The rule book defines kicking the ball as "...intentionally striking it with the knee or any party of the leg or foot below the knee." If a player extends a leg to the side and the ball stops right at his/her foot preventing the ball from rolling out of bounds, is he/she guilty of "striking" and therefore kicking the ball? What if they trap the ball by having it come to rest beneath the foot while the heel is on the ground as a soccer player might?
I called a violation in the former case with the justification that the player took advantage of his foot to gain an advantage. But was it kicking the ball as defined?
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