareplayeddayandnight,andthetournamentisplayedinfourdaysinlate
October.Theteamsparticipatingaremostly,andsomeyearsexclusively,fromSwedenand
Russia.Sofar(2014)onlyonce,aFinnishteamhaswontheWorldCup.
[33]
Since2007,thereisalsoa
BandyWorldCupWomen
forwomen'steams.
ChampionsCup
[
edit
]
Anotherclubtournamentisthe
ChampionsCup
.Itisa
preseason
tournamentheldin
Edsbyn
,
Swedenandfeaturesclubsfrom
Russia
and
Sweden
.
Internationalfederation
[
edit
]
Worldmapshowingthe32membersofthe
[34]
The
(FIB)had32membersin2014. Formedin1955,the
namewaschangedfrom
InternationalBandyFederation
in2001afterthe
InternationalOlympic
Committee
approveditasasocalled"recognizedsport"theabbreviation"IBF"wasalready
usedbyanotherrecognizedsportsfederation.In2004,FIBwasfullyacceptedbyIOC.
FIBisnowamemberof
AssociationofIOCRecognisedInternationalSportsFederations
.
WinterUniversiade
[
edit
]
[35]
[36]
The
2017WinterUniversiade
willbeheldin
Almaty
with
bandyasademonstrationsport
.
It
[37]
willberepeatedin
Krasnoyarsk2019
. FIBand
FISU
havesignedacooperationagreement
[38]
aboutdevelopingstudentbandy.
WorldChampionshipsforstudents
[
edit
]
Two
WorldChampionshipsforstudents
isarequirementbeforebeingabletobecomeafull
medalsportattheWinterUniversiade.Therefore,thefirsttournamentwillbeorganisedin2016,
[39]
in
Ulyanovsk
.
EuropeanChampionship
[
edit
]
The
1913EuropeanBandyChampionships
washeldintheSwisstownof
Davos
with
England
[40]
victorious.
Varieties
[
edit
]
[41]
Rinkbandy
isavarietyplayedonanicehockeysizerink. Itwasintheprogrammeofthe2012
[42]
EuropeanCompanySportsGames. SomeFIBcountriesdon'thavealargeicesurfaceand
onlyplayrinkbandyathome,infactmostoftheWorldChampionshipsGroupBparticipants.
Countries
[
edit
]
England
[
edit
]
HistoricalEnglishteam
BuryFen
Thefirstrecordedgamesofbandyonicetookplacein
TheFens
duringthegreatfrostof
18131814,althoughitisprobablethatthegamehadbeenplayedthereinthepreviouscentury.
[43]
BuryFenBandyClub from
BluntishamcumEarith
,near
StIves
,wasthemostsuccessful
team,remainingunbeatenuntilthewinterof18901891.
CharlesGTebbutt
oftheBuryFen
bandyclubwasresponsibleforthefirstpublishedrulesofbandyin1882,andalsoforintroducing
thegameintotheNetherlandsandSweden,aswellaselsewhereinEnglandwhereitbecame
popularwithcricket,rowingandhockeyclubs.Tebbutt'shomemadebandystickcanbeseenin
theNorrisMuseuminStIves.
Thefirst
IceHockeyVarsityMatches
between
OxfordUniversity
and
CambridgeUniversity
were
playedtobandyrules,evenifitwascalledicehockeyatthetime.
[44]
Englandwonthe
EuropeanBandyChampionships
in1913, butthatturnedouttobethegrand
finale,andbandyisnowvirtuallyunknowninEngland.InMarch2004,Norwegianexplayer
EdgarMalmaninvitedtwobigclubstoplayarinkbandyexhibitiongameinStreatham,London.
RussianChampionsandWorldCupWinner
Vodnik
metSwedishChampions
EdsbynsIF
ina
matchthatended1010.In2010Englandbecamea
member.
[45]
ThefederationisbasedinCambridgeshire,thehistoricalheartland.
Estonia
[
edit
]
BandywasplayedinEstoniainthe1910sto1930sandthecountryhada
nationalchampionship
forsomeyears.ThenationalteamplayedfriendliesagainstFinlandinthe1920sand'30s.The
sportwasplayedsporadicallyduringSovietoccupation19441991.Ithassincethenbecome
moreorganisedagain,partlythroughexchangewithFinnishclubsandenthusiasts..
Finland
[
edit
]
AmatchinFinland
BandywasintroducedtoFinlandfromRussiainthe1890s.Finlandhasbeenplayingbandy
friendliesagainstSwedenandEstoniasinceitsindependencein1917.
Thefirst
Finnishnationalchampionships
wereheldin1908andwasthefirstnationalFinnish
championshipheldinanyteamsport.Nationalchampionshavebeennamedeveryyearexcept
forthreeyearsinthefirsthalfofthe20thCenturywhenFinlandwasatwar.Thetopnational
leagueiscalled
Bandyliiga
andissemiprofessional.Thebestplayersoftengofullyprofessional
bybeingrecruitedbyclubsinSwedenorRussia.
India
[
edit
]
Indiahasanationalbandyteam.
BandyFederationofIndia
takescareofbandyinIndia.Its
headquartersisin
Mandi
in
HimachalPradesh
.BandyisgenerallyplayedinnorthernIndiawhere
thereisgenerallysnowandice.Indiaisoneof6countriesinAsiaandintotal28tobeamember
of
.BFIplannedtosendateamtothe
tournamentin
[46]
AstanaAlmaty2011
, butultimatelydidnot.
Kazakhstan
[
edit
]

RauanIssaliyev,captainofthe
Kazakhstannationalbandyteam
Bandyhasalonghistoryinmanypartsofthecountryanditusedtobeoneofthemostpopular
sportsinSoviettimes.However,afterindependenceitsufferedarapiddeclineinpopularityand
onlyremainedin
Oral
(oftencalledbytheRussianname,Uralsk),wherethecountry'sonly
professionalclub
Akzhaiyk
islocated.TheyarecompetingintheRussianseconddivision.
RecentlybandyhasstartedtogainpopularityagainoutsideofOral.TheformercapitalAlmaty
hasinrecentyearshostedboththeAsianWinterGames(withbandyontheprogram)aswellas
theBandyWorldChampionshipinwhichKazakhstanfinished3rd.Plansaremadeto
reinvigoratethebandysectionoftheclubDynamoAlmaty,whowonthe
SovietChampionships
in1977and1990aswellasthe
EuropeanCup
in1978.The
AsianBandyFederation
alsohasits
headquartersinAlmaty.Sinceafewyearsthestateissupportingbandy.
Medeu
inAlmatyisthe
onlyarenawithartificialice.AsecondarenainAlmatywasbuiltforthe
WorldChampionship
[47]
2012
,however,itwastakendownafterwards.
StadionYunost
in
Oral willgetartificialicefor
[48]
the201516season.
Norway
[
edit
]
Celebratingthebronzemedalin
WCS2006
Bandywasintroducedto
Norway
inthe1910s.TheSwedescontributedlargely,andclubs
spranguparoundthecapitalofOslo.Oslo,includingneighbouringtowns,isstilltodaytheregion
wherebandyenjoysmostpopularityinNorway.
In1912theNorwegiansplayedtheirfirst
NationalChampionship
,whichwasplayedannuallyup
to1940.DuringWWII,illegalbandywasplayedinhiddenplacesinforests,onpondsandlakes.
In1943,44and45,illegalchampionshipswereheld.In1946legalplayresumedandstillgoes
on.AfterWWIIthenumberofteamsrose,aswellasattendancewhichregularlywereinthe
thousands,butmildwintersinthe1970sand80sshrunktheleague,andin2003only5clubs
(teams)foughtoutthe1stdivisionwithlowattendancenumbersandlittlemediacoverage.
Inrecentyears,thenumberofartificiallyfrozenpitcheshaveincreasedinNorway,andmore
sportsclubshavereinvigoratedtheirbandysectionswithnewmen'sandyouthteams.Because
ofthis,aswellasanincreaseofSwedishplayersinNorway,thecompetitivenessofthegame
hasrisen,especiallyinthefirstdivisionEliteserien.Theadultmen'sgameinNorwaytoday
consistsofEliteserienwith8teams,aswellas3lowerdivisions.BandyinNorwayhasalso
startedtospreadgeographically,andwhilethesportismorepopularthanicehockeyinand
aroundthecapitalOslo,someclubsinapartlocationsinthe3rddivisiononlyhaveaccessto
hockeyrinksandthereforeplayrinkbandyforhomegames.Comparedtothepast,attendanceis
stillfairlylow,butimportantEliteserienmatchescanattractaround1000spectators.
Russia
[
edit
]
TrudStadium
in
Arkhangelsk
.
InRussiabandyisknownashockeywithaballorsimplyRussianhockey.Asimilargame
becamepopularamongtheRussiannobilityintheearly1700s,withtheimperialcourtof
Peter
theGreat
playingapredecessorofmodernbandyon
SaintPetersburg
'sfrozen
Neva
river.
Russiansplayedthisgameusingordinaryfootwear,withsticksmadeoutofjuniperwood,only
laterwereskatesintroduced.Itwasonlyinthesecondhalfofthe19thcenturythatbandy
becamepopularamongthemassesthroughoutthe
RussianEmpire
.TraditionallytheRussians
usedalongerskatebladethanothernations,givingthemtheadvantageofskatingfaster.
However,theywouldfinditmoredifficulttoturnquickly.Abandyskatehasalongerbladethana
hockeyskate,andthe"Russianskate"evenlonger.
WhentheFederationofInternationalBandywasformedin
1955
,withtheSovietUnionasoneof
itsfoundingmembers,theRussianslargelyadoptedtheinternationalrulesofthegame
developedinEnglandinthe19thcentury,withonenotableexception.Theothercountries
adoptedtheborder.
[49]
Bandyisconsidereda
nationalsport
inRussia andisnowadaysthethirdmostpopular
[50]
[51]
one. Itisalsotheonlydisciplinetohaveofficialsupportofthe
RussianOrthodoxChurch
.
The
RussianBandySuperLeague
isplayedeveryyearandthewinnerinthefinalbecomes
Russianchampion
.The
RussianCup
hasbeenplayedannually(exceptforjustsomeyears)
since
1937
.
Sweden
[
edit
]
Afterthe2010finalatStudenternasIdrottsplatsin
Uppsala
,Sweden
BandywasintroducedtoSwedenin1895.TheSwedishroyalfamily,noblemenanddiplomats
werethefirstplayers.
Swedishchampionships
formenhavebeenplayedannuallysince1907.In
the1920sstudentsplayedthegameanditbecamealargelymiddleclasssport.After
Slottsbrons
IF
wontheSwedishchampionshipin1934itbecamepopularamongstworkersinthesmaller
industrialtownsandvillages.Bandyremainsthemainsportinmanyoftheseplaces.
BandyinSwedenisfamousforits"culture"bothplayingbandyandbeingaspectatorrequires
greatfortitudeanddedication.A"bandybriefcase"("bandyportflj"inSwedish)istheclassic
accessoryforspectatingitistypicallymadeofbrownleather,wellwornandcontainawarm
[52]
drinkinathermosand/orabottleofliquor. Bandyismostoftenplayedatoutdoorarenas
duringwintertime,sotheneedforspectatorstocarryflaskorthermosesof'warming'liquidlike
Glgg
isanaturaleffect.
Anotabletraditionis"
annandagsbandy
",bandygamesplayedon
SaintStephen'sDay
,which
formerlymarkedthestartofthebandyseasonandalwaysdrawbiggercrowdsthanusual.
[53]
Gamestraditionallybeginat1:15pm.
ThefinalmatchfortheSwedishChampionship
isplayedeveryyearonthethirdSaturdayof
March.From1991to2012,itwasplayedat
StudenternasIdrottsplats
in
Uppsala
,attimes
drawingcrowdsinexcessof20,000.ThereasonforwhytheplayoffmatchwassetinUppsalais
becauseof
IFKUppsala
anditssuccessinthebeginningofthe20thcentury.IFKUppsalawon
11titlesintheSwedishChampionshipsbetween1907and1920,whichmadethemthemost
successfulbandyclubintheentirecountry.Now,however,therecordisheldbytheclub
VstersSK
.
In2013and2014thefinalwasplayedindoorsin
FriendsArena
,thenewnationalstadiumfor
footballinSolnawithretractableroofwithacapacityof50000.From2015onwards,
Tele2Arena
inStockholmhasbeenchoseninstead.
Switzerland
[
edit
]
Inthelate19thandearly20thCentury,Switzerlandhadbecomeapopularplaceforwinter
vacationsandpeoplewenttherefromalloverEurope.Wintersportslikeskiing,sleddingand
[54]
bandywasplayedinGenevaandothertowns. StudentsfromOxfordandCambridgewentto
Switzerlandtoplayeachotherthepredecessoroftherecurring
IceHockeyVarsityMatch
wasa
bandymatchplayedin
St.Moritz
in1885.ThispopularityforSwissvenuesofwintersportmay
havebeenareason,theEuropeanChampionshipwasheldtherein1913.TheSwisshadtheir
ownnationalbandyteambythen,whichtheyhaven'thadsince.
Ukraine
[
edit
]
BandywasplayedinUkrainewhenshewaspartoftheSovietUnion.Afterindependencein
1991,ittooksomeyearsbeforeorganisedbandyformedagain,but
Ukrainianchampions
have
beennamedannuallysince2012.
UnitedStates
[
edit
]
Mainarticle:
BandyintheUnitedStates
BandyhasbeenplayedintheUnitedStatessincearound1980.Theactivityismainlycentredto
Minnesotaevenifafaninterestalsoexistinotherstates.ThebandyclubsintheUSonlyhave
teamsbuttheinterestisstableandevenifsomeclubsfoldsafteronlysomeyears,otherclubs
havebeenaroundfromthestartandhaveasteadyfollowing.TheUnitedStatesnationalbandy
teamhastakenpartintheBandyWorldChampionshipssince1985andisalsoregularlyplaying
friendliesagainstCanada.
UnitedStatesbandychampionships
havebeenplayedannuallysincetheearly1980s,butthe
leagueisstillnotwidelyfollowedbysportsmediainthecountry.
Icehockey
isa
contact
teamsport
playedon
ice
,usuallyina
rink
,inwhichtwoteamsof
skaters
usetheir
sticks
to
shoot
a
vulcanized
rubber
puck
intotheiropponent'snettoscore
points.Icehockeyteamsusuallyconsistoffourlinesofthree
forwards
,threepairsof
defencemen
,andtwo
goaltenders
.Normally,eachteamhasfiveplayerswhoskateupand
downtheicetryingtotakethepuckandscorea
goal
againsttheopposingteam.
Afastpaced,physicalsport,hockeyismostpopularinareasof
NorthAmerica
(particularly
Canada
andthe
UnitedStates
)and
Europe
.InNorthAmerica,the
NationalHockeyLeague
(NHL)isthehighestlevelformen'shockeyandthemostpopular.The
KontinentalHockey
League
(KHL)isthehighestleaguein
Russia
andmuchof
EasternEurope
.Icehockeyisthe
[1]
official
nationalwintersport
ofCanada,
wherethegameenjoysimmensepopularity.The
InternationalIceHockeyFederation
(IIHF)istheformalgoverningbodyforinternationalice
hockey.TheIIHFmanagesinternationaltournamentsandmaintainsthe
IIHFWorldRanking
.
[2]
Worldwide,thereareicehockeyfederationsin74countries.
Icehockeyisbelievedtohaveevolvedfromsimplestickandballgamesplayedinthe18th
and19thcentury
UnitedKingdom
andelsewhere.ThesegameswerebroughttoCanada
andtheUnitedStatesandseveralsimilarwintergamesusinginformalrulesweredeveloped,
suchas"
shinny
"and"
icepolo
".Thecontemporarysportoficehockeywasdevelopedin
Canada,mostnotablyin
Montreal
,wherethe
firstindoorhockeygame
wasplayedonMarch
3,1875.Somecharacteristicsofthatgame,suchasthelengthoftheicerinkandtheuseof
apuck,havebeenretainedtothisday.Amateuricehockeyleaguesbeganinthe1880s,and
professionalicehockeyoriginatedaround1900.The
StanleyCup
,emblematicoficehockey
clubsupremacy,wasfirstawardedin1893torecognizetheCanadianamateurchampion
andlaterbecamethechampionshiptrophyoftheNHL.Intheearly1900s,theCanadian
ruleswereadoptedbytheLigueInternationaledeHockeysurGlace,theprecursorofthe
IIHFandthesportwasplayedforthefirsttimeinthe
Olympics
inthe
OlympicGamesof
1920
.
Ininternationalcompetitions,thenationalteamsofsixcountries(The"
BigSix
")predominate:
Canada
,
CzechRepublic
,
Finland
,
Russia
,
Sweden
and
theUnitedStates
.Ofthe69medals
awardedalltimeinmen'scompetitionattheOlympics,onlysixmedalswerenotawardedtoone
ofthosecountries.Intheannual
IceHockeyWorldChampionships
,177of201medalshave
beenawardedtothesixnations.Teamsoutsidethe"BigSix"havewononlyfivemedalsineither
[3]
[4]
competitionsince1953:
All12Women'sOlympicand36
IIHFWorldWomen'sChampionships
medalshavebeenawardedtooneofthesesixcountries,andeverygoldmedalinboth
competitionshasbeenwonbyeitherthe
Canadiannationalteam
orthe
UnitedStatesnational
team
.[5]
[6]
InCanada,theUnitedStates,andsomeEuropeancountriessuchas
Latvia
and
Sweden
,it
isknownsimplyas"hockey"thename"icehockey"isusedinplaceswhere"hockey"more
oftenrefersto
fieldhockey
,suchas
SouthAmerica
,
Asia
,
Africa
,
Australasia
,andsome
Europeancountrieslike
Germany
,the
Netherlands
,
Spain
andtheUnitedKingdom.In
Russiaand
Ukraine
,where"hockey"alsocanreferto
bandy
,icehockeyisoftencalled
"hockeywithpuck".
History
[
edit
]
Name
[
edit
]
Thename"hockey"hasnoclearorigin.Itsfirstknownmentionisfromthe1773book
Juvenile
SportsandPastimes,toWhichArePrefixed,MemoirsoftheAuthor:IncludingaNewModeof
InfantEducation
,byRichardJohnson(Pseud.MasterMichelAngelo),whosechapterXIwas
[7]
titled"NewImprovementsontheGameofHockey".
