Redwood Empire Water Polo
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Interpretations
and Clarifications Released: 24 February, 2000 Effective Immediately
From: Water Polo News Poster [uswp-news-poster@uswp.org] Dear Water Polo Enthusiast: The US Water Polo Officiating Manual Committee has met and approved changes for a new edition of the Manual. In addition, we have presented it to the FINA Technical Water Polo Committee (TWPC), the group that makes the FINA rules and interpretations, which we use in US Water Polo. The FINA TWPC is considering the new Manual and plan to make recommendations for changes and corrections for the final version that we will publish. However, in the meantime, we wanted to notify you of some clarifications of interpretations that will be in the Officiating Manual. The clarifications and interpretations are to be used effective immediately for all US Water Polo competitions. In addition, some special points of emphasis to referees have been included here as well. They are listed below in the order that they appear in the Manual and are not listed in order of importance. (1) Referee Uniforms. Referees should wear the appropriate uniforms as prescribed by the governing body sanctioning the contest. Currently, the uniform consists of a white collared shirt, white pants, white socks, and white shoes. If a cap, hat, jacket, or rain gear is worn, it should also be white. If a tournament provides an alternate colored uniform, referees should wear the tournament uniform if the tournament provides enough uniforms so that all the referees can be dressed in this alternate uniform. The two game officials should be dressed in the same uniform. However, please note that a change in uniforming has been suggested. The details are being worked out between the FINA TWPC, USWP, and the NCAA. When the change in uniforming occurs, you will be notified. Until that time, white is the prescribed color, unless a tournament uniform of an alternate color is provided. (2) Out-of-Bounds. Whenever the ball passes completely behind the goal line (face of the
goal) or side line, the ball is out-of-bounds. This (3) Re-Entry Area In Non-Standard Pools. In very wide but short pools (e.g. 25 meters by 25 meters where the field of play is 25 meters by 17 or 20 meters), it is permissible for the re-entry area to be located immediately outside the sideline against the wall. In short, narrow pools (e.g. 25 meters by 17 meters), excluded players should sit on the deck at the corner of the pool. When the player is eligible to enter, that individual should slide into the water and swim out into the field of play without pushing off from the wall. (4) Red and Yellow Cards. A yellow card is a visible warning signal to the head coach. It means that the head coach must remain seated and may no longer advance to the 4-meter line when the team is on offense. Yellow cards are issued for a single game and do not carry over to subsequent games. The referee may issue a yellow or red card to the head coach. However, any other person in the team area (assistant coach, team official, substitute) is to receive a red card immediately. When a red card is issued, the person(s) indicated must leave the pool deck. If a coach or other team official is issued a red card, that individual may not be at the team bench and participate in the next game of that team at that tournament. Red cards do not carry over beyond a single tournament. (5) When An Exclusion Carries Over Between Periods. If a shot is taken at the end of a period and the ball goes out-of-bounds without being touched by the defensive team, the teams start even up at the beginning of the next period. In all other cases, the excluded player or substitute must remain in the re-entry area at the start of the next period. In principle, if the ball would have been awarded to the defending team if there were time remaining on the clock, then the teams start even. If the ball would not necessarily have been awarded to the defending team, then the team with the excluded player starts with a player in the re-entry area. For example, if a ball is tipped out-of-bounds by the defending team, that team starts the sprint with a player in the re-entry area. If the goalkeeper catches the ball on a shot (or rebound from a shot) immediately after the signal for the end of the period, then the teams start even. (6) May NOT Take Direct Shot on Free Throw If Ball Leaves the Field of Play. Whenever the ball has left the field of play (area between the two side lines and the two end lines), the resulting goal throw or free throw may not be shot directly at the opponent's goal. (7) Sanction for an Eighth/Ineligible Player. If an eighth player enters the field of play during live time, the player is excluded for the remainder of the game. Play resumes with a penalty throw taken by the opposing team with the teams at even strength. (8) Illegal Reentry by a Player on the Defending Team. If a player reenters the field of play illegally and does not interfere with play, then the player should be excluded. This is for a player or substitute who reenters illegally (for example, pushing off the wall or bottom of the pool, etc.) after the