As the story goes, the rulesmakers in women’s lacrosse found themselves with a problem when it came to trying to give attackers a fair chance to score. Even with seven or perhaps eight people on offense and/or defense, defenders would slough off of their marks, creating a barricade in front of the goal cage.
Up until the mid-to-late 70s, there was only one field marking in the game: a goal circle, which was a change from the early days of the game when a square was painted around the goal. But the rulesmakers would come up with the arc-and-fan architecture not only for 8-meter free positions, but to demarcate the area in front of the goal where close defenders were required to be within a stick length of an opponent.
Defensive concepts and offensive tactics have chased each other in a game of cat-and-mouse ever since, and not just in the critical scoring area, but all over the pitch, even in the midfield.
Athletes Unlimited has come up with a couple of interesting concepts over the last three years of the pro game, and has done something interesting in the fourth season, which began this week. There is now a squared-off area at the top of the crease that reminds one of the early days of the game when the crease was fully square. The area is intended to be one to be kept clear for the goalie as well as for the safety of the players.
It’s a small wedge, one which is only a few square feet in size, but I’m seeing a bit more space in front of the cage. There’s also a rules interpretation which is part of the reason: in the first three seasons, umpires could only make a call for blockading the goal on a group of players. Now, with the new field marking, a single player could be sanctioned.
Given the severe penalty on a team for hitting a player in front of the goal (a red-card ejection), I think this is a start when it comes to balancing attacking and defending responsibilities when it comes to player safety.