Thebeliefthathockeywasmentionedina
1363proclamationby
KingEdwardIIIofEngland
isbasedonmoderntranslationsofthe
proclamation,whichwasoriginallyinLatinandexplicitlyforbadethegames"PilamManualem,
Pedivam,&Bacularem:&adCanibucam&GallorumPugnam".TheEnglishhistorianand
biographer
JohnStrype
didnotusetheword"hockey"whenhetranslatedtheproclamationin
1720.
The1573StatuteofGalwaybannedasportcalled"'hokie'thehurlingofalittleballwithsticks
[8]
orstaves".
Aformofthiswordwasthusbeingusedinthe16thcentury,thoughmuchremoved
fromitscurrentusage.
AccordingtotheAustinHockeyAssociation,theword"puck"derivesfromtheScots
Gaelic
puc
ortheIrish
poc
(topoke,punchordeliverablow)."...Theblowgivenbyahurlertotheballwith
[9]
hiscamanorhurleyisalwayscalledapuck."
Precursors
[
edit
]
Winterlandscape,withskatersplayingGolf(
HendrickAvercamp
,17thcenturyDutch
painter)
StickandballgamesdatebacktopreChristiantimes.InEurope,thesegamesincludedthe
Irishgameof
hurling
,thecloselyrelatedScottishgameof
shinty
andversionsof
fieldhockey
(including"
bandie
ball,"playedinEngland).
IJscolf
,agameresembling
colf
onan
icecoveredsurface,waspopularinthe
LowCountries
betweenthe
MiddleAges
andthe
DutchGoldenAge
.Itwasplayedwithawoodencurvedbat(calleda
colf
or
kolf
),awooden
orleatherballandtwopoles(ornearbylandmarks),withtheobjectivetohitthechosenpoint
usingtheleastnumberofstrokes.Asimilargame(
knattleikr
)hadbeenplayedfora
thousandyearsormorebythe
Norse
,asdocumentedinthe
Icelandicsagas
.InEngland,
evidenceofgamesof'hockeyonice'(thenamereplaced"bandieball"),playedwitha"
bung
"
(aplugofcorkoroakusedasastopperonabarrel)datebacktothe1700s.WilliamPierre
LeCocqstated,ina1799letterwrittenin
Chesham
,England:
ImustnowdescribetoyouthegameofHockeywehaveeachastickturningupattheend.We
getabung.Therearetwosidesoneofthemknocksonewayandtheothersidetheotherway.If
[10]
anyoneofthesidesmakesthebungreachthatendofthechurchyarditisvictorious.
A1797engravingunearthedbySwedishsporthistoriansCarlGidnandPatrickHoudashowsa
[11]
personon
skates
withastickandbungonthe
RiverThames
,probablyinDecember1796.
BritishsoldiersandimmigrantstoCanadaandtheUnitedStatesbroughttheirstickandball
gameswiththemandplayedthemontheiceandsnowofwinter.In1825,
JohnFranklin
wrote
"Thegameofhockeyplayedontheicewasthemorningsport"on
GreatBearLake
duringoneof
his
Arctic
expeditions.Amid1830swatercolourportraysNewBrunswicklieutenantgovernor
ArchibaldCampbellandhisfamilywithBritishsoldiersonskatesplayingastickonicesport.
CaptainR.G.A.Levinge,aBritishArmyofficerinNewBrunswickduringCampbell'stime,wrote
about"hockeyonice"onChippewaCreek(atributaryoftheNiagaraRiver)in1839.In1843
anotherBritishArmyofficerin
Kingston,Ontario
wrote,"Begantoskatethisyear,improved
[12]
quicklyandhadgreatfunathockeyontheice." An1859
BostonEveningGazette
article
[13]
referredtoanearlygameofhockeyoniceinHalifaxthatyear.
An1835paintingbyJohn
O'TooledepictsskaterswithsticksandbungonafrozenstreamintheAmericanstateof
West
[11]
Virginia
.
Inthesameera,the
Mi'kmaq
,a
FirstNations
peopleof
NovaScotia
,alsohadastickandball
game.Canadian
oralhistories
describeatraditionalstickandballgameplayedbytheMi'kmaq
ineasternCanada,and
SilasTertiusRand
(inhis1894
LegendsoftheMicmacs
)describesa
Mi'kmaqballgameknownas
tooadijik
.Randalsodescribesagameplayed(probablyafter
Europeancontact)with
hurleys
,knownas
wolchamaadijik
.[14]
SticksmadebytheMi'kmaqwere
usedbytheBritishfortheirgames.
"YeGudeOldeDays"from
Hockey:Canada'sRoyalWinterGame,
1899
Early19thcenturypaintingsdepict
shinney
(or"shinny"),anearlyformofhockeywithno
standardruleswhichwasplayedinNovaScotia.Manyoftheseearlygamesabsorbedthe
physicalaggressionofwhattheMi'kmaqinNovaScotiacalled
dehuntshigwa'es
(
lacrosse
).
Shinneywasplayedonthe
St.LawrenceRiver
at
Montreal
and
QuebecCity
,andinKingston,
[12]
Ontario
and
Ottawa
,Ontario.Thenumberofplayerswasoftenlarge.Tothisday,shinney
[15]
(derivedfrom"shinty")isapopularCanadian
termfor
aninformaltypeofhockey
,eithericeor
streethockey
.
ThomasChandlerHaliburton
,in
TheAttache:SecondSeries
(publishedin1844),reminisced
aboutboysfromKing'sCollegeSchoolin
Windsor,NovaScotia
playing"hurlyonthelongpond
[13]
[14]
ontheice"whenhewasastudenttherein1810andearlier.
BasedonHaliburton'saccount,
claimsweremadethatmodernhockeywasinventedinWindsor,NovaScotia,byKing'sCollege
[16]
studentsandnamedafteranindividual("ColonelHockey'sgame").
Othersclaimthatthe
originsofhockeycomefromgamesplayedintheareaofDartmouthandHalifaxinNovaScotia.
Initialdevelopment
[
edit
]
TheearlyQuebecSkatingRink,representativeofearlyrinks
HockeyatMcGillUniversity,Montreal,1901
Whilethegame'soriginslieelsewhere,Montrealisatthecenterofthedevelopmentofthesport
ofcontemporaryicehockey.OnMarch3,1875,the
firstorganizedindoorgame
wasplayedat
Montreal's
VictoriaSkatingRink
betweentwonineplayerteams,including
JamesCreighton
and
several
McGillUniversity
students.Insteadofaballorbung,thegamefeatureda"flatcircular
[17]
pieceofwood"
(tokeepitintherinkandtoprotectspectators).Thegoalpostswere8feet(2.4
[17]
m)apart (today'sgoalsaresixfeetwide).
In1876,thefirstgameplayedinMontrealwasreportedly"conductedunderthe'Hockey
[18]
Association'rules"
theHockeyAssociationwasEngland'sfieldhockeyorganization.In
1877,
TheGazette
(Montreal)publishedalistofsevenrules,sixofwhichwerelargelybasedon
sixoftheHockeyAssociation'stwelverules,withonlyminordifferences(eventheword"ball"
[19]
waskept)theoneaddedruleexplainedhowdisputesshouldbesettled.
The
McGillUniversity
[20]
HockeyClub
,thefirsticehockeyclub,wasfoundedin1877 (followedbythe
Montreal
[21]
Victorias
,organizedin1881).
In1880,thenumberofplayerspersidewasreducedfromnine
[7]
toseven.
Thenumberofteamsgrew,enoughtoholdthefirst"worldchampionship"oficehockeyat
Montreal'sannual
WinterCarnival
in1883.TheMcGillteamwonthetournamentandwas
[22]
awardedthe"CarnivalCup." Thegamewasdividedintothirtyminutehalves.Thepositions
werenownamed:
leftandrightwing
,
centre
,
rover
,
pointandcoverpoint
,and
goaltender
.In
1886,theteamscompetingattheWinterCarnivalorganizedthe
AmateurHockeyAssociationof
[23]
Canada
(AHAC),andplayedaseasoncomprising"challenges"totheexistingchampion.
Theoriginal
StanleyCup
inthe
HockeyHallofFame
InEurope,itisbelievedthatin1885the
OxfordUniversityIceHockeyClub
wasformedtoplay
thefirst
IceHockeyVarsityMatch
againsttraditionalrival
Cambridge
inSt.Moritz,Switzerland
[24]
[25]
however,thisisundocumented.ThematchwaswonbytheOxfordDarkBlues,60
thefirst
[26]
photographsandteamlistsdatefrom1895. Thisrivalrycontinues,claimingtobetheoldest
hockeyrivalryinhistoryasimilarclaimismadeabouttherivalrybetween
Queen'sUniversity
and
RoyalMilitaryCollege
ofKingston,Ontario.Since1986,consideredthe100thanniversaryof
[27]
therivalry,teamsofthetwocollegesplayfortheCarrHarrisCup.
In1888,the
GovernorGeneralofCanada
,
LordStanleyofPreston
(whosesonsanddaughter
werehockeyenthusiasts),firstattendedtheMontrealWinterCarnivaltournamentandwas
impressedwiththegame.In1892,realizingthattherewasnorecognitionforthebestteamin
Canada(althoughanumberofleagueshadchampionshiptrophies),hepurchasedasilverbowl
foruseasatrophy.TheDominionHockeyChallengeCup(whichlaterbecameknownasthe
StanleyCup
)wasfirstawardedin
1893
tothe
MontrealHockeyClub
,championsoftheAHACit
[28]
continuestobeawardedannuallytothe
NationalHockeyLeague
'schampionshipteam.
Stanley'ssonArthurhelpedorganizethe
OntarioHockeyAssociation
,andStanley'sdaughter
Isobel
wasoneofthefirstwomentoplayicehockey.
By1893,therewerealmostahundredteamsinMontrealaloneinaddition,therewereleagues
throughoutCanada.
Winnipeg
hockeyplayersused
cricket
padstobetterprotectthe
goaltender
's
legstheyalsointroducedthe"scoop"shot,orwhatisnowknownasthewristshot.Goalnets
becameastandardfeatureofthe
CanadianAmateurHockeyLeague
(CAHL)in1900.Leftand
[29]
rightdefencebegantoreplacethepointandcoverpointpositionsintheOHAin1906.
IntheUnitedStates,"icepolo",playedwithaballratherthanapuck,waspopularduringthis
periodhowever,by1893
YaleUniversity
and
JohnsHopkinsUniversity
heldtheirfirsticehockey
[30]
matches.
Americanfinancier
MalcolmGreeneChace
iscreditedwithbeingthefatherof
[31]
hockeyintheUnitedStates.
In1892,asanamateurtennisplayer,Chacevisited
Niagara
Falls,NewYork
foratennismatch,wherehemetsomeCanadianhockeyplayers.Soon
afterwards,ChaceputtogetherateamofmenfromYale,
Brown
,and
Harvard
,andtouredacross
[31]
Canadaascaptainofthisteam. ThefirstcollegiatehockeymatchintheUnitedStateswas
playedbetweenYaleUniversityandJohnsHopkinsinBaltimore.Yale,ledbycaptainChace,
[32]
beatHopkins21.
In1896,thefirsticehockeyleagueintheU.S.wasformed.TheU.S.
AmateurHockeyLeaguewasfoundedinNewYorkCity,shortlyaftertheopeningofthe
artificialice
St.NicholasRink
.
TheOttawaHockeyClub"SilverSeven"(theoriginal
OttawaSenators
),1905
StanleyCup
champions
LordStanley'sfivesonswereinstrumentalinbringingicehockeytoEurope,defeatingacourt
[33]
team(whichincludedthefuture
EdwardVII
and
GeorgeV
)at
BuckinghamPalace
in1895.
By
1903,afiveteamleaguehadbeenfounded.The
LigueInternationaledeHockeysurGlace
was
foundedin1908togoverninternationalcompetition,andthefirstEuropeanchampionshipwas
wonbyGreatBritainin1910.Duringthemid20thcentury,the
Ligue
becamethe
International
IceHockeyFederation
.[34]
IcehockeybecamemorepopularthanbandyinmostofEuropeafter
hockeybecameanOlympicsport,butbandydidnot.AthletesinEuropewhohadplayedbandy,
switchedtoicehockeyinthe1920stobeabletocompeteintheOlympics.Ontheotherhand,
icehockeywasnotplayedatallinthe
SovietUnion
untilthe1950s.
MatthewsArena
inBoston,inusesince1910
Asthepopularityoficehockeyasaspectatorsportgrew,earlierrinkswerereplacedbylarger
rinks.MostoftheearlyindooricerinkshavebeendemolishedMontreal'sVictoriaRink,builtin
[37]
1862,wasdemolishedin1925.
Manyolderrinkssuccumbedtofire,suchas
Denman
Arena
,
Dey'sArena
,
QuebecSkatingRink
and
MontrealArena
,ahazardofthebuildings'wood
construction.The
StannusStreetRink
inWindsor,NovaScotia(builtin1897)maybetheoldest
stillinexistencehowever,itisnolongerusedforicehockey.The
AberdeenPavilion
(builtin
1898)inOttawawasusedforicehockeyin1904andistheoldestexistingfacilitythathashosted
StanleyCupgames.
Theoldestindooricehockeyarenastillinusetodayforicehockeyis
Boston
's
MatthewsArena
,
whichwasbuiltin1910.Ithasbeenmodifiedextensivelyseveraltimesinitshistoryandisused
todayby
NortheasternUniversity
foricehockeyandothersports.Itwastheoriginalhomerinkof
[38]
the
BostonBruins
professionalteam,
itselftheoldestUnitedStatesbasedteamintheNHL,
startingplayintheleagueintoday'sMatthewsArenaonDecember1,1924.
MadisonSquare
[39]
Garden
inNewYorkCity,builtin1968,istheoldestcontinuouslyoperatingarenaintheNHL.
Professionalera
[
edit
]
OxfordUniversityvs.Switzerland,1922futureCanadianprimeminister
LesterPearson
isat
rightfront
Professionalhockeyhasexistedsincetheearly20thcentury.By1902,the
Western
PennsylvaniaHockeyLeague
wasthefirsttoemployprofessionals.Theleaguejoinedwith
teamsinMichiganandOntariotoformthefirstfullyprofessionalleaguethe
International
ProfessionalHockeyLeague
(IPHL)in1904.TheWPHLandIPHLhiredplayersfrom
Canadainresponse,Canadianleaguesbegantopayplayers(whoplayedwithamateurs).
TheIPHL,cutofffromitslargestsourceofplayers,disbandedin1907.Bythen,several
professionalhockeyleagueswereoperatinginCanada(withleaguesinManitoba,Ontario
andQuebec).
In1910,the
NationalHockeyAssociation
(NHA)wasformedinMontreal.TheNHAwould
furtherrefinetherules:droppingtheroverposition,dividingthegameintothree20minute
periodsandintroducingminorandmajorpenalties.AfterreorganizingastheNational
HockeyLeague(NHL)in1917,theleagueexpandedintotheUnitedStates,startingwiththe
BostonBruinsin1924.
ProfessionalhockeyleaguesdevelopedlaterinEurope,sincebandywasstillpopular,but
amateurleaguesleadingtonationalchampionshipswereinplace.Oneofthefirstwasthe
Swiss
NationalLeagueA
,foundedin1916.Today,professionalleagueshavebeen
introducedinmostcountriesofEurope.TopEuropeanleaguesincludethe
Kontinental
HockeyLeague
,the
CzechExtraliga
,theFinnish
Liiga
andthe
SwedishHockeyLeague
.
Game
[
edit
]

Typicallayoutofanicehockeyrinksurface
Whilethegeneralcharacteristicsofthegamestaythesamewhereveritisplayed,theexactrules
dependontheparticular
codeofplay
beingused.Thetwomostimportantcodesarethoseofthe
[41]
IIHFandtheNHL.
Bothofthecodes,andothers,originatedfromCanadianrulesoficehockey
oftheearly20thCentury.
Icehockeyisplayedona
hockeyrink
.Duringnormalplay,therearesixplayerspersideon
theiceatanytime,oneofthembeingthegoaltender,eachofwhomisoniceskates.The
objectiveofthegameistoscore
goals
byshootingahard
vulcanized
rubberdisc,the
puck
,
intotheopponent'sgoalnet,whichisplacedattheoppositeendoftherink.Theplayersuse
theirstickstopassorshootthepuck.
Withincertainrestrictions,playersmayredirectthepuckwithanypartoftheirbody.Players
maynotholdthepuckintheirhandandareprohibitedfromusingtheirhandstopassthe
pucktotheirteammates,unlesstheyareinthedefensivezone.Playersarealsoprohibited
fromkickingthepuckintotheopponent'sgoal,thoughintentionalredirectionsofftheskate
arepermitted.Playersmaynotintentionallybatthepuckintothenetwiththeirhands.
Hockeyisan"
offside
"game,meaningthatforwardpassesareallowed,unlikeinrugby.Before
the1930shockeywasanonsidegame,meaningthatonlybackwardpasseswereallowed.
Thoserulesfavouredindividualstickhandlingasakeymeansofdrivingthepuckforward.With
thearrivalofoffsiderules,theforwardpasstransformedhockeyintoatrulyteamsport,where
individualperformancediminishedinimportancerelativetoteamplay,whichcouldnowbe
[42]
coordinatedovertheentiresurfaceoftheiceasopposedtomerelyrearwardplayers.
Betweenthefiveplayersontheice,theyaretypicallydividedintothreeforwardsandtwo
defensemen.The
forward
positionsconsistofa
centre
andtwo
wingers:
a
leftwing
anda
rightwing
.Forwardsoftenplaytogetherasunitsor
lines
,withthesamethreeforwards
alwaysplayingtogether.The
defencemen
usuallystaytogetherasapairgenerallydivided
betweenleftandright.Leftandrightsidewingersordefencemenaregenerallypositionedas
such,basedonthesideonwhichtheycarrytheirstick.Asubstitutionofanentireunitat
onceiscalleda
linechange.
Teamstypicallyemployalternatesetsofforwardlinesand
defensivepairingswhen
shorthanded
orona
powerplay.
Substitutionsarepermittedatany
timeduringthegame,althoughduringastoppageofplaythehometeamispermittedthe
finalchange.Whenplayersaresubstitutedduringplay,itiscalledchanging
onthefly
.Anew
NHLruleaddedinthe20052006seasonpreventsateamfromchangingtheirlineafter
they
ice
thepuck.
