Field Hockey Rules
The Coin Toss
The game starts with a coin toss by the umpire. The home team gets the chance to choose between heads and tails and the team that wins the toss gets the choice to opt between the possession of the ball at the start of the game or the side of the field it would like to defend.
Match Time
All international matches are divided into two 35 minutes half and a halftime interval of 5 minutes.
Teams
11 players can be put on the field (including the goalkeeper) at the time of play. Substitutions are allowed at any time of the play except during penalty corners.
Positions
The positions in the game are not absolute, but generally the team arranges players into defense, midfield and attack.
Foot Foul
The players in the play are not allowed to use their feet or any other body part to control the ball. If the ball touches the feet of the player then in that case the umpire will either award a free hit to the opponent team or will continue the game if the other team gains an advantage. None except the goalkeeper is allowed to touch the ball with his hands, feet or any other body part to stop or strike the ball.
Air Ball
Firstly, the ball cannot be lifted in air until it is directly shot on the goal but it is allowed to be lifted until the referee does not considers it to be dangerous.
Game Rules (major changes in rules)
- The FIH first created and implemented rules on hockey in the 2007-08 season, while the first rulebook was officially released in March 2009.
- The off-side rule, which stated that no player could stay ahead of the ball when the ball is behind him, and there are less than three defenders between him and the goal he was attacking, was dropped after the 1996 Olympics.
- The international federation of women's hockey associations was formed in 1927, while the first women's field hockey world cup was played in 1974. Also, women's hockey became an Olympic event in 1980 whilst men's hockey became an Olympic event way before in the year 1928.
- Hockey has now become a 60 hour game with quarters of 15 minute each (breaks excluded)! The 70 minute game with no breaks in between is now history.
- In the earlier times, the implementation of the advantage rule meant that a team would gain an advantage, upon suffering a foul from the opposite side. But now, the umpire can keep the game continuing uninterruptably if the foul doesn't cost them a significant/mentionable infringement.
