Field Hockey Goaltending

In North America, hockey is called field hockey because of the popular game played on ice. Go Rangers! Like ice hockey, the team uses sticks to try to hit, push or flick the balls into the opponents' goal. As other hockey and field sports, two teams play on opposing ends. The two teams either play offense or defense. The offense, the team with the ball, in field hockey is called attackers. The goal of the game is for one team to score by placing the ball in the other team's net.

Each team can have up to sixteen players. Eleven players are allowed to be on the pitch at one time. The other five can be used as substitutes. These can be played one at a time or all five at once. Players can be moved in and out of the game at any time. There is an unlimited amount of times players can be substituted.

There are no set positions in a field hockey game. They can arrange themselves in whatever way they believe will help them in the game. However, most teams use a formation similar to a football team. They use fullbacks for defense, halfbacks to play in the middle of the field and forwards to play in the frontline.

While it is not required, one player can be assigned to be the goaltender. She is the only player who is allowed to touch the ball with other parts of her body.

The goaltender is the most important position in field hockey. It is also one of the hardest since goaltenders have to move quickly to protect the goal and to block shots. A good goaltender gives her team the tactical advantage in a game.

As a minimum, the goaltender must wear a helmet, leg guards and kickers. Her shirt must be a different color than the rest of the team members.
She can be a fully equipped goaltender by wearing other protective equipment such as chest guards, arm guards, padded hand protectors and padded shorts. She like all the other players on the team, she must carry a stick.

The goaltender may block or hit the ball with any part of her body or stick, when she is inside the scoring circle. If she is fully protected, she can not pass her defensive 23 meter line during play. The only exception to this rule is if she is taking a penalty shot at the other end of the field.

When tending the goal, the goal keeper should stand in front of the goal, but not in it. Her feet should be together. This helps prevent the ball from passing between her legs. If she needs to move, she can take short steps sideways.

She should put her weight on the balls of her feet, but should not stand on the tips of her toes. This helps the goaltender to stay alert, thus allowing her to move when the opponent's team comes within scoring range.

If the goaltender is just wearing the required minimum of a helmet and a different colored shirt, she can cross the 23 meter line. However, she has to remove her helmet and place it off the field of play. If she returns to the circle to defend the goal and does not have time to put the helmet back on, she can still use parts of her body to defend shots. She has to have her helmet on, however, when defending penalty corners and shots.

The goaltender must focus on the ball at all times. By keeping an eye on the ball, she knows what part of the goal she should be defending. She is protecting a goal that is seven feet high and twelve feet wide. If she loses concentration of the ball, it will be almost impossible in guessing what part of the goal to protect.

The goaltender must have good and fast reflexes. The ball is coming at a fast speed. If the goaltender does not have enough time to react, the ball will zoom past her into the goal. She also must be fast in her movements. She has to move quickly with her legs to cover the entire goal and likewise be quick with blocking with different parts of her body. Like all members on a field hockey team, she must continuously practice.

It is not required for a team to have a goaltender. However, if all eleven team members play in the outfield, nobody is allowed to wear a helmet or other goaltending equipment. They can only use the stick to play the ball; parts of the body are not allowed. While, in this case, the lack of a goaltender is a disadvantage, one extra player on the field creates a tactical advantage.

Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field_hockey