Theboardssurroundingtheicehelpkeepthepuckinplayandtheycanalsobeusedas
toolstoplaythepuck.Playersarepermittedto"
bodycheck
"opponentsintotheboardsasa
meansofstoppingprogress.Thereferees,linesmenandtheoutsidesofthegoalare"in
play"anddonotcauseastoppageofthegamewhenthepuckorplayersareinfluenced(by
eitherbouncingorcolliding)intothem.Playcanbestoppedifthegoalisknockedoutof
position.Playoftenproceedsforminuteswithoutinterruption.Whenplayisstopped,itis
restartedwitha"
faceoff
".Twoplayers"face"eachotherandanofficialdropsthepucktothe
ice,wherethetwoplayersattempttogaincontrolofthepuck.Markingsontheiceindicate
thelocationsforthefaceoffandguidethepositioningofplayers.
Thethreemajorrulesofplayinicehockeythatlimitthemovementofthepuck:"offside",
"icing",andthepuckgoingoutofplay.Aplayeris"offside"ifheentershis
opponent'szone
beforethepuckitself.Undermanysituations,aplayermaynot"icethepuck",shootthe
puckallthewayacrossboththecentrelineandtheopponent'sgoalline.Thepuckgoes"out
ofplay"wheneveritgoespasttheperimeteroftheicerink(ontotheplayerbenches,over
the"glass,"orontotheprotectivenettingabovetheglass)andastoppageofplayiscalled
bytheofficialsusingwhistles.Italsodoesnotmatterifthepuckcomesbackontotheice
surfacefromthoseareasasthepuckisconsidereddeadonceitleavestheperimeterofthe
rink.
UnderIIHFrules,eachteammaycarryamaximumof20playersandtwogoaltenderson
theirroster.NHLrulesrestrictthetotalnumberofplayerspergameto18,plustwo
goaltenders.IntheNHL,theplayersareusuallydividedintofourlinesofthreeforwards,and
intothreepairsofdefenceman.Onoccasion,teamsmayelecttosubstituteanextra
defencemanforaforwardthisseventhdefencemanmightsometimesplayonthe
fourthline
asaforward.
Periodsandovertime
[
edit
]
Aprofessionalgameconsistsofthree
periods
oftwentyminutes,theclockrunningonly
whenthepuckisinplay.Theteamschangeendsforthesecondperiod,againforthethird
period,andagainatthestartofeachovertimeplayed(playoffsonlysameendsastheodd
periodsotherwise).Recreationalleaguesandchildren'sleaguesoftenplayshortergames,
generallywiththreeshorterperiodsofplay.
Variousproceduresareusedifagameistied.Intournamentplay,aswellasintheNHL
playoffs,NorthAmericansfavour
suddendeatho
vertime,
inwhichtheteamscontinueto
playtwentyminuteperiodsuntilagoalisscored.Upuntilthe19992000seasonregular
seasonNHLgamesweresettledwithasinglefiveminutesuddendeathperiodwithfive
players(plusagoalie)perside,withbothteamsawardedonepointinthestandingsinthe
eventofatie.Withagoal,thewinningteamwouldbeawardedtwopointsandthelosing
teamnone(justasiftheyhadlostinregulation).
From19992000until200304,theNationalHockeyLeaguedecidedtiesbyplayingasingle
fiveminutesuddendeathovertimeperiodwitheachteamhavingfourplayers(plusagoalie)per
sideto"openup"thegame.Intheeventofatie,eachteamwouldstillreceiveonepointinthe
standingsbutintheeventofavictorythewinningteamwouldbeawardedtwopointsinthe
standingsandthelosingteamonepoint.Theideawastodiscourageteamsfromplayingfora
tie,sincepreviouslysometeamsmighthavepreferredatieand1pointtoriskingalossandzero
points.Theonlyexceptiontothisruleisifateamoptstopulltheirgoalieinexchangeforanextra
skaterduringovertimeandissubsequentlyscoredupon(an'emptynet'goal),inwhichcasethe
losingteamreceivesnopointsfortheovertimeloss.Startinginthe201516season,thesingle
[43]
fiveminutesuddendeathovertimesessionwillconsistofthreeplayersplusagoalie.
InternationalplayandseveralNorthAmericanprofessionalleagues,includingtheNHL(in
theregularseason),nowuseanovertimeperiodidenticaltothatfrom99000304
followedbya
penaltyshootout
.Ifthescoreremainstiedafteranextraovertimeperiod,the
subsequentshootoutconsistsofthreeplayersfromeachteamtakingpenaltyshots.After
thesesixtotalshots,theteamwiththemostgoalsisawardedthevictory.Ifthescoreisstill
tied,theshootoutthenproceedstoa
suddendeath
format.Regardlessofthenumberof
goalsscoredduringtheshootoutbyeitherteam,thefinalscorerecordedwillawardthe
winningteamonemoregoalthanthescoreattheendofregulationtime.IntheNHLifa
gameisdecidedinovertimeorbyashootoutthewinningteamisawardedtwopointsinthe
standingsandthelosingteamisawardedonepoint.TiesnolongeroccurintheNHL.
TheovertimemodefortheNHLplayoffsdifferfromtheregularseason.Intheplayoffsthere
arenoshootoutsnorties.Ifagameistiedafterregulationanadditional20minutesof5on5
suddendeathovertimewillbeadded.Incaseofatiedgameaftertheovertime,multiple
20minuteovertimeswillbeplayeduntilateamscores,whichwinsthemthematch.
Penalties
Altercationsoftenoccurnearthegoalafterastoppageofplay,sincedefensiveplayersare
highlyconcernedwithprotectingtheir
goaltender
.
Inicehockey,infractionsoftherulesleadtoplaystoppageswherebytheplayisrestartedat
afaceoff.Someinfractionsresultintheimpositionofa
penalty
toaplayerorteam.Inthe
simplestcase,theoffendingplayerissenttothe"
penaltybox
"andtheirteamhastoplay
withonefewerplayerontheiceforadesignatedamountoftime
Minor
penaltieslastfortwo
minutes,
major
penaltieslastforfiveminutes,anda
doubleminorp
enaltyistwo
consecutive
penaltiesoftwominutesduration.Asingleminorpenaltymaybeextendedbyafurthertwo
minutesforcausingvisibleinjurytothevictimizedplayer.Thisisusuallywhenbloodis
drawnduringhighsticking.Playersmaybealsoassessedpersonalextendedpenaltiesor
gameexpulsionsformisconductinadditiontothepenaltyorpenaltiestheirteammustserve.
Theteamthathasbeengivenapenaltyissaidtobeplaying"shorthanded"whilethe
opposingteamisona"
powerplay
."
Atwominuteminorpenaltyisoftenchargedforlesserinfractionssuchas"
tripping
","
elbowing
",
"
roughing
","
highsticking
","
delayofthegame
","
toomanyplayersontheice
","
boarding
",illegal
equipment,"
charging
"(leapingintoanopponentorbodycheckinghimaftertakingmorethantwo
strides),"holding",holdingthestick(grabbinganopponent'sstick),"interference","
hooking
",
"
slashing
","kneeing","unsportsmanlikeconduct"(arguingapenaltycallwithreferee,extremely
vulgarorinappropriateverbalcomments),"buttending"(strikinganopponentwiththeknobof
thestickaveryrarepenalty),"spearing",or"
crosschecking
".Asofthe20052006season,a
minorpenaltyisalsoassessedfor"
diving
",whereaplayerembellishesorsimulatesanoffence.
Moreegregiousfoulsmaybepenalizedbyafourminutedoubleminorpenalty,particularlythose
thatinjurethevictimizedplayer.Thesepenaltiesendeitherwhenthetimerunsoutorwhenthe
otherteamscoresduringthepowerplay.Inthecaseofagoalscoredduringthefirsttwominutes
ofadoubleminor,thepenaltyclockissetdowntotwominutesuponascore,effectivelyexpiring
thefirstminorpenalty.Fiveminutemajorpenaltiesarecalledforespeciallyviolentinstancesof
mostminorinfractionsthatresultinintentionalinjurytoanopponent,orwhena"minor"penalty
resultsinvisibleinjury(suchasbleeding),aswellasforfighting.Majorpenaltiesarealways
servedinfulltheydonotterminateonagoalscoredbytheotherteam.Majorpenalties
assessedforfightingaretypicallyoffsetting,meaningneitherteamisshorthandedandthe
playersexitthepenaltyboxuponastoppageofplayfollowingtheexpirationoftheirrespective
penalties.Thefoulof"boarding"(definedas"check[ing]anopponentinsuchamannerthat
[44]
causestheopponenttobethrownviolentlyintheboards")
ispenalizedeitherbyaminoror
majorpenaltyatthediscretionofthereferee,basedontheviolentstateofthehit.Aminoror
majorpenaltyforboardingisoftenassessedwhenaplayerchecksanopponentfrombehindand
intotheboards.
Somevarietiesofpenaltiesdonotalwaysrequiretheoffendingteamtoplayamanshort.
ConcurrentfiveminutemajorpenaltiesintheNHLusuallyresultfromfighting.Inthecaseof
twoplayersbeingassessedfiveminutefightingmajors,boththeplayersservefiveminutes
withouttheirteamincurringalossofplayer(bothteamsstillhaveafullcomplementof
playersontheice).Thisdifferswithtwoplayersfromopposingsidesgettingminorpenalties,
atthesametimeoratanyintersectingmoment,resultingfrommorecommoninfractions.In
thiscase,bothteamswillhaveonlyfourskatingplayers(notcountingthegoaltender)until
oneorbothpenaltiesexpire(ifonepenaltyexpiresbeforetheother,theopposingteamgets
apowerplayfortheremainderofthetime)thisappliesregardlessofcurrentpending
penalties.However,intheNHL,ateamalwayshasatleastthreeskatersontheice.Thus,
tenminute
misconduct
penaltiesareservedinfullbythepenalizedplayer,buthisteammay
immediatelysubstituteanotherplayerontheice
unless
aminorormajorpenaltyisassessed
inconjunctionwiththemisconduct(a
twoandten
or
fiveandten)
.Inthiscase,theteam
designatesanotherplayertoservetheminorormajorbothplayersgotothepenaltybox,
butonlythedesigneemaynotbereplaced,andheisreleasedupontheexpirationofthetwo
orfiveminutes,atwhichpointthetenminutemisconductbegins.Inaddition,
game
misconducts
areassessedfordeliberateintenttoinflictsevereinjuryonanopponent(atthe
officials'discretion),orforamajorpenaltyforastickinfractionorrepeatedmajorpenalties.
Theoffendingplayerisejectedfromthegameandmustimmediatelyleavetheplaying
surface(hedoesnotsitinthepenaltybox)meanwhile,ifanadditionalminorormajor
penaltyisassessed,adesignatedplayermustserveoutofthatsegmentofthepenaltyinthe
box(similartotheabovementioned"twoandten").Insomerarecases,aplayermay
receiveuptonineteenminutesinpenaltiesforonestringofplays.Thiscouldinvolve
receivingafourminutedoubleminorpenalty,gettinginafightwithanopposingplayerwho
retaliates,andthenreceivingagamemisconductafterthefight.Inthiscase,theplayeris
ejectedandtwoteammatesmustservethedoubleminorandmajorpenalties.
A"
penaltyshot
"isawardedtoaplayerwhentheillegalactionsofanotherplayerstopaclear
scoringopportunity,mostcommonlywhentheplayerisona"
breakaway
".Apenaltyshot
allowstheobstructedplayertopickupthepuckonthecentreredlineandattempttoscore
onthegoaliewithnootherplayersontheice,tocompensatefortheearliermissedscoring
opportunity.Apenaltyshotisalsoawardedforadefenderotherthanthegoaltender
coveringthepuckinthegoalcrease,agoaltenderintentionallydisplacinghisowngoalposts
duringabreakawaytoavoidagoal,adefenderintentionallydisplacinghisowngoalposts
whenthereislessthantwominutestoplayinregulationtimeoratanypointduringovertime,
oraplayerorcoachintentionallythrowingastickorotherobjectatthepuckorthepuck
carrierandthethrowingactiondisruptsashotorpassplay.

Anicehockeyrefereeisresponsibleforassessingmostpenaltiesduringagame.
Officialsalsostopplayforpuckmovementviolations,suchasusingone'shandstopassthe
puckintheoffensiveend,butnoplayersarepenalizedfortheseoffences.Thesole
exceptionsaredeliberatelyfallingonorgatheringthepucktothebody,carryingthepuckin
thehand,andshootingthepuckoutofplayinone'sdefensivezone(allpenalizedtwo
minutesfordelayofgame).
IntheNHL,auniquepenaltyappliestothegoalies.Thegoaliesnowareforbiddentoplay
thepuckinthe"corners"oftherinkneartheirownnet.Thiswillresultinatwominute
penaltyagainstthegoalie'steam.Theareaimmediatelybehindthenet(markedbytwored
linesoneithersideofthenet)istheonlyareabehindthenetwherethegoaliecanplaythe
puck.
Anadditionalrulethathasneverbeenapenalty,butwasaninfractionintheNHLbefore
recentruleschanges,isthe"
twolineoffsidepass
."Priortothe200506NHLseason,play
wasstoppedwhenapassfrominsideateam'sdefendingzonecrossedthecentreline,with
afaceoffheldinthedefendingzoneoftheoffendingteam.Now,thecentrelineisnolonger
usedintheNHLtodetermineatwolinepassinfraction,achangethattheIIHFhadadopted
in1998.Playersarenowabletopasstoteammateswhoaremorethantheblueandcentre
iceredlineaway.
TheNHLhastakenstepstospeedupthegameofhockeyandcreateagameoffinesse,by
retreatingfromthepastwhereillegalhits,fights,and"clutchingandgrabbing"among
playerswerecommonplace.Rulesarenowmorestrictlyenforced,resultinginmore
penalties,whichinturnprovidesmoreprotectiontotheplayersandfacilitatesmoregoals
beingscored.ThegoverningbodyforUnitedStatesamateurhockeyhasimplementedmany
newrulestoreducethenumberofstickonbodyoccurrences,aswellasotherdetrimental
andillegalfacetsofthegame("zerotolerance").
Inmen'shockey,butnotinwomen's,aplayermayusehishiporshouldertohitanother
playeriftheplayerhasthepuckoristhelasttohavetouchedit.Thisuseofthehipand
shoulderiscalled"
bodychecking
."Notallphysicalcontactislegalinparticular,hitsfrom
behind,hitstotheheadandmosttypesofforcefulstickonbodycontactareillegal.
A
delayedpenaltycall
occurswhenapenaltyoffenseiscommittedbytheteamthatdoesnot
havepossessionofthepuck.Inthiscircumstancetheteamwithpossessionofthepuckis
allowedtocompletetheplaythatis,playcontinuesuntilagoalisscored,aplayeronthe
opposingteamgainscontrolofthepuck,ortheteaminpossessioncommitsaninfractionor
penaltyoftheirown.Becausetheteamonwhichthepenaltywascalledcannotcontrolthepuck
withoutstoppingplay,itisimpossibleforthemtoscoreagoal.Inthesecasestheteamin
possessionofthepuckcanpullthegoalieforanextraattackerwithoutfearofbeingscoredon.
However,itispossibleforthecontrollingteamtomishandlethepuckintotheirownnet.Ifa
delayedpenaltyissignaledandtheteaminpossessionscores,thepenaltyisstillassessedto
theoffendingplayer,butnotserved.In2012,thisrulewaschangedbythe
NCAA
for
college
levelhockey
intheUnitedStates.Incollegegames,thepenaltyisstillenforcedeveniftheteam
[45]
inpossessionscores.
Officials
Atypicalgameofhockeyisgovernedbytwotofour
officials
ontheice,chargedwithenforcing
therulesofthegame.Therearetypicallytwo
linesmen
whoaremainlyresponsibleforcalling
[46]
"offside"and"
icing
"violations,breakingupfights,andconductingfaceoffs,
andoneortwo
[47]
referees
, whocallgoalsandallotherpenalties.Linesmencan,however,reporttothe
[48]
referee(s)thatapenaltyshouldbeassessedagainstanoffendingplayerinsomesituations.
Therestrictionsonthispracticevarydependingonthegoverningrules.Oniceofficialsare
assistedbyofficeofficialswhoactasgoaljudges,timekeepers,andofficialscorers.
Themostwidespreadsysteminusetodayisthe"threemansystem,"thatusesonereferee
andtwolinesmen.Anotherlesscommonlyusedsystemisthetworefereeandonelinesman
system.Thissystemisveryclosetotheregularthreemansystemexceptforafew
procedurechanges.WiththefirstbeingtheNationalHockeyLeague,anumberofleagues
havestartedtoimplementthe"fourofficialsystem,"whereanadditionalrefereeisaddedto
aidinthecallingofpenaltiesnormallydifficulttoassessbyonesinglereferee.Thesystemis
nowusedineveryNHLgame,at
IIHFWorldChampionships
,the
Olympics
andinmany
professionalandhighlevelamateurleaguesinNorthAmericaandEurope.
Officialsareselectedbytheleaguetheyworkfor.Amateurhockeyleaguesuseguidelines
establishedbynationalorganizingbodiesasabasisforchoosingtheirofficiatingstaffs.InNorth
America,thenationalorganizingbodies
HockeyCanada
and
USAHockey
approveofficials
accordingtotheirexperiencelevelaswellastheirabilitytopassrulesknowledgeandskating
[49]
abilitytests.HockeyCanadahasofficiatinglevelsIthroughVI.
USAHockeyhasofficiating
[50]
levels1through4.
Equipment
[
edit
]

Goaltendersusemoreprotectiveequipmentthanotherplayers.
Sinceicehockeyisafullcontactsportinmen'shockey,bodychecksareallowedsoinjuries
areacommonoccurrence.Protectiveequipmentismandatoryandisenforcedinall
competitivesituations.Thisincludesahelmet(cagewornifcertainage),shoulderpads,
elbowpads,mouthguard,protectivegloves,heavilypaddedshorts(alsoknownashockey
pants)oragirdle,athleticcup(alsoknownasajock,formalesandjill,forfemales),shin
pads,skates,and(optionally)aneckprotector.
Goaltenders
usedifferentequipment.With
hockeypucks
approachingthematspeedsofupto
100mphtheymustwearequipmentwithmoreprotection.Goaltenderswearspecialtygoalie
skates,(theseskatesarebuiltmoreformovementsidetosideratherthanforwardsand
backwards)ajockorjill,largelegpads,(therearesizerestrictionsincertainleagues)blocking
glove,catchingglove,achestprotector,agoaliemask,andalargejersey.Goaltender's
equipmenthascontinuallybecomelargerandlargerleadingtofewergoalsineachgameand
[51]
manyofficialrulechanges.
