[blindzebra]

Originally posted by WyMike

There's my point... My view is inherently different from the coaches and bleachers. I've had one seasoned official give me his blanket call of always on B1 for pushing since B1 was making the play towards the ball.

Another mentions he'll whistle A1 for the arm being up shielding the ball.

Yet another has a philosophy of "incidental" and let it go whether they go to ground or not.

Now I'm not talking about the obvious B1 mowing A1 over type of thing, nor A1 with an obvious PC on B1 type of calls.

It's these marginal one way or the other type of plays that are being addressed in the thread.

I kind of like the response by mick: Was B1 moving toward A1? If yes, foul on B1.
Was A1 put at a disadvantage, (ie, being on the floor caused by the action of B1)? If yes, foul on B1.

With no one falling, was A1 displaced or put at a disadvantage (ie, stumbling or displaced and unable to retrieve the ball) when the contact occurred? If yes, foul on B1. If no, incidental.

This particular time B1 knocked the ball cleanly away but Coach A screamed for reach call. Coach B wanted the push call for the arm being up. Both A1 and B1 angled to the line opposite the score table bumped shoulders, stumbled and went down while the ball rolled ahead and A2 picked up the ball on a dead run and went straight to goal and scored.

So between both coaches they wanted a reach call on B1, a shield call on A1, and they both would have taken push calls on the other player. Coach B was especially upset since A2 scored and felt the play should have been whistled.

I felt it was "Incidental Contact" that may have escalated into something I should have called.

Is micks rendition pretty solid to go by until I get more games under my belt?

No, the fact that BOTH coaches wanted a foul is a good indication that your no-call was 100% correct.

Be in position and see the ENTIRE play, and judge. We can all throw, "If it is this you call that," stuff at you, but you still have to judge the play on what you saw.