Non-releasable!

[Ballen]

I was hoping today’s V game was going to be a barnburner, but, alas, the favorite was dominant. 14-2 and a running clock shortly into the third period.

I had a slash that I administered a one minute non-releasable and I wonder what would you have done.

Shot on goal, both A1 and B1 have a play on a ball that has been deflected high (30 feet?) in front of the crease. A1 bumps B1 ever so slightly and just as the ball is in reach of both players. A1 deflects the ball past B1 and moves in front among a gaggle of players. B1 seems to retaliate for the bump and slashes A1 across the back of the legs.

Flag and whistle (ball was loose). B1 goes to the box for 1 minute/non-releasable.

I guess my question is for what or when do you administer non-releasable personals and for how long?

[RILAX]

Technically these are the only times that a non-matching penalty can be non-releasable are:

The first three provisions of the unsportsmanlike penalty
Spearing (A form of the illegal body check penalty)
Illegal cross
Illegal equipment
And expulsion fouls

Now this was not a major problem until this year because you could call it unsportsmanlike conduct and it is just one of the 5 fouls going to the disqualifying. The NFHS has now made it so that two USCs will get the player an expulsion foul. I wish that they also made an “intentional” personal foul call that would make a slash, tripping penalty, etc, locked in (based on the officials judgment).

Reading the play it seems that there probable was unsportsmanlike conduct on the play that would result in a locked-in penalty (not being there can’t say that it was). If it wasn’t you could give a 2 or 3 minute slashing call.

[stevesmith]

I guess one of the things I really like about lacrosse is also what I really hate....flexibility when administering fouls. It's not like most other sports where there are pre-determined enforcements of fouls. Our general rule of thumb is to let a player work up to the more severe enforcements, but there are always exceptions, and only you as the official can decide when and how to determine those differences. From what you described, that was probably the proper call to make. I was working a tournament last February when a new official on another field caused all kinds of chaos when he called a 3-minute non-release slash just a couple of minutes into the game. Granted I didn't see the play, but I guess he went a little overboard due to all the talk surrounding it the rest of the day. But when the supervisors were talking to him later, they explained that you normally try to follow a progression....start with a one minute releasable, then a one minute non-release, then so on. But to start immediately with the 3-minute non-release left no where to go but ejection.

In the usual course of contact between a defender and the attacking player, accidental slashes do occur and I believe those should be non-release the first time, and maybe even the second time. In your example of the intentional slash, I think you were correct in making it non-releasable. As an example of the other extreme, there was a player tonight who decided he would rather fight than play. He was cross-checked by the defender and that foul was called...one-minute releasable. But then the offended player decided to fight even as the defender tried to make his way to the penalty area, so he was immediately ejected, no questions asked.

The bottom line is that there is no right or wrong answer to your question. As one of our local COC big dogs likes to say..."you're getting paid for your judgement, sometimes you have to earn your money".

[Snake~eyes]

Originally posted by RILAX
Technically these are the only times that a non-matching penalty can be non-releasable are:

The first three provisions of the unsportsmanlike penalty
Spearing (A form of the illegal body check penalty)
Illegal cross
Illegal equipment
And expulsion fouls

I'm not sure what you mean by non-matching, but simultaneous fouls is one other way to have non-releaseable, I assume that's what you mean by non-matching.

[RILAX]

Originally posted by Snake~eyes

I'm not sure what you mean by non-matching, but simultaneous fouls is one other way to have non-releaseable, I assume that's what you mean by non-matching.

Technically simultaneous fouls as defined in 7-6 are slightly different than fouls defined in 7-2-4 which can include dead ball fouls with definite order to them so I call them "matching" just to keep the two separate.

[glbski]

It's either a slashing call or Unsportsmanlike. If it's slashing it's releasable...if it's USC it then it is non-releasable. It is the official's judgement as to length of time for the foul.

With the added weight of the USC (two and done, plus the next game), unless there was some other extenuating circumstance, you might want to consider adding time to the slahing call by making it a 2 or 3 minute penalty. It will have the desired effect with the player and the coach. If the same kind of deliberate activity were to repeat, you can then move to an Unsportsmanlike Conduct call, again assessing 1 to 3 minutes based on judgement.

Just my two cents.