Icehockeyskatesareoptimizedforphysicalacceleration,speedandmaneuverability.This
includesrapidstarts,stops,turns,andchangesinskatingdirection.Inaddition,theymustbe
rigidandtoughtoprotecttheskater'sfeetfromcontactwithotherskaters,sticks,pucks,the
boards,andtheiceitself.Rigidityalsoimprovestheoverallmaneuverabilityoftheskate.
Bladelength,thickness(width),andcurvature(rocker/radius(fronttoback)andradiusof
hollow(acrossthebladewidth)arequitedifferentfromspeedorfigureskates.Hockey
playersusuallyadjusttheseparametersbasedontheirskilllevel,position,andbodytype.
Mostskate'swidthareaboutan1/8ofaninchthick.
The
icehockeystick
consistsofalong,relativelywide,andslightlycurvedflatblade,
attachedtoashaft.Thecurveitselfhasabigimpactonitsperformance.Adeepcurve
allowsforliftingthepuckeasierwhileashallowcurveallowsforeasierbackhands.Theflex
ofthestickalsoimpactstheperformance.Typically,alessflexiblestickismeantfora
strongerplayersincetheplayerislookingfortherightbalancedflexthatallowsthestickto
flexeasilywhilestillhavingastrong"whipback"whichsendsthepuckflyingathighspeeds.
Itisquitedistinctfromsticksinothersportsgamesandmostsuitedtohittingandcontrolling
theflatpuck.Itsuniqueshapecontributedtotheearlydevelopmentofthegame.
Injury
[
edit
]
Icehockeyisafullcontactsportandcarriesahighriskofinjury.Playersaremovingat
speedsaroundapproximately2030mphandquiteabitofthegamerevolvesaroundthe
physicalcontactbetweentheplayers.Skateblades,hockeysticks,shoulders,hips,and
hockeypucksallcontribute.Thetypesofinjuriesassociatedwithhockeyinclude:
lacerations,concussions,contusions,ligamenttears,brokenbones,hyperextensions,and
musclestrains.Women'sicehockeyplayerscanhavecontactbutarenotallowedtobody
check.Therearemanyinjuriesinwomen'sicehockeytoo.Somecommoninjuriesare
concussions,brokenbones,hyperextensions,andmusclestrains.
Headinjuries
[
edit
]
AccordingtotheHughstonHealthAlert,"Lacerationstothehead,scalp,andfacearethemost
frequenttypesofinjury[inhockey]."(Schmidt6)Evenashallowcuttotheheadresultsinaloss
ofalargeamountofblood.Notonlyarelacerationscommon,"itisestimatedthatdirecttrauma
accountsfor80%ofall[hockey]injuries.Mostoftheseinjuriesarecausedbyplayercontact,falls
andcontactwithapuck,highstickandoccasionally,askateblade."(Schmidt3)Oneofthe
causesofheadinjuryischeckingfrombehind.Duetothedangerofdeliveringacheckfrom
behind,manyleagues,includingtheNHLhavemadethisamajorandgamemisconductpenalty
(called"boarding").Anothertypeofcheckthataccountsformanyoftheplayertoplayercontact
concussionsisachecktotheheadresultinginamisconductpenalty(called"headcontact").A
checktotheheadcanbedefinedasdeliveringahitwhilethereceivingplayer'sheadisdown
andtheirwaistisbentandtheaggressoristargetingtheopponentplayer'shead.Themost
dangerousresultofaheadinjuryinhockeycanbeclassifiedasaconcussion.Mostconcussions
occurduringplayertoplayercontactratherthanwhenaplayerischeckedintotheboards.
Checkstotheheadhaveaccountedfornearly50%ofconcussionsthatplayersintheNational
HockeyLeaguehavesuffered.Concussionsthatplayerssuffermaygounreportedbecause
thereisnoobviousphysicalsignsifaplayerisnotknockedunconscious.Thiscanprovetobe
dangerousifaplayerdecidestoreturntoplaywithoutreceivingpropermedicalattention.Studies
[52]
showthat,icehockeycauses44.3%ofalltraumaticbraininjuriesamongCanadiankids.
In
severecases,thetraumaticbraininjuriesarecapableofresultingindeath.Occurrencesofdeath
fromtheseinjuriesarerare,butoccuralltoomuchinavarietyofsports.
Tactics
[
edit
]

Winningthe
faceoff
canbethekeytosomestrategies.Agamebetween
Saginaw
and
Plymouth
's
OntarioHockeyLeague
teams.
Checking
Animportantdefensivetacticischeckingattemptingtotakethepuckfromanopponentor
toremovetheopponentfromplay.
Stickchecking,
sweepchecking,
and
pokechecking
are
legalusesofthesticktoobtainpossessionofthepuck.The
neutralzonetrap
isdesignedto
isolatethepuckcarrierintheneutralzonepreventinghimfromenteringtheoffensivezone.
Bodychecking
isusingone'sshoulderorhiptostrikeanopponentwhohasthepuckorwho
isthelasttohavetouchedit(thelastpersontohavetouchedthepuckisstilllegally"in
possession"ofit,althoughapenaltyisgenerallycalledifheischeckedmorethantwo
secondsafterhislasttouch).Oftenthetermcheckingisusedtorefertobodychecking,with
itstruedefinitiongenerallyonlypropagatedamongfansofthegame.
Offensivetactics
[
edit
]
PeterBondra
ofthe
AtlantaThrashers
shootsthepuck
andscoresagainst
RobertoLuongo
ofthe
FloridaPanthers
duringthe
200506NHLseason
Offensivetacticsincludeimprovingateam'spositionontheicebyadvancingthepuckoutof
one'szonetowardstheopponent'szone,progressivelybygaininglines,firstyourownblue
line,thentheredlineandfinallytheopponent'sblueline.
NHLrules
instatedforthe2006
seasonredefinedtheoffsideruletomakethetwolinepasslegalaplayermaypassthe
puckfrombehindhisownblueline,pastboththatbluelineandthecentreredline,toa
playeronthenearsideoftheopponents'blueline.Offensivetacticsaredesignedultimately
toscoreagoalbytakingashot.Whenaplayerpurposelydirectsthepucktowardsthe
opponent'sgoal,heorsheissaidto"shoot"thepuck.
A
deflection
isashotthatredirectsashotorapasstowardsthegoalfromanotherplayer,by
allowingthepucktostrikethestickandcaromtowardsthegoal.A
onetimer
isashotstruck
directlyoffapass,withoutreceivingthepassandshootingintwoseparate
actions.
Headmanningthepuck,
alsoknownas
breakingout
,isthetacticofrapidlypassing
totheplayerfarthestdowntheice.
Loafing,
alsoknownas
cherrypicking,
iswhenaplayer,
usuallyaforward,skatesbehindanattackingteam,insteadofplayingdefense,inanattempt
tocreateaneasyscoringchance.
Ateamthatislosingbyoneortwogoalsinthelastfewminutesofplaywilloftenelectto
pull
thegoalie
thatis,removethegoaltenderandreplacehimorherwithan
extraattacker
on
theiceinthehopeofgainingenoughadvantagetoscoreagoal.However,itisanactof
desperation,asitsometimesleadstotheopposingteamextendingtheirleadbyscoringa
goalintheemptynet.
Oneofthemostimportantstrategiesforateamistheir
forecheck
.Forecheckingistheactof
attackingtheoppositionintheirdefensivezone.Forecheckingisanimportantpartofthe
dumpandchase
strategy(i.e.shootingthepuckintotheoffensivezoneandthenchasing
afterit).Eachteamwillusetheirownuniquesystembutthemainonesare:
212
,122,
and14.The212isthemostbasicforechecksystemwheretwoforwardswillgoindeep
andpressuretheopposition'sdefencemen,thethirdforwardstayshighandthetwo
defencemenstayattheblueline.The122isabitmoreconservativesystemwhereone
forwardpressuresthepuckcarrierandtheothertwoforwardscovertheoppositions'
wingers,withthetwodefencemenstayingattheblueline.The14isthemostdefensive
forechecksystem,referredtoastheneutralzonetrap,whereoneforwardwillapply
pressuretothepuckcarrieraroundtheoppositions'bluelineandtheother4playersstand
basicallyinalinebytheirbluelineinhopestheoppositionwillskateintooneofthem.
Anotherstrategyisthe
leftwinglock
,whichhastwoforwardspressurethepuckandtheleft
wingandthetwodefencemenstayattheblueline.
Therearemanyotherlittletacticsusedinthegameofhockey.
Cycling
movesthepuck
alongtheboardsintheoffensivezonetocreatea
scoringchance
bymakingdefenderstired
ormovingthemoutofposition.
Pinching
iswhenadefencemenpressurestheopposition's
wingerintheoffensivezonewhentheyarebreakingout,attemptingtostoptheirattackand
keepthepuckintheoffensivezone.A
saucerpass
isapassusedwhenanopposition's
stickorbodyisinthepassinglane.Itistheactofraisingthepuckovertheobstructionand
havingitlandonateammate'sstick.
A
deke
,shortfor"decoy,"isa
feint
withthebodyorsticktofooladefenderorthegoalie.
Manymodernplayers,suchas
PavelDatsyuk
,
SidneyCrosby
and
PatrickKane
,have
pickeduptheskillof"dangling,"whichisfancierdekingandrequiresmorestickhandling
skills.
Fights
Althoughfightingisofficiallyprohibitedintherules,itisbothatargetofcriticismanda
considerabledrawforthesport.AttheprofessionallevelinNorthAmericafightsareunofficially
condoned.
Enforcers
andotherplayersfighttodemoralizetheopposingplayerswhileexciting
theirown,aswellassettlingpersonalscores.Afightwillalsobreakoutifoneoftheteam's
skilledplayersgetshithardorsomeonegetshitbywhattheteamperceivesasadirtyhit.The
amateurgamepenalizesfisticuffsmoreharshly,asaplayerwhoreceivesafightingmajorisalso
assessedatleasta10minutemisconductpenalty(NCAAandsomeJuniorleagues)oragame
misconductpenaltyand
suspension
(highschoolandyounger,aswellassomecasualadult
[53]
[54]
leagues).
Crowdsseemtolikefightinginicehockeyandcheerwhenfightingerupts.
Women'sicehockey
[
edit
]
Drawingofafemaleicehockeyplayer,from
Hockey:Canada'sRoyalWinterGame(
1899)
Icehockeyisoneofthefastestgrowingwomen'ssportsintheworld,withthenumberof
[55]
participantsincreasing350percentinthelast10years.
In2011,Canadahad85,827women
[56]
[57]
[58]
[59]
players,
UnitedStateshad65,609,
Finland4,760,
Sweden3,075
andSwitzerland
[60]
1,172. Whiletherearenotasmanyorganizedleaguesforwomenasthereareformen,there
existleaguesofalllevels,includingthe
CanadianWomen'sHockeyLeague
,
WesternWomen's
HockeyLeague
,
MidAtlanticWomen'sHockeyLeague
,andvariousEuropeanleaguesaswell
asuniversityteams,nationalandOlympicteams,and
recreational
teams.TheIIHFholdsa
IIHF
[61]
WorldWomen'sChampionship
tournamentannuallyexceptinOlympicyears.
Awomen'sicehockeyteamin1921
Thechiefdifferencebetweenwomen'sandmen'shockeyisthatbodycheckingisnotallowedin
women'shockey.Afterthe1990Women'sWorldChampionship,bodycheckingwaseliminated
inwomen'shockey.IncurrentIIHFwomen'scompetition,bodycheckingiseitheraminoror
[62]
major
penalty
,decidedatthereferee'sdiscretion.
Inaddition,playersinwomen'scompetition
[62]
arerequiredtowearprotectivefull
facemasks
.
InCanada,tosomeextent
ringette
servesasthefemalecounterparttoicehockey,inthe
sensethatinmanyfamilies,theboysplayhockeywhilethegirlsplayringette.
History
Womenareknowntohaveplayedthegameinthe19thcentury.Severalgameswere
recordedinthe1890sin
Ottawa
,Canada.ThewomenofLordStanley'sfamilywereknown
toparticipateinthegameoficehockeyontheoutdooricerinkat
RideauHall
,theresidence
ofCanada'sGovernorGeneral.
Thegamedevelopedatfirstwithoutanorganizingbody.Atournamentin1902between
MontrealandTroisRiviereswasbilledasthefirstchampionshiptournament.Several
tournaments,suchasattheBanffWinterCarnival,wereheldintheearly20thCenturyand
numerouswomen'steamssuchastheSeattleVampsandVancouverAmazonsexisted.
Organizationsstartedtodevelopinthe1920s,suchastheLadiesOntarioHockey
Association,andlater,theDominionWomen'sAmateurHockeyAssociation.Startinginthe
1960s,thegamespreadtouniversities.Today,thegameisplayedfromyouththroughadult
leagues,andintheuniversitiesofNorthAmericaandinternationally.Therearetwomajor
women'shockeyleagues,the
NationalWomen'sHockeyLeague
withteamsintheUnited
Stateswhichisaprofessionalleagueandthe
CanadianWomen'sHockeyLeague
with
teamsinCanadaandtheUnitedStates,whichissemiprofessionalandisdevelopingtoward
becomingafullyprofessionalleague.
Thefirstwomen'sworldchampionshiptournament,albeitunofficial,washeldin1987in
Toronto
,
Canada.ThiswasfollowedbythefirstIIHFWorldChampionshipin1990inOttawa.Women'sice
hockeywasaddedasamedalsportatthe
1998WinterOlympics
in
Nagano,Japan
.TheUnited
[63]
Stateswonthegold,CanadawonthesilverandFinlandwonthebronzemedal.
The
UnitedStatesHockeyLeague
(USHL)welcomedthefirstfemaleprofessionalhockeyplayer
in196970,whentheMarquetteIronRangerssigned
KarenKoch
.[64]
Onewoman,
Manon
Rhaume
,hasplayedintheNHL,asagoaltenderforthe
TampaBayLightning
inpreseason
gamesagainstthe
St.LouisBlues
andtheBostonBruins.In2003,
HayleyWickenheiser
played
withthe
Kirkkonummi
Salamat
intheFinnishmen's
Suomisarja
league.Severalwomenhave
competedinNorthAmericanminorleagues,includingRhaume,goaltenders
KellyDyer
andErin
Whittenanddefenceman
AngelaRuggiero
.
Leaguesandchampionships
[
edit
]
Nationalteams
[
edit
]

FinlandvsRussiainthe
WinterOlympics2006inTurin
.
Icehockey
hasbeenplayedatthe
WinterOlympics
since1924(andwasplayedatthe
summergamesin1920
).Canadawonsixofthefirstseven
goldmedals
to
1952
,the
exceptionoccurringin
1936
whenGreatBritainwon.The
USSR
wonallbuttwogoldmedals
from
1956
to
1988
aswellasafinaltimeasthe
UnifiedTeam
atthe
1992Albertville
Olympics
.TheUnitedStateswontheirfirstgoldmedalin
1960
.Onthewaytowinningthe
goldmedalatthe
1980LakePlacidOlympics
amateurUScollegeplayersdefeatedthe
heavilyfavouredSovietsquadaneventknownasthe"
MiracleonIce
"intheUnitedStates.
Restrictionsonprofessionalplayerswerefullydroppedatthe1998gamesinNagano.The
GamessawthefullparticipationofplayersfromtheNHL,whichsuspendedoperations
duringtheGamesandhasdonesoinsubsequentGames.The
2010gamesinVancouver
werethefirstplayedinanNHLcitysincetheinclusionofNHLplayers.The2010games
werethefirstplayedonNHLsizedicerinks,whicharenarrowerthantheIIHFstandard.
IceHockeyWorldChampionships2010
inGermany
NationalteamsrepresentingthememberfederationsoftheIIHFcompeteannuallyinthe
IIHFIceHockeyWorldChampionships.Teamsareselectedfromtheavailableplayersby
theindividualfederations,withoutrestrictiononamateurorprofessionalstatus.Sinceitis
heldinthespring,thetournamentcoincideswiththeannualNHL
StanleyCupplayoffs
and
manyofthetopplayersarehencenotavailabletoparticipateinthetournament.Manyofthe
NHLplayerswhodoplayintheIIHFtournamentcomefromteamseliminatedbeforethe
playoffsorinthefirstround,andfederationsoftenholdopenspotsuntilthetournamentto
allowforplayerstojointhetournamentaftertheirclubteamiseliminated.Formanyyears,
thetournamentwasanamateuronlytournament,butthisrestrictionwasremoved,
beginninginthe1970s.Playersarenotpaidtoplayinthetournament,butinsuranceand
expensesarecoveredfromthetournamentrevenues.
The
1972SummitSeries
and
1974SummitSeries
,twoseriespittingthebestCanadianand
Soviet
playerswithoutIIHFrestrictionsweremajorsuccesses,andestablishedarivalry
betweenCanadaandtheUSSR.Inthespiritofbestversusbestwithoutrestrictionson
amateurorprofessionalstatus,theserieswerefollowedbyfive
CanadaCup
tournaments,
playedinNorthAmerica.TwoNHLversusUSSRserieswerealsoheld:the1979Challenge
Cupand
Rendezvous'87
.TheCanadaCuptournamentlaterbecamethe
WorldCupof
Hockey
,playedin1996and2004.TheUnitedStateswonin1996andCanadawonin2004.
[61]
Sincetheinitialwomen'sworldchampionshipsin1990,therehavebeenfifteentournaments.
[63]
Women'shockeyhasbeenplayedattheOlympicssince1998. The
2006WinterOlympicfinal
betweenCanadaandSwedenmarkedtheonlytimethewomen'sworldchampionshipor
OlympicfinaldidnotinvolvebothCanadaandtheUnitedStates.
Othericehockeytournamentsfeaturingnationalteamsincludethe
WorldU20
Championship
,the
WorldU18Championships
,the
WorldU17HockeyChallenge
,the
World
JuniorAChallenge
,the
IvanHlinkaMemorialTournament
,the
WorldWomen'sU18
Championships
andthe
4NationsCup
.Theannual
EuroHockeyTour
,anunofficial
Europeanchampionshipbetweenthenationalmen'steamsofthe
CzechRepublic
,
Finland
,
Russia
and
Sweden
havebeenplayedsince199697.
Internationalleagues
[
edit
]
KHL
match
TheNationalHockeyLeagueandspecificallytheStanleyCuptrophy,istheoldeststill
operatinginternationalcompetition,featuringclubsfromtheUnitedStatesandCanada.The
leaguehas30teams,seveninCanadaandtwentythreeintheUnitedStates.
