Soccer Rules: Throw Ins

There are many techniques in the game of soccer that all of us may not be familiar with. One of these is the throw in. When the ball goes out of play, the referee blows his whistle and a sideline official points in a direction to indicate whose throw it is. The ball is given to the team opposite of the last team to touch the ball before it went out of bounds. The players may seem to just chuck the ball back into play, but there are actually strict rules that have to be understood when doing a throw in.

Rules of a Throw In

Throw ins have the benefit of being free from offsides, so that makes them valuable strategically for getting the ball into play. When a player throws the ball into play, he must throw the ball over his head with both hands on the ball. It is illegal to throw one handed or to throw from the side. Also, a player must keep both of their feet on the ground when they release the ball. When the thrower releases the ball into play, it must be touched by another player before it is touched by them again or this is a foul. Throw ins cannot be throws into the goal for a point.

Origins and Strategy of the Throw In

The traditions of the throw in come from early English games, especially early forms of rugby. Being a traditional sport, soccer has maintained the rules since then. Throw ins can be extremely strategic and even result in goals. Most players cannot make the distance from sideline to the goal box where a teammate can head or strike the ball into the goal. There have been a few players in soccer history who have had great skill in throwing in for assisted goals, but most players do not have the strength to throw that far. Most throw ins are either down the line towards goal, down the line back to the defense, or a short throw to a nearby player.

The Handspring Throw In

A seldom used, but somewhat famous technique for throw ins is the handspring throw in. Like the bicycle kick, a seldom used but famous shooting technique, this strange and innovative throw in uses the momentum of a handspring to release a much stronger throw. The player flips vertically, resting all of their weight on the ball that is pressed against the ground. Then they flip forward and released the ball over their head with their feet firmly planted. This move does not violate any of the rules of the game and can help players throw as far as 30 yards.

Throw ins, after being decided by the official, have a certain amount of lee-way in some ways despite being strict in others. Players routinely take advantage of official's patience by throwing the ball in a few yards closer than where the ball actually went out. Players will also often take a few steps when throwing so that they are closer than where they started and have some momentum to help them throw.

Though throw ins only take up a small percentage of the overall time of a match, they are an important technique of any soccer player.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Throw-in