Originally Posted by Anonymous
Any rule change that still includes the ball in the back of the stick is horrible. The back of the stick is not intended to carry the ball.


I proposed the face off circle earlier, and think many of these comments on top of it are very good. This poster is correct. It is inevitable that there will be rules against play to carry the ball in back of the stick. If the FOGOs want a better rule, they'd better propose a good one for the rule committee. There is no way that a face off rule will be adopted if it includes unlimited running around the restraining area with the ball in the back of the stick. Counting a ball picked up in the back of a stick as a possession is not going to fly either. Those are just guesses of mine and don't consider me an authority.

Basically the pieces of a better rule are:
1. No illegal heads. The game needs specific rules on pinched heads which are enforced like the curve on a hockey stick. There should be no such thing as a face off device that is not the same specs as a field player stick.
2. Players can pinch and pop the ball, but the space on the field to do this needs to be restrained. A face off circle area or a smaller restraining box. The current restraining box I don't believe will cut it with the rule writers.
3. Clarity on the debate over whether ball lifted on back of the stick is a possession to release the restrain. I don't think that having the ball pinched on back of stick should count, and that is why I like the face off circle. FOGO leaves the circle with the ball on the back of stick = loss of possession. FOGO pops ball out or passes it out before leaving the circle, then ok.

This rule happened to take away playing lacrosse in the back of the stick. A rule modification proposal to make it so FOGO's play less with ball in back of stick makes for a losing battle I believe.