TheKontinentalHockeyLeague(KHL)isanicehockeyleaguein
Eurasia
.Theleagueisthe
successortothe
RussianSuperLeague
andthe
SovietLeague
,thehistoryofwhichdates
backtothe1940s.TheKHLwas
launchedin2008
withclubsfromthe
postSovietstates
.
TheleagueexpandedbeyondtheformerSovietcountries,beginninginthe
201112season
,
withclubsinCroatia,theCzechRepublicandSlovakia.Thenumberofteamshassince
increasedto28fromeightdifferentcountries.
The
AsiaLeagueIceHockey
,aninternationalicehockeyleaguefeaturingclubsfromChina,
JapanandSouthKorea,isthesuccessortothe
JapanIceHockeyLeague
.
The
AustrianHockeyLeague
,calledtheErsteBankEishockeyLiga(English:ErsteBank
HockeyLeague)forsponsorshipreasons,isthehighestlevelicehockeyleagueinAustria.
TherootsoftheEBELleaguegobackto1923andchangedtoitscurrentformin1965.
Startinginthe2005/06season,nonAustrianteamswereinvitedtocompeteforthe"EBEL
Champion"title.TheleaguehassubsequentlyaddedclubsfromSlovenia,Hungaryandthe
CzechRepublic,reachingtwelveteamsin2012.
Beginninginthe201415season,the
ChampionsHockeyLeague
waslaunched,aleague
consistingoffirsttierteamsfromseveralEuropeancountries,runningparallellywiththe
teamsdomesticleagues.
Therearealsoseveralannualtournamentsforclubs,heldoutsideofleagueplay.
Preseason
tournamentsincludethe
EuropeanTrophy
,
TampereCup
andthe
PajulahtiCup
.
Oneoftheoldestinternationalicehockeycompetitionforclubsisthe
SpenglerCup
,held
everyyearin
Davos
,Switzerland,betweenChristmasandNewYear'sDay.Itwasfirst
awardedin1923totheOxfordUniversityIceHockeyClub.The
MemorialCup
,acompetition
forjuniorlevel(age20andunder)clubsisheldannuallyfromapoolofjuniorchampionship
teamsinCanadaandtheUnitedStates.
InternationalclubcompetitionsorganizedbytheIIHFincludethe
ContinentalCup
,the
VictoriaCup
andtheEuropeanWomen'sChampionsCup.The
WorldJuniorClubCup
isan
annualtournamentof
junioricehockey
clubsrepresentingeachofthetopjuniorleagues.
Leagues
SeveralcountriesinEuropehavetheirowntopprofessionalseniorleagues.Manyfuture
KHLandNHLplayersstarttheirprofessionalcareersintheseleagues.
Country
League
Notes
CzechRepublic
CzechExtraliga
Denmark
MetalLigaen
Finland
Liiga
KnownasSMLiiga
until2013
France
LigueMagnus
Germany
DeutscheEishockeyLiga
Italy
Elite.A
KnownasSerieAuntil
2013
Norway
GETligaen
Slovakia
SlovakExtraliga
Sweden
SwedishHockeyLeague
KnownasElitserien
until2013
Switzerland
NationalLeagueA
Ukraine
ProfessionalHockeyLeague
Successorto
Ukrainian
HockeyChampionship
UnitedKingdom
EliteIceHockeyLeague
Teamsinallofthe
homenations
:England,
Wales,Scotlandand
NorthernIreland
[65]
InNorthAmerica,the
AmericanHockeyLeague
(AHL),sometimesreferredtoas"TheA,"
is
theprimarydevelopmentalprofessionalleagueforplayersaspiringtoentertheNHL.It
comprises30teamsfromtheUnitedStatesandCanada.Itisrunasa"farmleague"totheNHL,
withthevastmajorityofAHLplayersundercontracttoanNHLteam.The
ECHL
(calledtheEast
CoastHockeyLeaguebeforethe200304season)isamidlevelminorleagueintheUnited
StateswithafewplayersundercontracttoNHLorAHLteams.The
SouthernProfessional
HockeyLeague
(SPHL)isadevelopmentalminorleagueintheUnitedStateswithnoNHL
affiliations.MostundraftedplayersgettheirstartintheECHLorSPHL.
The
AustralianIceHockeyLeague
and
NewZealandIceHockeyLeague
arerepresentedby
nineandfiveteamsrespectively.Asof2012,thetwotopteamsofthepreviousseasonfrom
eachleaguecompeteinthe
TransTasmanChampionsLeague
.
Severalcountrieshaveleaguesforplayersofjuniorage,undertheageof20.The
Canadian
HockeyLeague
isanumbrellaorganizationcomprisingthreemajorjuniorleagues:the
OntarioHockeyLeague
,the
WesternHockeyLeague
,andthe
QuebecMajorJuniorHockey
League
.ItattractsplayersfromCanada,theUnitedStatesandEurope.Therearealsojunior
leaguesintheUnitedStatesandRussia,andseveralofthenationalprofessionalleaguesin
Europealsohavedevelopmentalleagues.
Pondhockey
Pondhockeyisaformoficehockeyplayedgenerallyaspickuphockeyonlakes,pondsand
artificialoutdoorrinksduringthewinter.Pondhockeyiscommonlyreferredtoinhockeycircles
asshinny.Itsrulesdifferfromtraditionalhockeybecausethereisnohittingandverylittle
shooting,placingagreateremphasisonskating,puckhandlingandpassingabilities.Since2002,
the
WorldPondHockeyChampionship
hasbeenplayedonRoulstonLakein
PlasterRock
,New
[66]
Brunswick,Canada.
Since2006,the
U.S.PondHockeyChampionships
havebeenplayedin
Minneapolis,Minnesota,andthe
CanadianNationalPondHockeyChampionships
havebeen
playedinHuntsville,Ontario.
Icehockeyinpopularculture
Icehockeyisthe
officialwintersportofCanada
.Icehockey,partiallybecauseofits
popularityasamajorprofessionalsport,hasbeenasourceofinspirationfornumerousfilms,
televisionepisodesandsongsinNorthAmericanpopularculture.
Attendancerecords
TherecordforaStanleyCupplayoffgameis28,183,setonApril23,1996,atthe
Thunderdome
[67]
duringaTampaBayLightning
PhiladelphiaFlyers
game.
ArecordwassetonDecember11,2010,whenthe
UniversityofMichigan
's
men'sicehockey
team
facedcrossstaterival
MichiganState
inaneventbilledas"
TheBigChillattheBigHouse
."
Thegamewasplayedat
Michigan's(American)football
venue,
MichiganStadium
in
AnnArbor
,
withacapacityof109,901asofthe
2010footballseason
.WhenUMstoppedsalestothepublic
onMay6,2010,withplanstoreserveremainingticketsforstudents,over100,000ticketshad
[68]
beensoldfortheevent.
Ultimately,acrowdannouncedbyUMas113,411,thelargestinthe
stadium'shistory(includingfootball),sawthehomestandingWolverineswin50.
Guinness
WorldRecords
,usingacountofticketedfanswhoactuallyenteredthestadiuminsteadofUM's
[69]
[70]
figureofticketssold,announcedafinalfigureof104,173.
Therecordwasapproachedbutnotbrokenatthe
2014NHLWinterClassic
,whichalsoheld
atMichiganStadium,withthe
DetroitRedWings
asthehometeamandthe
TorontoMaple
Leafs
astheopposingteamwithanannouncedcrowdof105,491.
Numberofregisteredplayersbycountry
[
edit
]
Numberofregisteredhockeyplayers,includingmale,femaleandjunior,providedbythe
respectivecountries'federations.Notethatthislistonlyincludesthe36of74
IIHF
member
[71]
[72]
countrieswithmorethan1,000registeredplayersasofOctober2015.
Country
Players
%ofpopulation
721,204
2.012%
UnitedStates 533,172
0.166%
109,103
1.035%
99,172
0.069%
75,871
1.382%
60,089
0.612%
25,201
0.031%
23,296
0.284%
20,656
0.031%
19,287
0.015%
11,754
0.136%
11,518
0.213%
10,896
0.017%
6,629
0.128%
Canada
Czech
Republic
Russia
Finland
Sweden
Germany
Switzerland
France
Japan
Austria
Slovakia
United
Kingdom
Norway
6,181
0.014%
5,851
0.010%
Latvia
5,841
0.292%
Kazakhstan
4,892
0.028%
Belarus
4,851
0.051%
Hungary
4,622
0.047%
4,295
0.076%
4,264
0.018%
2,888
0.017%
2,575
0.007%
2,571
0.023%
2,207
0.004%
2,020
0.002%
1,631
0.023%
1,575
0.006%
1,403
0.048%
1,300
0.002%
NewZealand 1,277
0.028%
1,225
0.000%
Ukraine
Italy
Denmark
Australia
Netherlands
Poland
Belgium
SouthKorea
Mexico
HongKong
NorthKorea
Lithuania
Turkey
China
India
Romania
Argentina
1,104
0.000%
1,075
0.005%
1,010
0.002%
Agroupofboyspickingteamsforagameofshinny,
Sarnia,Ontario
,1908
Shinny
(also
shinney
,
pickuphockey
,
pondhockey
,or
"outdoorpuck"
)isaninformaltypeof
hockey
playedonice.Itisalsousedasanothertermfor
streethockey
.Therearenoformalrulesorspecific
positions,andgenerally,thereareno
goaltenders
.Thegoalareasateachendmaybemarkedbynets,
orsimplybyobjects,suchasstonesorblocksofsnow.Bodycheckingandliftingor
"roofing/reefing/raisingthepuck"(shootingthepuckorballsoitrisesabovetheice)areoftenforbidden
becausetheplayersarenotwearingprotectiveequipment.Shinnyisagamethatalllevelsofhockey
enthusiastscanplaybecauseitrequiresnorink,requiresnoskillsexceptabilitytoholdastickandatthe
veryleasttotrytotouchthepuckorballwhenitgoesby.Shinnymaybecompletelynoncompetitive
andrecreationalscoringirrelevantorcompetitiveandscoreskept.
Inhisbook
CountryonIce
,DougBeardsleyclaimsthatmostCanadianhockeyprofessionalplayershave
playedsomeformofshinnyintheiryouth.
Teamformation
[
edit
]
Thereisacommonritualforchoosingteams,whichhaseachplayer"throwing"theirhockeystickintoa
pileatcentreice,orthemiddleareabetweentwonets.Iftherearenotenoughpeopleontherinkwho
arenotplayinganorganizedgame,oneplayermayapproachanotherplayerandask,"Wannageta
gamegoin',bud?",orsimplytosshisownstickintothemiddle.Oncepeoplefollowsuitandenough
sticksareinthepile,someonedividesthepileintotwosmallerpiles,perhapsstrategicallyassigning
stickstoonesideoranother.Playersthenpickuptheirownsticks,theteamshavingbeenformed.If
therearetoomanyplayersforthesizeofplayingarea,threeteamsmaybecreated,withoneteam
waitingtoplaythewinner.Otherwise,thetwoteamscanputtheextraplayersonthe"bench,"allowing
forplayerstorestbetweenshifts.
Veryoftenteamsareformedwithintenttodividethegroupintoapproximatelyequallevelsofskills
amongtheplayers.Playersjoiningafterplayhasstartedareusuallytold"whichwaytheyaregoing"
(whichnettheyshouldshoottowards)baseduponthescoreofthegameandtheirskilllevel.Some
gamescontinueformanyhourswithavarietyofplayersparticipatingforaslongastheywant.
Historyandnameorigin
Shinny,generallybelievedtobeaprecursorto
icehockey
,wasinformalenoughinitsformativeyears
thatthepucksandstickswereoftenmakeshift.DuringtheGreatDepression,forexample,northernboys
usedtreebranchesorbroomhandlesassticks,atincan,apieceofwood,andevenafrozen
roadapple
(farmanimaldropping)asapuck.Anyobjectabouttherightsizemightserveasapuck.
Thenameisderivedfromthe
Scottish
game
shinty
andindeedshinnywasacommonnameforoneof
[2]
shinty'smanyregionalvariationsin
Scotland
.Shinny,aprimarily
Canadian
term,isusuallycalled
scrimmage
,
pickuphockey
,
dropinhockey
,or
RATHockey
inthe
UnitedStates
.
Institutionalizedusage
[
edit
]
Insomemunicipalitiesaroundtheworldwheretheclimatepermits,partofacity'staxesmaygotothe
formalsetupandmaintenanceofskatingrinksdesignedspecificallyforshinny.Insomecities,suchas
Montreal
Quebec
and
Edmonton
,
Alberta
,Canada,numerousrinksareerectedandaremaintainedby
[
citationneeded
]
civilservantsthroughoutthewinteraslongastheweatherallowstheirusagetocontinue.
TheCityof
Toronto
,
Ontario
,Canada,knownforbothitshockeyfanreputationandfreshwavesofnew
immigrants,hostsfreeorlowcostshinnysessionsandalsohasprogramsforadultstolearnhowto
shinnyoncityrinks.Theprograms,expandedin2011,includeparent/childshinnyandtwolevelsof
beginner,andaresupervisedbycitypaidcoaches.
Rollerhockey
isaformof
hockey
playedonadrysurfaceusingwheeledskates.Theterm
"RollerHockey"isoftenusedinterchangeablytorefertotwovariantformschieflydifferentiated
bythetypeofskatesandsticksused.Thereistraditional"
Rollerhockey
"(Quadhockey,Rink
hockey),playedwith
quadskates
,and"
Inlinehockey
",playedwith
inlineskates
.Combined,
rollerhockeyisplayedinnearly60countriesworldwide.Aminorvariantofrollerhockeyiscalled
skaterhockey
,playedonbothquadandinlineskates.
SimilaritiesanddifferencesbetweenQuadHockeyand
InlineHockey
[
edit
]
RollerHockeyisplayedonboth
Quadskates
and
Inlineskates
,havedifferentrulesand
equipment,andinvolvedifferenttypesofskatingbutsharethecategoryandnameofRoller
Hockey.Rollerhockey(Quad)isplayedusingtraditionalquadrollerskates,affordinggreater
maneuverabilitytotheplayerthisresultsingamesfilledwithfancyfootwork,tightmaneuvering,
andismoresimilartofootballorbasketball.Thestickismoreorlessthesameasin
bandy
and
shinty
.RollerHockey(Inline)bearscloseresemblancetoicehockeyandisplayedonInline
skates,usesanicehockeystickandincludesalotoffast"racingbackandforth"action.Inline
hockeygoaliesuseaglovecalledacatchertocatchshotsmadeongoal,andaflat,usually
square,mittcalledablockerwhichisusedtodeflectshotsongoal.TheQuadhockeygoalie
usesaflatbattingglovethatprovidesreboundcharacteristicswhenblockingashotongoal.
Quadhockey

RinkhockeyHardballhockeyHoqueiemPatins
Quadhockeyisavariationofrollerhockey.RollerHockeyistheoverarchingnamefora
rollersportthathasexistedlongbeforeinlineskateswere"reinvented"inthe70s(Theywere
actuallyinventedbeforequads,inthe1760s).RollerHockeyhasbeenplayedon
quadskates
,in
sixtycountriesworldwideandsohasmanynamesworldwide.Sometimesthesportiscalled
QuadHockey,
HqueiemPatins
(PT),
Rolhockey
(NL),
Rollhockey
(DE),InternationalStyle
Ballhockey,
RinkHockey
(FR),
HockeySuPista
(IT),
HoqueisobrePatins
(CA),
Hockey
sobrePatines
(ES),
Rulleskjtehockey
(DA),
Rullbandy
(S),
Rulluisuhoki
(ET)and
Hardball
hockey
(US)
,dependingonwhichregionoftheworlditisplayed.
Rollerhockey
wasa
demonstrationrollersportinthe
1992SummerOlympics
in
Barcelona
.
Inlinehockey
InlineHockeyisplayedoninlineskates
Inlinehockey
isavariationofrollerhockeyverysimilarto
icehockey
,fromwhichitisderived.It
isreferredtobymanynamesworldwide,including
BallHockey,
Inlinehockey
,RollerHockey,
Longstickhockey,Deckhockey,
Roadhockey
,
Streethockey
and
Skaterhockey
dependingonwhichregionoftheworldinwhichitisplayed.
Likeicehockey,Inlinehockeyisa
contactsport
thereforebodycheckingisn'tpenalized.Itis
similartoicehockeyinthatteamwork,skillandaggressivenessareneeded.Exceptingtheuseof
inlinerollerskatesinlieuoficeskates,theequipmentofinlinerollerhockeyissimilartothatof
icehockey.
Thegameisplayedbytwoteams,consistingoffourskatersandonegoalie,onadryrinkdivided
intotwohalvesbyacenterline,withonenetateachendoftherink.Whenplayedmore
informally,thegameoftentakesplaceonasmoothasphaltsurfaceoutdoors.Thegameis
playedinthree15minuteperiodsorifitishigherstandardit'splayed20minutesineachofthe
threeperiods.Thegamerulesdifferfromicehockeyinafewsimpleways:thereisnoicingandit
isplayedina4on4playerformatinsteadof5on5.
Generallyspeaking,onlycompetitivelevel
Inlinehockey
isstrictlyboundbythegoverningbody's
rules.Recreationalhockeyleaguesmaymakemodificationstocertainaspectsoftherulestosuit
localrequirements(sizeofrink,lengthofperiodsandpenalties).Rollerhockeyisagrowingsport
[
citationneeded
]
inBritainwithteamscroppingupalloverthecountry
.Thefactthatitcanbeplayed
onanydrysurfacemeansthatyoucanplayitinalmostanyleisurecenter.
TournamentsandcompetitiveRollerHockey
[
edit
]
Mostcompetitiveyouthhockeyteamsplayintournaments.Thetournamentsvarydependingon
location,butatypicalbracketsystemisusuallyused.Teamstraveltodifferentlocationsaround
theirstate,sometimesevengoingoutofstate.Thereareinnerstatetournamentsandoutof
statetournaments.Thereareevennationaltournamentscompetitiveteamscompetefor.
TheFIRS(
FdrationInternationaledeRollerSports
)andthe
IIHF
(InternationalIceHockey
Federation)aretwomaininternationalassociationsthatorganizethebiggestrollerhockeyworld
championship.Overtwentynationalteamsparticipateinthesetwoevents.
In
skaterhockey
,thesportisgovernedinEuropebythe
InternationalInlineSkaterhockey
Federation
.