expiration of the 20 second exclusion period. If a player or substitute reenters the field of play early or reenters the field of play illegally at the end of the exclusion period with a “clear intent to interfere with play,” a penalty foul is awarded. The excluded player or substitute must return to the re-entry area for the remainder of the exclusion period, until there is a score, or until the defending team regains possession of the ball. If the attacking team is in a position to shoot at goal, the referee shall wait to see if a goal is scored before stopping play. If a goal is scored, the penalty throw is not awarded, but a personal foul is recorded against the offending player. If a goal is not scored, the referee shall then immediately award a penalty throw. (9) Lining Up and Starting Play. At the beginning of the game and every quarter, the two referees are to line up at the halfway marks on opposite sides of the pool. The referee dropping the ball into the sprint area (tableside) should raise the left arm to a horizontal position, indicating that the table and referee are ready to start. The other referee should raise an arm to indicate to indicate that the team on that side is ready. For example, if the team to the right of that referee is ready, the referee raises the right arm. If that team then moves out of position, then the referee should lower that arm. The referee on the side of the table should aid in ensuring the teams are getting into position. At the moment the second referee has both arms raised, the starting referee should immediately blow the whistle and drop his/her arm from a horizontal position to start the sprint. (10) Restart After the Ball Goes Out-of-Bounds. When the ball goes out-of-bounds on the side of the pool, the goal judge (or table) should throw the ball to the nearest player behind the place where the ball went out-of-bounds. In principle, the ball is most often thrown directly to the goalkeeper. If the ball goes out-of-bounds, players should retrieve the ball only if it is immediately outside the field of play (next to a lane line) when they do not need to leave the field of play. Players should not leave the field of play to retrieve a ball. The ball should be throw to them as quickly as possible by the goal judge and/or table. (11) Substitutions for Excluded Players. Any eligible player may substitute for any other player. In the case of an exclusion, it is the player that is excluded and not a position. For example, if a goalkeeper is excluded, a substitute wearing a goalkeeper’s cap may re-enter the pool for an exiting field player. In this instance, although the original goalkeeper was excluded, the team can play the player advantage period with a substitute goalkeeper (with all the goalkeeper’s privileges), five field players, and a field player in the re-entry area just as long as the substitution was done legally (from the re-entry area during live time or from any location during timeouts or between periods). (12) Visible Signalization for Time to Put Ball in Play. A free throw to put the ball in play must be made within a reasonable amount of time and without undue delay. As a rule of thumb, 3 seconds from the time when a player gets control of the ball is a reasonable amount of time to put the ball into play. Referees should count the 3 seconds visibly by making horizontal or vertical strokes with one arm. (13) Putting the Ball in Play. Players are to put the ball in play by releasing the ball in such a way that other players, the referees, and the timers can see it, for example, tossing the ball into the air, visibly dropping the ball onto the surface of the water, or passing the ball. Players must put the ball in play prior to swimming (dribbling) the ball. Failure to put the ball in play is an ordinary foul, and the opposing team is awarded the ball at the point of the foul. Referees are to enforce this provision of the rules without exception. (14) Method for Taking a Timeout. The teams must huddle in their defensive half of the playing field. They may not enter the opposing team's half of the playing field until the table (or referee) has signaled (with a horn or whistle) that 45 seconds of the timeout has elapsed. All players may be freely substituted during a timeout. Players may take whatever position they want in the pool (including the goalkeeper, except the goalkeeper may not pass the halfway mark). At full time, the referee should blow a whistle for the ball to be put in play (by the team calling the timeout). Both teams should be warned to get into position before the referee signals for the ball to be put in play. The referee is not obligated to wait until there is no advantage to either team before putting the ball into play. If the defending team is ready at the end of the timeout and the team calling the timeout is not ready (still talking and not making progress towards the playing field), the referee may turn the ball over to the defending team for undue delay by the attacking team in taking a free throw. (15) Waving in Excluded Players. During live time, as soon as the referee has determined that there is a change of possession, that official is to indicate the new direction of