Warding Off Scenerio

[michaeldwilson]

Rule 6-12
A player in possession of the ball may not use his free hand or arm or any
other part of his body to hold, push, or control the direction of the movement
of the crosse or the body of the player applying the check. A player in
possession of the ball may protect his crosse with his hand, arm, or other part
of his body when his opponent makes a play to check his crosse.

Question : If A1 is in possession and he attempts to use his free hand to
hold, push, or control the direction of the movement of the crosse or the body
of the player applying the check, but his hand does not contact the opponent or
his opponent’s crosse, is this warding off?

[spenny]

i wouldnt think so, given the concept of advantage. its analagous to a brush

[Snake~eyes]

Judgement call. There is no black and white for warding but if he is moving his free hand and there is contact then it is illegal. If he is holding his hand still then it is fine. I don't understand how you can "hold, push or control" without contact.

[LaxRef]

Originally posted by michaeldwilson
Question : If A1 is in possession and he attempts to use his free hand to
hold, push, or control the direction of the movement of the crosse or the body
of the player applying the check, but his hand does not contact the opponent or
his opponent’s crosse, is this warding off?

Absolutely not. If he tries but there's no contact made, there's no advanatage gained and no foul. This is analgous to a moving screen where there's no contact made. If you read the rule you quoted, you'll realize you can't hold, push, or control the crosse without making some contact.

Some coaches are confused on this point, but what else is new :-)

Another thing to be aware of with warding: Often the defending player will place his crosse under the free arm of the player with the ball, and the offensive player will lift his arm up to free it. This can *look* like a ward, but it's not, and people will yell that he's warding. I'll usuallly yell "Freeing movement!" or something similar, but I don't think most people know what I'm talking about.