Agameoffieldhockey
Highest
governing
body
International
Hockey
Federation
Nicknames
Hockey,grass
hockey
Firstplayed
19thcentury,
England
Characteristics
Contact
Limited
Teammembers
11fieldplayers
Type
outdoorand
indoor
Equipment
Hockeyball,
hockeystick,
mouthguard,
shinguards
Presence
Olympic
1908,1920,
1928present
Fieldhockey
,orsimply
hockey
,isateamsportofthe
hockey
family.Theearliestoriginsofthesport
[1]
datebacktotheMiddleAgesinEngland,ScotlandandtheNetherlands.Thegamecanbeplayedon
agrassfieldoraturffieldaswellasanindoorboardsurface.Eachteamplayswithelevenplayers
includingthegoalie.Playersusesticksmadeoutofwoodorfiberglasstohitaround,hard,rubberlike
[2]
ball.Thelengthofthestickdependsontheplayer'sindividualheight.Therearenolefthandsticksin
fieldhockey,butonlyonesideofthestickisallowedtobeused.Goalieshaveadifferentkindofstick.
Theirshasanothercurveontheendofthestick.Theuniformconsistsofshinguards,cleats,skirts
(usuallyreferredtoaskilts)orshorts,amouthguardandajersey.Attheturnofthe21stcentury,the
gameisplayedglobally,withparticularpopularitythroughoutwesternEurope,theIndiansubcontinent,
and
Australasia
aswellastheAmericanSouthandNortheast(suchasMississippi,Alabama,and
Florida,Kentucky,Massachusetts,andPennsylvania)aswellasSouthernAfrica.Hockeyisthenational
sportof
Pakistan
,andissometimesassumedtobe
India
'snationalsportaswell,althoughofficially
India
[3]
doesnothaveanationalsport.Theterm"fieldhockey"isusedprimarilyin
Canada
andthe
United
States
where
icehockey
ismorepopular.
Duringplay,goalkeepersaretheonlyplayerswhoareallowedtotouchtheballwithanypartoftheir
body(theplayer'shandisconsidered'partofthestick'),withthisonlyapplyingwithinthe
shootingcircle
(alsoknownasthe
D
,or
shootingarc
,orjustthecircle),whilefieldplayersplaytheballwiththeflatside
oftheirstick.Theteamthatscoresthemost
goals
bytheendofthematchwins.Ifthescoreistiedatthe
endofthegame,eithera
draw
isdeclaredorthegamegoesintoextratimeand/orapenaltyshootout,
dependingonthecompetition'sformat.
Thegoverningbodyofhockeyisthe
InternationalHockeyFederation(IHF)
,withmenandwomenbeing
representedinternationallyincompetitionsincludingthe
OlympicGames
,
WorldCup
,
WorldLeague
,
ChampionsTrophy
and
JuniorWorldCup
,withmanycountriesrunningextensivejunior,senior,and
masters'clubcompetitions.TheFIHisalsoresponsiblefororganisingthe
HockeyRulesBoard
and
developingthe
rules
forthesport.
Apopularvariantoffieldhockeyis
indoorfieldhockey
,whichdiffersinanumberofrespectswhile
embodyingtheprimaryprinciplesofhockey.Indoorhockeyisa5asidevariant,withafieldwhichis
reducedtoapproximately40m20m(131ft66ft).Withmanyoftherulesremainingthesame,
includingobstructionandfeet,thereareseveralkeyvariationsPlayersmaynotraisetheballunless
shootingongoal,playersmaynothittheball(insteadutilisingpushestotransfertheball),andthe
sidelinesarereplacedwithsolidbarrierswhichtheballwillreboundoff.
History
Reliefof510B.C.depictinghockeyplayers,intheNationalArchaeologicalMuseumofAthens
Thereisadepictionofahockeylikegamefrom510BCin
AncientGreece
whenthegamemayhave
beencalled""("kertzein")becauseitwasplayedwithahorn(""inGreek)anda
[5]
balllikeobject.InEastAsia,asimilargamewasentertained,usingacarvedwoodenstickandball
priorto300BC.In
InnerMongolia
,
China
,the
Daurpeople
havebeenplaying
Beikou
agamewithsome
[6]
similaritiestofieldhockeyforabout1,000years.Theword'hockey'itselfwasrecordedin1363when
EdwardIII
ofEnglandissuedtheproclamation:"[M]oreoverweordainthatyouprohibitunderpenaltyof
imprisonmentallandsundryfromsuchstone,woodandironthrowinghandball,football,orhockey
[7]
coursingandcockfighting,orothersuchidlegames."
ThemoderngamegrewfromEnglish
publicschools
intheearly19thcentury.Thefirstclubwasin1849
at
Blackheath
insoutheast
London
,butthemodernrulesgrewoutofaversionplayedby
Middlesex
[
citationneeded
]
cricket
clubsforwintersport
.
Teddington
HockeyClubformedthemoderngameby
[8]
introducingthestrikingcircleandchangingtheballtoaspherefromarubbercube.TheHockey
Associationwasfoundedin1886.Thefirstinternationaltookplacein1895(Ireland3,Wales0)andthe
InternationalRulesBoardwasfoundedin1900.
Fieldhockeywasplayedatthe
SummerOlympics
in1908and1920.Itwasdroppedin1924,leadingto
thefoundationofthe
FdrationInternationaledeHockeysurGazon
(FIH)asaninternationalgoverning
bodybysevencontinentalEuropeannations,andhockeywasreinstatedin1928.Men'shockeyunited
undertheFIHin1970.
Thetwooldesttrophiesarethe
IrishSeniorCup
,whichdatesbackto1894,andthe
IrishJuniorCup
,a
[9]
2ndXIonlycompetitioninstitutedin1895.In
India
,the
BeightonCup
andthe
AgaKhan
tournament
commencedwithintenyears.EnteringtheOlympicsin1928,Indiawonallfivegameswithoutconceding
agoalandwonfrom1932until1956andthenin1964and1980.Pakistanwonin1960,1968and1984.

AgameofhockeybeingplayedbetweenGermanyandScotlandatthe1908LondonOlympics
Intheearly1970s,
artificialturf
begantobeused.Syntheticpitcheschangedmostaspectsoffield
hockey,gainingspeed.Newtacticsandtechniquessuchasthe
Indiandribble
developed,followedby
newrulestotakeaccount.Indianhistorysaysthatsimilargamelikehockeywasplayedin17thcentury
inPunjabstateofIndiaundername'KhidoKhundi'khidoisawoolenballandkhundiisstick.Theswitch
tosyntheticsurfacesendedIndianandPakistanidominationbecauseartificialturfwastoo
expensiveincomparisontothewealthierEuropeancountriesandsincethe1970sAustralia,the
NetherlandsandGermanyhavedominatedattheOlympics.
Women'sfieldhockeywasfirstplayedatBritishuniversitiesandschools.Thefirstclub,theMolesey
[
citationneeded
]
Ladies,wasfoundedin1887
.ThefirstnationalassociationwastheIrishLadiesHockey
[
citationneeded
]
Unionin1894
,andthoughrebuffedbytheHockeyAssociation,women'sfieldhockey
grewrapidlyaroundtheworld.ThisledtotheInternationalFederationofWomen'sHockeyAssociations
(IFWHA)in1927,thoughthisdidnotincludemanycontinentalEuropeancountrieswherewomenplayed
assectionsofmen'sassociationsandwereaffiliatedtotheFIH.TheIFWHAheldconferencesevery
threeyears,andtournamentsassociatedwiththeseweretheprimaryIFWHAcompetitions.These
tournamentswerenoncompetitiveuntil1975.
Bytheearly1970s,therewere22associationswithwomen'ssectionsintheFIHand36associationsin
theIFWHA.Discussionsstartedaboutacommonrulebook.TheFIHintroducedcompetitive
tournamentsin1974,forcingtheacceptanceoftheprincipleofcompetitivefieldhockeybytheIFWHAin
1973.Ittookuntil1982forthetwobodiestomerge,butthisallowedtheintroductionofwomen'sfield
hockeytotheOlympicgamesfrom1980where,asinthemen'sgame,TheNetherlands,Germany,and
Australiahavebeenconsistentlystrong.Argentinahasemergedasateamtobereckonedwithsince
2000,winningtheworldchampionshipin2002and2010andmedalsatthelastthreeOlympics.
OutsideNorthAmerica,participationisnowfairlyevenlybalancedbetweenmenandwomen.For
example,inEngland,
EnglandHockey
reportsthatasofthe200809seasontherewere2488registered
[10]
men'steams,1969women'steams,1042boys'teams,966girls'teamsand274mixedteams. In
2006the
IrishHockeyAssociation
reportedthatthegendersplitamongitsplayerswasapproximately
[11]
65%femaleand35%male. Inits2008census,
HockeyAustralia
reported40,534maleclubplayers
[12]
and41,542female. However,intheUnitedStatesofAmerica,therearefewfieldhockeyclubs,most
playtakingplacebetweenhighschoolorcollegesides,almostentirelyoffemales.Thestrengthof
collegefieldhockeyreflectstheimpactof
TitleIX
whichmandatedthatcollegesshouldfundmen'sand
women'ssportsprogrammescomparably.
Thegame'srootsintheEnglishpublicgirls'schoolmeanthatthegameisassociatedintheUKwith
activeoroverachieving
middleclass
and
upperclass
women.Forexample,in
NineteenEightyFour,
GeorgeOrwell
'snovelsetinatotalitarianLondon,maincharacter
WinstonSmith
initiallydislikesJulia,
thewomanhecomestolove,becauseof"theatmosphereofhockeyfieldsandcoldbathsand
[13]
communityhikesandgeneralcleanmindednesswhichshemanagedtocarryaboutwithher."
Fieldofplay
Diagramofahockeyfield
Mosthockeyfielddimensionswereoriginallyfixedusingwholenumbersof
imperialmeasures
.
Nevertheless,metricmeasurementsarenowtheofficialdimensionsaslaiddownbythe
International
HockeyFederation
(FIH)inthe"RulesofHockey".Thepitchisa91.4m55m(100.0yd60.1yd)
rectangularfield.Ateachendisagoal2.14m(7ft)highand3.66m(12ft)wide,aswellaslinesacross
thefield22.90m(25yd)fromeachendline(generallyreferredtoasthe23metrelinesorthe25yard
lines)andinthecenterofthefield.Aspot0.15m(6in)indiameter,calledthepenaltyspotorstroke
mark,isplacedwithitscentre6.40m(7yd)fromthecentreofeachgoal.Theshootingcircleis15m(16
yd)fromthebaseline.
PlayingSurface
[
edit
]
Historicallythegamedevelopedonnaturalgrassturf.Intheearly1970s,"
syntheticgrass
"fieldsbegan
tobeusedforhockey,withthefirstOlympicGamesonthissurfacebeingheldatthe
1976Montreal
edition
.Syntheticpitchesarenowmandatoryforallinternationaltournamentsandformostnational
competitions.Whilehockeyisstillplayedontraditionalgrassfieldsatsomelocallevelsandlesser
nationaldivisions,ithasbeenreplacedbysyntheticsurfacesalmosteverywhereinthewesternworld.
[14]
[15]
[16]
Therearethreemaintypesofartificialhockeysurface:
Unfilledorwaterbasedartificialfibresthataredenselypackedforstabilisation,requires
irrigationorwateringtoavoidpitchwear
Dressedorsanddressedartificialfibrescanbelessdenselypackedandsandsupportsthe
fibresforpartofthe
piledepth
Filledorsandfilledartificialfibrescanbelongerandlessdenselypackedandsand
supportsthefibresfor100%ofthepiledepth
Sincethe1970s,sandbasedpitcheshavebeenfavouredastheydramaticallyspeedupthegame.
However,inrecentyearstherehasbeenamassiveincreaseinthenumberof"waterbased"artificial
turfs.Waterbasedsyntheticturfsenabletheballtobetransferredmorequicklythanonsandbased
surfaces.Itisthischaracteristicthathasmadethemthesurfaceofchoiceforinternationalandnational
leaguecompetitions.Waterbasedsurfacesarealsolessabrasivethansandbasedsurfacesandreduce
[
when?
]
thelevelofinjurytoplayerswhentheycomeintocontactwiththesurface.TheFIHarenow
proposingthatnewsurfacesbeinglaidshouldbeofahybridvarietywhichrequirelesswatering.Thisis
duetothenegativeecologicaleffectsofthehighwaterrequirementsofwaterbasedsyntheticfields.It
hasalsobeenstatedthatthedecisiontomakeartificialsurfacesmandatorygreatlyfavouredmore
[17]
affluentcountrieswhocouldaffordthesenewpitches.
Rulesandplay
[
edit
]
Thegameisplayedbetweentwoteamsofwhomelevenarepermittedtobeonthepitchatanyone
time.Theremainingplayersmaybesubstitutedinanycombination.Thereisanunlimitedamountof
timesateamcansubinandout.Substitutionsarepermittedatanypointinthegame,apartfrom
betweentheawardandendofapenaltycornertwoexceptionstothisruleisforinjuryorsuspensionof
thedefendinggoalkeeper,whichisnotallowedwhenplayingwithafieldkeep,oraplayercanexitthe
field,butyoumustwaituntilaftertheinsertertouchestheballtoputsomebodybackin.
Playersarepermittedtoplaytheballwiththeflatofthe'faceside'andwiththeedgesoftheheadand
handleofthefieldhockeystickwiththeexceptionthat,forreasonsofsafety,theballmaynotbestruck
'hard'withaforehandedgestroke,becauseofthedifficultyofcontrollingtheheightanddirectionofthe
ballfromthatstroke.
Theflatsideisalwaysonthe"natural"sideforarighthandedpersonswingingthestickattheballfrom
righttoleft.Lefthandedsticksarerare,butavailablehowevertheyarepointlessastherulesforbidtheir
useinagame.Tomakeastrikeattheballwithalefttorightswingtheplayermustpresenttheflatof
the'face'ofthesticktotheballby'reversing'thestickhead,i.e.byturningthehandlethrough
approximately180(whileareverseedgehitwouldturnthestickheadthroughapproximately90from
thepositionofanuprightforehandstokewiththe'face'ofthestickhead).
Edgehittingoftheballunderwentatwoyear"experimentalperiod",twicetheusuallengthofan
"experimentaltrial"andisstillamatterofsomecontroversywithinthesport.RicCharlesworth,the
formerAustraliancoach,hasbeenastrongcriticoftheunrestricteduseofthereverseedgehit.The
'hard'forehandedgehitwasbannedaftersimilarconcernswereexpressedabouttheabilityofplayersto
directtheballaccurately,butthereverseedgehitdoesappeartobemorepredictableandcontrollable
thanitscounterpart.
Otherrulesincludenofoottoballcontact,nouseofhands,noobstructingotherplayers,nohighback
swing,andnothirdparty.Ifaplayerisdribblingtheballandeitherlosescontrolandkickstheballor
anotherplayerinterferesthatplayerisnotpermittedtogaincontrolandcontinuedribbling.Therulesdo
notallowthepersonwhokickedtheballtogainadvantagefromthekick,sotheballwillautomaticallybe
passedontotheopposingteam.Conversely,ifnoadvantageisgainedfromkickingtheball,playshould
continue.Playersmaynotobstructanother'schanceofhittingtheballinanyway.Noshoving/usingyour
body/sticktopreventadvancementintheotherteam.Penaltyforthisistheopposingteamreceivesthe
ballandiftheproblemcontinues,theplayercanbecarded.Whileaplayeristakingafreehitorstarting
acornerthebackswingoftheirhitcannotbetoohighforthisisconsidereddangerous.Finallythere
maynotbethreeplayerstouchingtheballatonetime.Twoplayersfromopposingteamscanbattlefor
theball,howeverifanotherplayerinterferesitisconsideredthirdpartyandtheballautomaticallygoesto
theteamwhoonlyhadoneplayerinvolvedinthethirdparty.
Positions
[
edit
]

A
VirginiaCavaliers
fieldplayerpassingtheball
"hockeypositionsarediscussed,notionsoffluidityareverycommon.Eachteamcanbefieldedwitha
maximumof11playersandwilltypicallyarrangethemselvesintoforwards,midfielders,anddefensive
players(fullbacks)withplayersfrequentlymovingbetweentheseslineswiththeflowofplay.Eachteam
mayalsoplaywith:"
*agoalkeeperwhowearsadifferentcolorshirtandfullprotectiveequipmentcomprisingatleastheadgear,
legguardsandkickersthisplayerisreferredtointherulesasagoalkeeperor
*afieldplayerwithgoalkeepingprivilegeswearingadifferentcolorshirtandwhomaywearprotective
headgear(butnotlegguardsandkickersorothergoalkeepingprotectiveequipment)wheninsidetheir
defending23mareatheymustwearprotectiveheadgearwhendefendingapenaltycornerorstrokethis
playerisreferredtointherulesasaplayerwithgoalkeepingprivilegesor
*Onlyfieldplayersnoplayerhasgoalkeepingprivilegesorwearsadifferentcolorshirtnoplayermay
[4]
wearprotectiveheadgearexceptafacemaskwhendefendingapenaltycornerorstroke.
Formations
[
edit
]
Ashockeyhasaverydynamicstyleofplay,itisdifficulttosimplifypositionstothestatic
formations
whicharecommonin
associationfootball
.Althoughpositionswilltypicallybecategorizedaseither
fullback,halfback,midfield/innerorstriker,itisimportantforplayerstohaveanunderstandingofevery
positiononthefield.Forexample,itisnotuncommontoseeahalfbackoverlapandendupineither
attackingposition,withthemidfieldandstrikersbeingresponsibleforreadjustingtofillthespacethey
left.Movementbetweenlineslikethisisparticularlycommonacrossallpositions.
ThisfluidAustraliancultureofhockeyhasbeenresponsiblefordevelopinganinternationaltrend
towardsplayersoccupyingspacesonthefield,nothavingassignedpositions.Althoughtheymayhave
particularspacesonthefieldwhichtheyaremorecomfortableandeffectiveasplayers,theyare
responsibleforoccupyingthespacenearestthem.Thisfluidapproachtohockeyandplayermovement,
hasmadeiteasyforteamstotransitionbetweenformationssuchas
"3attheback",
"2centrehalves",
"5attheback"
andmore.
Goalkeepers
[
edit
]
Whentheballisinsidethecircletheyaredefendingandtheyhavetheirstickintheirhand,goalkeepers
wearingfullprotectiveequipmentarepermittedtousetheirstick,feet,kickersorlegguardstopropelthe
ballandtousetheirstick,feet,kickers,legguardsoranyotherpartoftheirbodytostoptheballor
deectitinanydirectionincludingoverthebackline.Similarly,fieldplayersarepermittedtousetheir
stick.Theyarenotallowedtousetheirfeetandlegstopropeltheball,stoptheballordeflectitinany
directionincludingoverthebackline.However,neithergoalkeepers,orplayerswithgoalkeeping
privilegesarepermittedtoconductthemselvesinamannerwhichisdangeroustootherplayersby
[4]
takingadvantageoftheprotectiveequipmenttheywear.