attack with a horizontally held arm. As soon as the excluded player sees this signal, that player is allowed to reenter the field of play from the re-entry area. Although referees are encouraged to make a “wave in” signal, the player does not have to await that signal to reenter. If a player has not yet reached the re-entry area when the referee signals a change in possession, the player must still exit the pool into the re-entry area before coming back in and participating in the play. Once a referee awards and signals a change in possession of the ball (ball going out-of-bounds, ball under by the attacking team, offensive foul, etc.), an excluded player in the re-entry area may reenter the field of play immediately and does not have to wait for the referee to wave that individual in. This means that the player may re-enter the field of play before the ball in put into play by his/her team. However, referees are still encouraged to 'wave' the excluded player back in although it is not necessary for the excluded player to await the wave-in signal before re-entering the field of play. (16) Ball Under. Ball under is when a player takes the ball under water when tackled. As a rule of thumb, tackled means there is contact to the shoulder, arm, forearm, wrist, or hand on the side of the hand holding the ball. When the entire ball is fully submerged under these conditions, then ball under should be called. Referees should call ball under only if there is physical contact between the two players. If there is no contact (without impact), then ball under should not be called. Likewise, if the ball goes under for only a fraction of a second without impact, then ball under should not be called. In any event, referees must call ball under consistently from period-to-period and game-to-game. The 35-second possession clock is reset for ball under only if there is a change in possession. A change in possession requires that a player have control of the ball. For example, if a defending player reaches around an attacking player and takes the ball under, there is no reset of the possession clock as that defender did not have control of the ball. (17) Empty Goal Fouls. By definition, if the goal is empty (no defending player in the goal), the probability of scoring a goal is high. Whenever a goalkeeper leaves the goal, many fouls on an attacking player in possession of the ball or the intended recipient of a good pass (inside the 4-meter area) could result in a penalty foul. A penalty foul cannot be called for a foul committed outside the 4-meter area. A goalkeeper who fouls a player outside the 4-meter area who is at the lead end of the counterattack has usually taken away that player’s positional advantage. Therefore, an exclusion foul is often called in this situation. Criteria for deciding an appropriate foul should be the same for the goalkeeper as for any other defending player. The referee should remember that often there is another player (goalkeeper) between the person committing the foul and the goal. Therefore, if the goalkeeper moves out and commits a foul, and at the same time, another defending player has gone into and is able to defend the goal, then the goalkeeper has not committed an empty goal foul (because there is a player in the goal). The appropriate foul, depending on what the goalkeeper did, should be called in this instance. (18) Handchecking Is an Exclusion Foul. Handchecks are contacts made by a defender that blocks the forward motion of, or forcibly redirects the movement of, an opposing player. Typically, handchecks prevent a horizontal attacking player (swimming) from passing a vertical defender (nonswimming). Handchecking is an exclusion foul. These fouls occur most often after an ordinary foul is called at set. Another form of this foul is when the defensive player stretches an arm outside shoulder width, grabs the driver, and rolls under the driver. If the referee does not watch and catch the whole sequence, it looks as if an attacking player is swimming over a defender, which would be an offensive foul. In actuality, it should be an exclusion on the defender for grabbing and holding the driver. (19) Violence and Brutality Calls. Referees should think of the three levels of sanction, single exclusion for kicking or striking, game exclusion with substitution for violence, and game exclusion without substitution for brutality. It does not matter who commits the foul; these fouls, especially violence and brutality, must always be called. In the case of brutalities, referees should not be thinking of the consequence of the call (to the player, to the team in this game and the next game); if a brutality was committed, it must be called. (20) Reporting of Brutality Calls. After a referee calls a brutality and submits a written report to the tournament or competition committee, the tournament or competition director must submit a written report to the US Water Polo National Office documenting the circumstances and individuals involved in the brutality call. This report must be filed as soon as possible, but no later than a week from the date of the call. Sincerely, -- Ph: 601-942-7270
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