Section 7: Violations & Penalties
Free Pass
A free pass is awarded to the non-offending team for technical infringements that do not involve interference with an opponent. The non-offending team takes the pass from where the infringement occurred. Free pass infringements include:
- Footwork
- Held ball (failure to release within 3 seconds)
- Replayed ball
- Over-a-third
- Offside (a player entering an area not permitted to their position)
- Short pass (a pass at which the catcher's arms could touch the thrower's arms — too short to be a legitimate pass)
- Breaking at the centre pass (a player leaving their position before the umpire's whistle)
Penalty Pass
A penalty pass is awarded to the non-offending team for infringements involving interference with an opponent — contact and obstruction. The penalty pass is taken from where the infringement occurred. Critically, the offending player must "stand out of play" alongside the player taking the penalty pass and may not move or attempt to intercept until the ball has left the hands of the player taking the pass.
Penalty Pass or Shot
A penalty pass awarded inside the shooting circle for a defending team's infringement may, at the option of the attacking team's GS or GA, be taken as a shot at goal — a "penalty pass or shot." The offending defender stands out of play.
Toss-Up — Removed (2024 Edition)
The toss-up restart, in which the umpire put the ball into play between two opposing players after simultaneous infringement, was removed in the 2024 Edition. Restarts that previously used a toss-up are now resolved per the updated procedures specified in the Rules text.
Discipline
- Caution: Verbal warning to a player for unsporting conduct
- Suspension: A player may be suspended from the match for a defined period (typically 2 minutes) for repeated unsporting conduct or a serious infringement; the team plays short during the suspension
- Ordering off: A player ordered off takes no further part in the match; the team plays short for the remainder of the match (with substitution permitted at the next interval per competition rules)
- Discipline applies equally to court players and to bench officials