Neithergoalkeepersorplayerswithgoalkeepingprivilegesmaylieontheball,however,theyare
permittedtousearms,handsandanyotherpartoftheirbodytopushtheballaway.Lyingontheball
deliberatelywillresultintoapenaltystroke,whereasifanumpiredeemsagoalkeeperhaslayontheball
accidentally(e.g.itgetsstuckintheirprotectiveequipment),apenaltycornerisawarded.
*Theactionaboveispermittedonlyaspartofagoalsavingactionortomovetheballawayfromthe
possibilityofagoalscoringactionbyopponents.Itdoesnotpermitagoalkeeperorplayerwithgoalkeeping
privilegestopropeltheballforcefullywitharms,handsorbodysothatittravelsalongdistance
Whentheballisoutsidethecircletheyaredefending,goalkeepersorplayerswithgoalkeeping
privilegesareonlypermittedtoplaytheballwiththeirstick.Further,agoalkeeper,orplayerwith
goalkeepingprivilegeswhomiswearingahelmetmustnottakepartinthematchoutsidethe23marea
theyaredefending,exceptwhentakingapenaltystroke.Agoalkeepermustwearprotectiveheadgear
atalltimes,exceptwhentakingapenaltystroke.
Generalplay
[
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]
Forthepurposesoftherules,allplayersontheteaminpossessionoftheballareattackers,andthose
ontheteamwithouttheballaredefenders,yetthroughoutthegamebeingplayedyouare
[18]
always"defending"yourgoaland"attacking"theoppositegoal.
SidelinehitinamatchStandardAthleticClubvs.BritishSchoolofParis(1996)
Thematchisofficiatedbytwofield
umpires
.Traditionallyeachumpiregenerallycontrolshalfofthefield,
dividedroughlydiagonally.Theseumpiresareoftenassistedbyatechnicalbenchincludinga
timekeeperandrecordkeeper.
Priortothestartofthegame,acoinistossedandthewinningcaptaincanchooseastartingendor
whethertostartwiththeball.Thegameconsistsoftwohalvesof35minuteswitha5minutebreakat
halftimebeforechangingends.Atthestartofeachperiod,aswellasaftergoalsarescored,playis
startedwithapassfromthecentreofthefield.Allplayersmuststartintheirdefensivehalf(apartfrom
theplayermakingthepass),buttheballmaybeplayedinanydirectionalongthefloor.Eachteamstarts
withtheballinonehalf,andtheteamthatconcededthegoalhaspossessionfortherestart.Teams
tradesidesathalftime.
Fieldplayersmayonlyplaytheballwiththefaceofthestick.Ifthebacksideofthestickisused,itisa
penaltyandtheotherteamwillgettheballback.Tacklingispermittedaslongasthetacklerdoesnot
makecontactwiththeattackerortheotherpersonsstickbeforeplayingtheball(contactafterthetackle
mayalsobepenalizedifthetacklewasmadefromapositionwherecontactwasinevitable).Further,the
playerwiththeballmaynotdeliberatelyusehisbodytopushadefenderoutoftheway.
Fieldplayersmaynotplaytheballwiththeirfeet,butiftheballaccidentallyhitsthefeet,andtheplayer
gainsnobenefitfromthecontact,thenthecontactisnotpenalized.Althoughtherehasbeenachange
inthewordingofthisrulefrom1January2007,thecurrentFIHumpires'briefinginstructsumpiresnotto
[19]
changethewaytheyinterpretthisrule.
Obstructiontypicallyoccursinthreecircumstanceswhenadefendercomesbetweentheplayerwith
possessionandtheballinordertopreventthemtacklingwhenadefender'sstickcomesbetweenthe
attacker'sstickandtheballormakescontactwiththeattacker'sstickorbodyandalsowhenblocking
theopposition'sattempttotackleateammatewiththeball(called
thirdpartyobstruction)
.
Whentheballpassescompletelyoverthesidelines(onthesidelineisstillin),itisreturnedtoplaywitha
sidelinehit,takenbyamemberoftheteamwhoseplayerswerenotthelasttotouchtheballbefore
crossingthesideline.Theballmustbeplacedonthesideline,withthehittakenfromasneartheplace
theballwentoutofplayaspossible.Ifitcrossesthebacklineafterlasttouchedbyanattacker,a15m
(16yd)hit.A15mhitisalsoawardedforoffensescommittedbytheattackingsidewithin15mofthe
endofthepitchtheyareattacking.
Setplays
[
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]
Setplaysareoftenutilizedforspecificsituationssuchasapenaltycornerorfreehit.Forinstance,many
teamshavepenaltycornervariationsthattheycanusetobeatthedefensiveteam.Thecoachmayhave
playsthatsendstheballbetweentwodefendersandlettheplayerattacktheopposingteamsgoal.
Therearenosetplaysunlessyourteamhasthem.
Freehits
[
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]
Freehitsareawardedwhenoffencesarecommittedoutsidethescoringcircles(theterm'freehit'is
standardusagebuttheballneednotbehit).Theballmaybehit,pushedorliftedinanydirectionbythe
teamoffendedagainst.Theballcanbeliftedfromafreehitbutnotbyhitting,youmustflickorscoopto
liftfromafreehit.(Inpreviousrulesversionshitsintheareaoutsidethecircleinopenplayhavebeen
permittedbutliftingonedirectionfromafreehitprohibited).Opponentsmustmove5m(5.5yd)fromthe
ballwhenafreehitisawarded.Afreehitmustbetakenfromwithinplayingdistanceoftheplaceofthe
offenceforwhichitwasawardedandtheballmustbestationarywhenthefreehitistaken.
Asmentionedabove,a15mhitisawardedifanattackingplayercommitsafoulforwardofthatline,orif
theballpassesoverthebacklineoffanattacker.Thesefreehitsaretakeninlinewithwherethefoul
wascommitted(takingalineparallelwiththesidelinebetweenwheretheoffencewascommitted,orthe
ballwentoutofplay).Whenanattackingfreehitisawardedwithin5mofthecircleeveryoneincluding
thepersontakingthepenaltymustbefivemetresfromthecircleandeveryoneapartfromtheperson
takingthefreehitmustbefivemetresawayfromtheball.Whentakinganattackingfreehittheballmay
notbehitstraightintothecircleifyouarewithinyourattacking23metrearea(25yardarea).Itmust
travel5metresbeforegoingin.
2009experimentalchanges
[
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]
InFebruary2009theFIHintroduced,asa"MandatoryExperiment"forinternationalcompetition,an
updatedversionoffreehitrule.Thechangesallowsaplayertakingafreehittopasstheballto
themselves.Importantly,thisisnota"playon"situation,buttotheuntrainedeyeitmayappeartobe.
Theplayermustplaytheballanydistanceintwoseparatemotions,beforecontinuingasifitwerea
playonsituation.Theymayraiseanaerialoroverheadimmediatelyasthesecondaction,oranyother
strokepermittedbytherulesoffieldhockey.Atthehighschoollevel,thisiscalledaselfpassandwas
adoptedinPennsylvaniain2010asalegaltechniqueforputtingtheballinplay.
Also,allplayers(frombothteams)mustbeatleast5mfromanyfreehitawardedtotheattackwithin
the23marea.Additionally,nofreehitstotheattackarepermittedwithin5mofthecircle,soifafreehit
isawardedinsidethisareaitmustbedraggedbackoutsidethiszone.Theballmaynottraveldirectly
intothecirclefromafreehittotheattackwithinthe23mareawithoutfirstbeingtouchedbyanother
playerorbeingdribbledatleast5mbyaplayermakinga"selfpass".Theseexperimentalrulesapplyto
allfreehitsituations,includingsidelineandcornerhits.NationalAssociationsmayalsochooseto
introducetheserulesfortheirdomesticcompetitions.
Corner
[
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]
Acornerisawardediftheballgoesoverthebacklineafterlastbeingtouchedbyadefender,provided
theydonotplayitoverthebacklinedeliberately,inwhichcaseapenaltycornerisawarded.Corners
areplayedbytheattackingteamandinvolveafreehitonthesideline5mfromthecornerofthefield
closesttowheretheballwentoutofplay,thisrule,however,waschangedin2015.Theballistakenup
tothe23metreline,inlinewithwhereitwentout,therestoftherulesforalongcornerstayedthesame.
Theserestartsarealsoknownaslongcorners(asopposedtoshortcornerwhichisanalternativename
forthepenaltycorner).Thedefensemustwaituntiltheoffenderpassestheballin.Theoffenderhasto
pulltheballoutofthecirclebeforetryingtomakeagoal.
Penaltycorner
[
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]
The
shortorpenaltycorner
isawarded:

Agroupoffivedefenders,includingthegoalkeeper,prepareonthebacklineforashortcorner.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
foranoffencebyadefenderinthecirclewhichdoesnotpreventtheprobablescoringof
agoal
foranintentionaloffenceinthecirclebyadefenderagainstanopponentwhodoesnot
havepossessionoftheballoranopportunitytoplaytheball
foranintentionaloffencebyadefenderoutsidethecirclebutwithinthe23metrearea
theyaredefending
forintentionallyplayingtheballoverthebacklinebyadefender
whentheballbecomeslodgedinaplayer'sclothingorequipmentwhileinthecirclethey
aredefending
Shortcornersbeginwithfivedefenders(usuallyincludingthekeeper)positionedbehindthebackline
[20]
andatleast10yardsfromthenearestgoalpost. Allotherplayersinthedefendingteammustbe
beyondthecentreline,thatisnotintheir'own'halfofthepitch,untiltheballisinplay.Attackingplayers
begintheplaystandingoutsidethescoringcircle,exceptforoneattackerwhostartsthecornerby
playingtheballfromamark10meithersideofthegoal(thecirclehasa14.63mradius).Thisplayer
putstheballintoplaybypushingorhittingtheballtotheotherattackersoutsidethecircletheballmust
passoutsidethecircleandthenputbackintothecirclebeforetheattackersmaymakeashotatthegoal
fromwhichagoalcanbescored.FIHrulesdonotforbidashotatgoalbeforetheballleavesthecircle
afterbeing'inserted',norisashotatthegoalfromoutsidethecircleprohibited,butagoalcannotbe
scoredatalliftheballhasnotgoneoutofthecircleandcannotbescoredfromashotfromoutsidethe
circleifitisnotagainplayedbyanattackingplayerbeforeitentersthegoal.
Forsafetyreasons,thefirstshotofapenaltycornermustnotexceed460mmhigh(theheightofthe
"backboard"ofthegoal)atthepointitcrossesthegoallineifitishit.However,iftheballisdeemedto
bebelowbackboardheight,theballcanbesubsequentlydeflectedabovethisheightbyanotherplayer
(defenderorattacker),providingthatthisdeflectiondoesnotleadtodanger.Notethatthe"Slap"stroke
(asweepingmotiontowardstheball,wherethestickiskeptonorclosetothegroundwhenstrikingthe
ball)isclassedasahit,andsothefirstshotatgoalmustbebelowbackboardheightforthistypeofshot
also.
Ifthefirstshotatgoalinashortcornersituationisapush,flickorscoop,inparticularthe
dragflick
(whichhasbecomepopularatinternationalandnationalleaguestandards),theshotispermittedtorise
abovetheheightofthebackboard,aslongastheshotisnotdeemeddangeroustoanyopponent.This
formofshootingwasdevelopedbecauseitisnotheightrestrictedinthesamewayasthefirsthitshotat
thegoalandplayerswithgoodtechniqueareabletodragflickwithasmuchpowerasmanyotherscan
hitaball.
Penaltystroke
A
penaltystroke
isawardedwhenadefendercommitsafoulinthecircle(accidentalorotherwise)that
preventsaprobablegoalorcommitsadeliberatefoulinthecircleorifdefendersrepeatedlyrunfromthe
backlinetooearlyatapenaltycorner.Thepenaltystrokeistakenbyasingleattackerinthecircle,
againstthegoalkeeper,fromaspot6.4mfromgoal.Theballisplayedonlyonceatgoalbytheattacker
usingapush,flickorscoopstroke.Iftheshotissaved,playisrestartedwitha15mhittothedefenders.
Whenagoalisscored,playisrestartedinthenormalway.
Dangerousplayandraisedballs
[
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]
[21]
AccordingtothecurrentRulesofHockey2013 issuedbytheFIHthereareonlytwocriteriafora
dangerouslyplayedball.Thefirstislegitimateevasiveactionbyanopponent(whatconstitutes
legitimateevasiveactionisanumpiringjudgment).Thesecondisspecifictotheruleconcerningashot
atgoalatapenaltycornerbutisgenerally,ifsomewhatinconsistently,appliedthroughoutthegameand
inallpartsofthepitch:itisthataballliftedabovekneeheightandatanopponentwhoiswithin5mof
theballiscertainlydangerous.
Thevelocityoftheballisnotmentionedintherulesconcerningadangerouslyplayedball.Aballthat
hitsaplayerabovethekneemayonsomeoccasionsnotbepenalized,thisisintheumpire'sdiscretion.
Ajabtackleforexample,mightaccidentallylifttheballabovekneeheightintoanopponentfromclose
rangebutatsuchlowvelocityasnottobe,intheopinionoftheumpire,dangerousplay.Inthesame
wayahighvelocityhitatverycloserangeintoanopponent,butbelowkneeheight,couldbeconsidered
tobedangerousorrecklessplayintheviewoftheumpire,especiallywhensaferalternativesareopen
tothestrikeroftheball.
Aballthathasbeenliftedhighsothatitwillfallamongcloseopponentsmaybedeemedtobe
potentiallydangerousandplaymaybestoppedforthatreason.Aliftedballthatisfallingtoaplayerin
clearspacemaybemadepotentiallydangerousbytheactionsofanopponentclosingtowithin5mof
thereceiverbeforetheballhasbeencontrolledtogroundarulewhichisoftenonlylooselyappliedthe
distanceallowedisoftenonlywhatmightbedescribedasplayingdistance,23m,andopponentstend
tobepermittedtocloseontheballassoonasthereceiverplaysit:theseunofficialvariationsareoften
basedontheumpire'sperceptionoftheskilloftheplayersi.e.onthelevelofthegame,inorderto
maintaingameflow,whichumpiresareingeneralinbothRulesandBriefinginstructedtodo,bynot
penalisingwhenitisunnecessarytodoso,thisisalsoamatterintheumpire'sdiscretion.
Theterm"fallingball"isimportantinwhatmaybetermedencroachingoffences.Itisgenerallyonly
consideredanoffencetoencroachonanopponentreceivingaliftedballthathasbeenliftedtoabove
headheight(althoughtheheightisnotspecifiedinrule)andisfalling.So,forexample,aliftedshotat
thegoalwhichisstillrisingasitcrossesthegoalline(orwouldhavebeenrisingasitcrossedthegoal
line)canbelegitimatelyfollowedupbyanyoftheattackingteamlookingforarebound.
Ingeneralevenpotentiallydangerousplayisnotpenalisedifanopponentisnotdisadvantagebyitor,
obviously,notinjuredbyitsothathecannotcontinue.Apersonalpenalty,thatisacautionora
suspension,ratherthanateampenalty,suchasafreeballorapenaltycorner,maybe(manywouldsay
shouldbeorevenmustbe,butagainthisisintheumpire'sdiscretion)issuedtotheguiltypartyafteran
advantageallowedbytheumpirehasbeenplayedoutinanysituationwhereanoffencehasoccurred,
includingdangerousplay(butonceadvantagehasbeenallowedtheumpirecannotthencallplayback
andawardateampenalty).
Itisnotanoffencetolifttheballoveranopponent'sstick(orbodyontheground),providedthatitis
donewithconsiderationforthesafetyoftheopponentandnotdangerously.Forexample,askillful
attackermaylifttheballoveradefendersstickorpronebodyandrunpastthem,howeveriftheattacker
liftstheballintooratthedefender'sbody,thiswouldalmostcertainlyberegardedasdangerous.
Itisnotagainsttherulestobouncetheballonthestickandeventorunwithitwhiledoingso,aslongas
thatdoesnotleadtoapotentiallydangerousconflictwithanopponentwhoisattemptingtomakea
tackle.Forexample,twoplayerstryingtoplayattheballintheairatthesametime,wouldprobablybe
consideredadangeroussituationanditislikelythattheplayerwhofirstputtheballuporwhowasso
'carrying'itwouldbepenalised.
Dangerousplayrulesalsoapplytotheusageofthestickwhenapproachingtheball,makingastrokeat
it(replacingwhatwasatonetimereferredtoasthe"sticks"rule,whichonceforbadetheraisingofany
partofthestickabovetheshoulderduringanyplay.Thislastrestrictionhasbeenremovedbutthestick
shouldstillnotbeusedinawaythatendangersanopponent)orattemptingtotackle,(foulsrelatingto
tripping,impedingandobstruction).Theuseofthesticktostrikeanopponentwillusuallybemuchmore
severelydealtwithbytheumpiresthanoffencessuchasbarging,impedingandobstructionwiththe
body,althoughthesearealsodealtwithfirmly,especiallywhenthesefoulsareintentional:fieldhockey
isanoncontactsport.
Playersmaynotplayorattempttoplayattheballabovetheirshouldersunlesstryingtosaveashotthat
couldgointothegoal,inwhichcasetheyarepermittedtostoptheballordeflectitsafelyaway.Aswing,
asinahit,atahighshotatthegoal(orevenwideofthegoal)willprobablybeconsidereddangerous
playifatopponentswithin5mandsuchastrokewouldbecontrarytoruleinthesecircumstances
anyway.
WithintheEnglishNationalLeagueitisnowalegalactiontotakeaballaboveshoulderheightif
completedusingacontrolledaction.
Warningsandsuspensions
Thepenaltycards
greencard(warningwith2minsuspension)

yellowcard(suspensionof5/10minsdependingonintensityoffoul)

redcard(permanentsuspension)
Hockeyusesathreetier
penaltycard
systemofwarningsandsuspensions:
A
PennState
playerreceivesagreencard.
A
greencard
isfairlysimilartoanassociationfootballyellowcard:theplayerdoesnothave
toleavethepitch(althoughatinternationalstandardtheplayerhastoleavethefieldfortwo
minutes),butanyfurtherinfractionswillresultinayelloworredcard.
