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Obviously there's been much discussion about the DUC no-footblocks rule as per safety concerns, which are valid and understood.
Having said that, it occurred to me today that if you are not the marker, the danger of making a foot block is almost eliminated.
For example, if you are the top (or break-side) of a 3 person cup, you *must* be 3 meters away from the handler - making any kick of the handler's hand almost impossible (the safety concern). Yet, having a foot block in that scenario would be a huge improvement in the defensive arsenal.
With regard to the safety of people crashing the cup (which may not even be a concern, I don't know), I would question what has more potential for danger: the top of the cup leaning over the cutting side (head-on-head/knee collision), or the top of the cup kicking their foot?
Although as a league we have said 'no foot blocks', would it make sense to ask, 'do we want to allow non-markers to foot block?' Personally, I think it makes sense. |
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| If I were to dive to catch the disc thrown to me, I would rather not have the worry of a cleat in the face. |
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Is that any more likely/worse than getting a face in the face though? (i.e. butting heads)
Maybe I'm not understanding, but I would imagine that diving towards people is dangerous in any situation... |
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| I would agree that the no-footblock rule is generally understood as applying to markers only. It would be rare for them to be used otherwise and if they are, I think the safety risk is minimal. |
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One of my teammates last year took a foot to the face because he dove for a disc and the defending player decided to block the disc with their foot. This is a non-competitive league and I would rather not have to pay to replace a few missing teeth because of a foot to my mouth.
We may not be able to control other types of collisions but we can control the foot to face hits by having a no foot block rule ever. |
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| Jamie Racine wrote: | One of my teammates last year took a foot to the face because he dove for a disc and the defending player decided to block the disc with their foot. This is a non-competitive league and I would rather not have to pay to replace a few missing teeth because of a foot to my mouth.
We may not be able to control other types of collisions but we can control the foot to face hits by having a no foot block rule ever. |
Jamie - Sorry to hear about this incident last year. Did your teammate lose teeth when that contact occurred? In 10 years of playing in this league I have never seen a major injury (or even minor one) as a result of a foot block. As a comparison however, I've seen people's heads, shoulders, elbows and knees inflict significant damage on teammate's and opponents alike and we don't have specific rules for those body parts. If we outlaw non-marking players stopping a disc with their foot because it may contact another player I think we will see no difference in the number of injuries on the field.
I would also disagree with the statement that this a non-competetive league. I think through divisions, The "D" is more recreational and "C", "B" and "A" are more competitive the higher the division. At the last captains meeting we discussed allowing footblocks by markers in the "A" division only, to more accurately reflect the rules of the game. I believe we agreed that captains can agree to allow or disallow footblocks before any game (I thought this pertained to markers only).
There are obviously disparate viewpoints on this issue, it may require a vote at the fall captains meeting. |
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I think that footblocks should definitely be allowed in the league as it is a legitimate rule in ultimate and part of the game. I agree with everything Beatty said and maybe it should just be in A,B and C if they are deemed too competitive for the D division or let the captains of each division decide.
It is definitely used for the marker as a defense against the thrower and is not used to kick discs by someone down the field. Captains would be responsible for ensuring that their players knew how to do it safely and properly or not use it at all.
Since it is an actual rule of the game I feel that they should be used at least in the A and B division to help people better understand the game and learn all of the different aspects of the game. Lets make sure we bring it up at the Captains meeting for sure. |
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| The rule was meant to apply to the marker only. |
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Thought this was a funny picture on this topic (because it's not me):
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[sarc]You can clearly see the marker was fouled by the thrower.[/sarc]
Most people don't realize that foot blocks aren't a kick at the disk.
They are simply putting your shin up, and it's the act of the thrower hitting the foot not the foot hitting the thrower. |
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