A
yellowcard
isanofficialsuspensionsimilartothe
penaltybox
inicehockey.Theduration
isdecidedbytheumpireissuingthecardandtheplayermustgotoapredefinedareaofthe
pitchaschosenbytheumpiresatthebeginningofthematch.Mostumpireswilloptfora
minimumoffiveminutes'durationwithoutsubstitutionthemaximumtimeisatthediscretion
oftheumpire,dependingontheseriousnessoftheoffence,forexamplethesecondyellow
tothesameplayerorthefirstfordangermightbegiventenminutes.Itispossibleto
yellowcardaplayerfortheentiretyofagame.(Insomemodes,includingindoor,shorter
periodsofsuspensionareapplied,dependentonlocalrules).
A
redcard
,justlikeinassociationfootball,isapermanentexclusionfromtherestofthe
game,withoutsubstitution,anditusuallyresultsintheplayerbeingbannedforacertain
periodoftimeornumberofmatches(thisisgovernedbylocalplayingconditions,ratherthan
therulesoffieldhockey).Theplayermustalsoleavethepitchandsurroundingarea.
Inadditiontotheircolours,fieldhockeypenaltycardsareoftenshapeddifferently,sotheycanbe
recognizedeasily.Greencardsarenormallytriangular,yellowcardsrectangularandredcardscircular.
Unlikefootball,aplayermayreceivemorethanonegreenoryellowcard.However,theycannotreceive
thesamecardforthesameoffence(forexampletwoyellowsfordangerousplay),andthesecondmust
alwaysbeamoreseriouscard.Inthecaseofasecondyellowcardforadifferentbreachoftherules(for
exampleayellowfordeliberatefoot,andasecondlaterinthegamefordangerousplay)thetemporary
suspensionwouldbeexpectedtobeofconsiderablylongerdurationthanthefirst.However,local
playingconditionsmaymandatethatcardsareawardedonlyprogressively,andnotallowanysecond
awards.
Refereesmayalsoadvanceafreehitbyupto10mfordissentorothermisconductafterapenaltyhas
beenawardedor,ifthefreehitwouldhavebeenintheattacking23marea,upgradethepenaltytoa
penaltycorner.
Scoring
[
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]
Theteams'objectistoplaytheballintotheirattackingcircleand,fromthere,hit,pushorflicktheball
intothegoal,scoringagoal.Theteamwithmoregoalsafterfour15minutequarterswinsthegame.The
playingtimemaybeshortened,particularlywhenyoungerplayersareinvolved,orforsometournament
play.
Tiebreaking
Inmanycompetitions(suchasregularclubcompetition,orinpoolgamesinFIHinternational
tournamentssuchastheOlympicsortheWorldCup),atiedresultstandsandtheoverallcompetition
standingsareadjustedaccordingly.SinceMarch2013,whentiebreakingisrequired,theofficialFIH
TournamentRegulationsmandatesinceMarch2013tonolongerhaveextratimeandgodirectlyintoa
[22]
penaltyshootout
whenaclassificationmatchendsinatie. However,manyassociationsfollowthe
previousprocedureconsistingoftwoperiodsof7.5minutesof"goldengoal"extratimeduringwhichthe
gameendsassoonasoneteamscores.
Rulechangeprocedure
[
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]
TheFIHimplementedatwoyearrulescyclewiththe200708editionoftherules,withtheintentionthat
therulesbereviewedonabiennialbasis.The2009rulebookwasofficiallyreleasedinearlyMarch2009
(effective1May2009),howevertheFIHpublishedthemajorchangesinFebruary.Thecurrentrulebook
iseffectivefrom1January2015.
TheFIHhasadoptedapolicyofincludingmajorchangestotherulesas"MandatoryExperiments",
showingthattheymustbeplayedatinternationallevel,butaretreatedasexperimentalandwillbe
reviewedbeforethenextrulebookispublishedandeitherchanged,approvedaspermanentrules,or
deleted.
Recentexamplesofsuchexperimentsincludeafixed2minutesuspensionforagreencardanda
(limited)abilitytorequestvideoumpiringdecisions.
Localrules
[
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]
Therearesometimesminorvariationsinrulesfromcompetitiontocompetitionforinstance,theduration
ofmatchesisoftenvariedforjuniorcompetitionsorforcarnivals.Differentnationalassociationsalso
haveslightlydifferingrulesonplayerequipment.
Thenew
EuroHockeyLeague
hasmademajoralterationstotherulestoaidtelevisionviewers,suchas
splittingthegameintofourquarters,andtotrytoimproveplayerbehaviour,suchasatwominute
suspensionforgreencardsthelatterwasalsousedinthe2010WorldCup.Inthe
UnitedStates
,the
NCAA
hasitsownrulesforintercollegiatecompetitionshighschoolassociationssimilarlyplayto
differentrules,usuallyusingtherulespublishedbythe
NationalFederationofStateHighSchool
Associations
(NFHS).ThisarticleassumesFIHrulesunlessotherwisestated.
USAFieldHockey
[23]
producesanannualsummaryofthedifferences.
IntheUnitedStates,thegamesatthejuniorhighlevelconsistoftwo25minutehalves,whilethehigh
schoollevelconsistsoftwo30minutehalves.ManyprivateAmericanschoolsplay25minutehalves,
andsomehaveadoptedFIHrulesratherthanNFHSrules.Playersarerequiredtowear
mouthguards
andshinguardsinordertoplaythegame.Also,thereisanewerrulerequiringcertaintypesofsticksbe
used.Inrecentyears,theNFHSruleshavemovedclosertoFIH,butin2011anewrulerequiring
protectiveeyewearwasintroducedforthe2011Fallseason.The'cagestyle'gogglesfavoredbyUS
[24]
highschoollacrosseandpermittedinhighschoolfieldhockeyisnotpermittedunderFIHrules.
Equipment
[
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]
Fieldhockeystick
Eachplayercarriesa"stick"thatnormallymeasuresbetween8095cm(3138")longshorterorlonger
sticksareavailable.Sticksweretraditionallymadeofwood,butarenowoftenmadealsowith
fibreglass
,
kevlar
and/or
carbonfibre
composites
.Metalisforbiddenfromuseinfieldhockeysticks,duetotherisk
ofinjuryfromsharpedgesifthestickweretobreak.Thestickhasaroundedhandle,hasaJshaped
hookatthebottom,andisflattenedontheleftside(whenlookingdownthehandlewiththehookfacing
upwards).Allsticksarerighthanded.Lefthandedsticksarenotpermitted.
Therewastraditionallyaslightcurve(calledthebow,orrake)fromthetoptobottomofthefacesideof
thestickandanotheronthe'heel'edgetothetopofthehandle(usuallymadeaccordingtotheangleat
whichthehandlepartwasinsertedintothespliceoftheheadpartofthestick),whichassistedinthe
positioningofthestickheadinrelationtotheballandmadestrikingtheballeasierandmoreaccurate.
Thehookatthebottomofthestickwasonlyrecentlythetightcurve(Indianstyle)thatwehave
nowadays.Theolder'English'stickshadalongerbend,makingitveryhardtousethestickonthe
reverse.Forthisreasonplayersnowusethetightcurvedsticks.
Thehandlemakesuptheaboutthetopthirdofthestick.Itiswrappedinagripsimilartothatusedon
tennisracket.Thegripmaybemadeofavarietyofmaterials,including
chamoisleather
,whichmany
playersthinkimprovesgripinthewet.
Itwasrecentlydiscoveredthatincreasingthedepthofthefacebowmadeiteasiertogethighspeeds
fromthedragflickandmadethestrokeeasiertoexecute.Atfirst,afterthisfeaturewasintroduced,the
HockeyRulesBoardplacedalimitof50mmonthemaximumdepthofbowoverthelengthofthestick
butexperiencequicklydemonstratedthistobeexcessive.Newrulesnowlimitthiscurvetounder25
mmsoastolimitthepowerwithwhichtheballcanbeflicked.
Fieldhockeyball
[
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]
Standardfieldhockeyballsarehardsphericalballs,madeofplastic(sometimesoveracorkcore),and
areusuallywhite,althoughtheycanbeanycolouraslongastheycontrastwiththeplayingsurface.The
ballshavea
circumference
of224235mm(8.89.3in)anda
mass
of156163g(5.55.7oz).Theball
isoftencoveredwith
indentations
toreduce
aquaplaning
thatcancauseaninconsistentballspeedon
wetsurfaces.
Goalkeepingequipment
[
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]
Agoalkeepermakesaglovesave.Equipmentwornhereistypicalgearforafieldhockeygoalkeeper.
The2007rulebookhasseenmajorchangesregardinggoalkeepers.Afullyequippedgoalkeepermust
wearahelmet,legguardsandkickers.Usuallythefieldhockey
goalkeepers
mustwearextensive
additionalprotectiveequipmentincludingchestguards,paddedshorts,heavilypaddedhandprotectors,
groinprotectors,neckguards,armguards,andlikeallplayers,theymustcarryastick.Agoaliemaynot
crossthe23mline,thesoleexceptiontothisbeingifthegoalkeeperistotakeapenaltystrokeatthe
otherendofthefield,whentheclockisstopped.Thegoalkeepercanalsoremovetheirhelmetforthis
action.However,ifthegoalkeeperelectstowearonlyahelmet(andadifferentcoloredshirt),theymay
crossthe23mlineiftheyhaveremovedtheirhelmet(andplaceditsafelyoffthefieldofplay).Ifplay
returnstothecirclewithoutthemhavingopportunitytoreplacethehelmet,thisplayerstillhas
"goalkeepingprivileges",thatis,theyarenotlimitedtousingtheirsticktoplaytheballwhilstitisinthe
circle,andthehelmetmustbewornwhilstdefendingpenaltycornersandpenaltystrokesbutthebest
thingtodowouldbetowearitatalltimes.Whilegoaltendersareallowedtousetheirfeetandhandsto
cleartheball,theytooareonlyallowedtouseonesideoftheirstick.Slidetacklingispermittedaslong
asitiswiththeintentionofclearingtheball,notaimedataplayer.Itisnowalsoevenpossibleforteams
tohaveafullelevenoutfieldplayersandnogoalkeeperatall.Noplayermaywearahelmetorother
goalkeepingequipment,neitherwillanyplayerbeabletoplaytheballwithanyotherpartofthebody
thanwiththeirstick.Thismaybeusedtoofferatacticaladvantage,ortoallowforplaytocommenceif
nogoalkeeperorkitisavailable.
Tactics
Thebasictacticinfieldhockey,asinassociationfootballandmanyotherteamgames,istooutnumber
theopponentinaparticularareaofthefieldatamomentintime.Wheninpossessionoftheballthis
temporarynumericalsuperioritycanbeusedtopasstheballaroundopponentssothattheycannot
effectatacklebecausetheycannotgetwithinplayingreachoftheballandtofurtherusethisnumerical
advantagetogaintimeandcreateclearspaceformakingscoringshotsontheopponent'sgoal.When
notinpossessionoftheballnumericalsuperiorityisusedtoisolateandchannelanopponentin
possessionand'markout'anypassingoptionssothataninterceptionoratacklemaybemadetogain
possession.Highlyskillfulplayerscansometimesgetthebetterofmorethanoneopponentandretain
theballandsuccessfullypassorshootbutthistendstousemoreenergythanquickearlypassing.
Everyplayerhasaroledependingontheirrelationshiptotheballiftheteamcommunicatesthroughout
theplayofthegame.Therewillbeplayersontheball(offensivelyballcarriersdefensivelypressure,
supportplayers,andmovementplayers.
Themainmethodsbywhichtheballismovedaroundthefieldbyplayersarea)passingb)pushingthe
ballandrunningwithitcontrolledtothefrontorrightofthebodyandc)"dribbling"wheretheplayer
controlstheballwiththestickandmovesinvariousdirectionswithittoeludeopponents.Tomakea
passtheballmaybepropelledwithapushingstroke,wheretheplayerusestheirwriststopushthestick
headthroughtheballwhilethestickheadisincontactwithitthe"flick"or"scoop",similartothepush
butwithanadditionalarmandlegandrotationalactionstolifttheballoffthegroundandthe"hit",
whereaswingatballistakenandcontactwithitisoftenmadeveryforcefully,causingtheballtobe
propelledatvelocitiesinexcessof70mph(110km/h).Inordertoproduceapowerfulhit,usuallyfor
traveloverlongdistancesorshootingatthegoal,thestickisraisedhigherandswungwithmaximum
powerattheball,astrokesometimesknownasa"drive".
Tacklesaremadebyplacingthestickintothepathoftheballorplayingthestickheadorshaftdirectly
attheball.Toincreasetheeffectivenessofthetackle,playerswilloftenplacetheentirestickcloseto
thegroundhorizontally,thusrepresentingawiderbarrier.Toavoidthetackle,theballcarrierwilleither
passtheballtoateammateusinganyofthepush,flick,orhitstrokes,orattempttomaneuveror"drag"
theballaroundthetackle,tryingtodeceivethetackler.
Inrecentyears,the
penaltycorner
hasgainedimportanceasagoalscoringopportunity.Particularlywith
thetechnicaldevelopmentofthe
dragflick
.Tacticsatpenaltycornerstosetuptimeforashotwitha
dragflickorahitshotatthegoalinvolvevariouscomplexplays,includingmultiplepassesbeforea
deflections
towardsthegoalismadebutthemostcommonmethodofshootingisthedirectflickorhitat
thegoal.
Atthehighestlevel,fieldhockeyisafastmoving,highlyskilledsport,withplayersusingfastmoveswith
thestick,quickaccuratepassing,andhardhits,inattemptstokeeppossessionandmovetheball
towardsthegoal.Tacklingwithphysicalcontactandotherwisephysicallyobstructingplayersisnot
permitted,Someofthetacticsusedresemblefootball(soccer),butwithgreaterballspeed.
Withthe2009changestotherulesregardingfreehitsintheattacking23marea,thecommontacticof
hittingtheballhardintothecirclewasforbidden.Althoughathigherlevelsthiswasconsideredtactically
riskyandlowpercentageatcreatingscoringopportunities,itwasusedwithsomeeffectto'win'penalty
cornersbyforcingtheballontoadefender'sfootortodeflecthigh(anddangerously)offadefender's
stick.TheFIHfeltitwasadangerouspracticethatcouldeasilyleadtoraiseddeflectionsandinjuriesin
thecircle,whichisoftencrowdedatafreehitsituation,andoutlawedit.
Internationalcompetition
Thebiggesttwofieldhockeytournamentsarethe
OlympicGames
tournament,andthe
HockeyWorld
Cup
,whichisalsoheldevery4years.Apartfromthis,thereisthe
ChampionsTrophy
heldeachyearfor
thesixtoprankedteams.Fieldhockeyhasalsobeenplayedatthe
CommonwealthGames
since1998.
Amongstthemen,IndialeadinOlympiccompetition,havingwon8golds(6successiveinrow).
Amongstthewomen,AustraliaandNetherlandshave3OlympicgoldswhileNetherlandshasclinched
theWorldCup6times.The
SultanAzlanShahHockeyTournament
and
SultanIbrahimIsmailHockey
Tournament
isforthejuniorteambutbothournamentheldannuallyinMalaysia,isbecominga
prominentfieldhockeytournamentwhereteamsfromaroundtheworldparticipatetowinthecup.
Pakistan
dominatedmen'shockeyuntiltheearly1980s,winningfourofthefirstfiveworldcups,buthave
becomelessprominentwiththeascendancyof
theNetherlands
,
Germany
,
NewZealand
,
Australia
and
Spain
sincethelate1980s,asgrassplayingsurfaceswerereplacedwithartificialturf(whichconferred
increasedimportanceonathleticism).Othernotablemen'snationsinclude
Argentina
,
England
(who
combinewithotherBritish"HomeNations"toformthe
GreatBritain
sideat
Olympicevents
)and
South
Korea
.Despitetheirrecentdropininternationalrankings,PakistanstillholdstherecordoffourWorld
Cupwins.
Netherlands
,
Australia
and
Argentina
arethemostsuccessfulnationalteamsamongwomen.The
Netherlands
wasthepredominantwomen'steambeforefieldhockeywasaddedtoOlympicevents.In
theearly1990s,
Australia
emergedasthestrongestwomen'scountryalthoughretirementofanumberof
playersweakenedtheteam.
Argentina
improveditsplayonthe2000s,headingIFHrankingsin2003,
2010and2013.Otherprominentwomen'steamsare
China
,
SouthKorea
,
Germany
and
SouthAfrica
.
AsofJune2013Germany'smen'steamandtheNetherlands'women'steamsleadtheFIHworld
[
citationneeded
]
rankings.
Thisisalistofthemajor
Internationalfieldhockeytournaments
,inchronologicalorder.Tournaments
includedare:
OlympicGames
heldeveryfouryears.
WorldCup
heldeveryfouryears,inbetweentheOlympics.
ChampionsTrophy
currentlyheldeveryyear,forthetop8rankednations.
ChampionsChallenge
heldeveryyearforteamsranked9th16thintheworld.
ChampionsChallengeII
heldeveryyearforteamsranked17th24thintheworld.
Althoughinvitationalornotopentoallcountries,thefollowingarealsoconsideredinternational
tournaments:
CommonwealthGames
heldeveryfouryearsbetweenmembersoftheCommonwealthof
Nations
SultanAzlanShahHockeyTournament
heldannuallyinMalaysia,aninvitational
tournament.
SultanIbrahimIsmailHockeyTournament
heldannuallyforathletesagedunder21in
Malaysia,aninvitationaltournament.
Variants
Hockey5s
[
edit
]
Asthenamesuggests,Hockey5sisahockeyvariantwhichfeaturesfiveplayersoneachteam(which
mustincludeagoalkeeper).Thefieldofplayis55mlongand41.70mwidethisisapproximatelyhalf
thesizeofa
regularpitch
.Fewadditionalmarkingsareneededasthereisnopenaltycirclenorpenalty
cornersshotscanbetakenfromanywhereonthepitch.Penaltystrokesarereplacedbya"challenge"
whichisliketheoneononemethodusedina
penaltyshootout
.Thedurationofthematchisthree
12minuteperiodswithanintervaloftwominutesbetweenperiods.Therulesaresimpleranditis
intendedthatthegameisfaster,creatingmoreshotsongoalwithlessplayinmidfield,andmore
[25]
attractivetospectators.
AnAsianqualificationtournamentfortwoplacesatthe
2014YouthOlympicGames
wasthefirsttimean
FIHeventusedtheHockey5sformat.Hockey5swasalsousedforthe
YouthOlympichockey
tournament
,andatthe
PacificGames
in2015.

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