Slide Tackling in High School

[EHSParent]

It is primarily a problem with instruction (coaching) and enforcement by the refs. who really DO let the girls get away with a lot of cheap stuff. I have seen many, many well executed slide tackes. It is part of the game, though. As I stated earlaier, it is a beautiful play when done well, and is not just a tactic used by slower, weaker players to compensate.

[woodeng]

Banning sliding tackles would be crazy. Its an important part of the game, its one of few things a defender has in their favour. Should not be difficult for a referee to control, if a player goes sliding with "studs up" or tackles the player before the ball, then its a foul or a card. Its a shame more players do not become refs, this would solve many problems with officiating.

[nizolek]

atdenton:

I appreciate your perspectives. You gave me some things to think about. Your tone was constructive and I commend you for it.

[MVM]

G--Your sentiments are noble, as usual, but the problem is that coaches don't teach and referees don't enforce.

 

Some alternatives to outright banning of slide tackles that will require coaches and referees to put some skin in the game, so to speak:

--Make referees and and coaches prepare a report to the TSSAA if an injury occurs that is serious enough that a player has to leave a game.

--Mandate safety training for coaches and for referees.

--Mandate that coaches spend a certain amount of time addressing player safety in practice.

--Others?

 

Before you just say no to these things, think of all the girls you know in your school and others who cannot play or will not play because they've been seriously injured or they fear serious injury. I'd would suggest that taking safety measures such as the ones I list above would improve participation and also improve the game.

 

Let the debate begin.

 

 

Hold on take a deep breath....Mandate this......take a class for that......teach this......Refs call that...... Geez, Is soccer not a contact sport?? Is it not a phyicial sport? Are injuries going to happen, yes. Hate to say it but it's part of the game. And has always been part of the game.

I know this might come across as being callius, but I love this game as is.

 

Yes, there are weak coaches and weak refs out there, but to start mandating more meetings over knee jerk reactions in MY OPINION is not the answer. Natural evolution of the game will take care of this....Stronger coaches will take the jobs of weaker ones, stronger Refs will get the bigger more phyicial games.

 

I know this will not be a popular response, but it is a honest one.

[Canesoverhere]

Several posts focused on ACLs injuries. I have been through four seaparate knee surgeries, two ACL repairs. The incidence is increasing and there has been more literature sharing that women seem to have a higher incidence...Here are a couple of quotes from a recent article....for those who care to read on.

 

ACL Injuries in Female Athletes

 

The speed, power, and intensity of women's sports have dramatically increased over the past decade. With this style of play has come an increase in musculoskeletal injuries. One of the more common injuries is a sprain or rupture of the ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) of the knee. In the sports that involve cutting, planting and changing direction (football, soccer, basketball, skiing, gymnasics, field hockey, ice hockey, wrestling, lacrosse, rugby, tennis) the ACL plays a vital role.

 

Injury Statistics

 

According to 1998 injury statistics from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, more than 81,600 people injured their knee playing soccer, and 225,800 sustained injuries in basketball. Gymnastics, soccer and basketball are followed by field hockey, volleyball, lacrosse and softball as sports that cause ACL injury in females. Studies show that women are 2 to 8 times as likely as men to have an ACL injury. (4) In 1995, an article was published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine that found that female basketball players in the NCAA tore their ACLs four times more often than male basketball players. In the same study, women who played NCAA soccer sustained ACL injuries twice as often as male soccer players. An estimated 200,000 ACL injuries occur annually in the United States. Approximately 60,000-75,000 ACL reconstructions are performed each year.

 

Causes of Injury

The reasons why this is the case are not easily explained. It is helpful to divide these causes into two groups:

1. Mechanisms of Injury

2. Anatomical and Hormonal Factors

 

Mechanisms of Injury

 

Most ACL injuries are non-contact related: running and cutting sharply in a more erect posture than in men, landing from a jump without bending the knees sufficiently, and playing on surfaces with a high coefficient of friction. The level of skill and experience of the athlete is always of significance. Of course, contact injuries like a direct blow to the knee from the rear or side can cause a tear in the ACL. The tear usually occurs in the mid-portion of the ligament which is the weakest part.

 

"Commonly, the athlete runs, suddenly stops, and then turns, thereby causing a deceleration of the lower limb, a forced hyperextension of the knee, or a forced tibial rotation...." "Other mechanisms include an internal rotary force applied to a femur on a fixed weight-bearing tibia, an external rotation force with a valgus [outward] force, or a straight anterior force applied to the back of the leg, forcing the tibia forward relative to the femur."

 

References

1 ACL Injuries in Women

2 ACL Injuries in Women

3 New Research Suggests Hormones Put Females at Higher Risk of ACL Injury

4 Pettineo, et. al. Female ACL Injury Prevention With a Functional Integration Exercise Model. Strength and Conditioning Journal. Vol 26 No1, pp.28-33.

5 Back in the Game 6 Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury

 

For more information on ACL injuries in women see Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries in Female Athletes: Why Are Women More Susceptible?

and

Training improves outcomes ACL outcomes in female athletes

[KeeperFan15]

Keep the slide tackle; its part of the game. Coaches; coach technique. Officials; officiate. Parents; root, suppport, and pray. TSSAA is not; nor will be, concerned about the quality of officiating in High School Soccer. I say this with all due respect to the majority of referees that post on this board. I am sure that you are very involved in your local associations and want to see the overall quality improve. Unfortunately, there are just too few of you.

 

A good slide tackle is a thing of beauty. IMHO it is as much a skill as bending the ball from the corner. One of the best that I have witnessed was Courtney Ginn at Blackman a few years ago. It was ususally a last resort, because she was ususally one of the fastest players on the field. I think that the issue is that when it is done badly, it needs to be dealt with by the officials. Just like any other dangerous play on the field.

[BigG]

atdenton,

 

I'll be the first to say it... thanks for what you do. Thanks for educating yourself, and being evaluated on a consistant basis. Thanks for doing a thankless job, for very little pay. Thanks for responding with class and reserve to posts that would incite most people to wrath.

 

You can come up an ref in Knoxville anytime.

[KeeperFan15]

atdenton

 

See my modified post. Fat fingered the post as I answered the phone. My intent was not to throw all refs under the bus. You are right about a whole nother topic. Since recognition of a problem is the first step to solving the problem, I wish Gene the best of luck. I just don't believe that it has filtered down to the assignor or assessor level based on my conversations with them. Believe it or not, these folks work and go to church with some of us and we would recognize them if they were in the stands.

 

Of probably 15 ACL injuries that I have seen over the past several years to young ladies, only 1 was a contact injury and not a slide.

 

You are right on with Advantage. Momma/Daddy wants a whistle and a public apology if Suzy is fouled, even if Betty Lou has an open goal to shoot at.

[EHSParent]

Can I squeeze in a little question . . . not on this topic, but because some refs are viweing and commenting here.

I have recently seen a call from refs. . . . sort of like an offside call, but instead they move their hand back and forth in front of them, somewhat like an "over and back" viloation in basketball. Then the non-offending team gets a free kick. Is this essentially an offside call. maybe the player was "off" then the ball was kicked but then came back and recived it "on-side"? Therefore the "over and back" type hand movement.

I just had not seen this call until recently.

[BigG]

Can I squeeze in a little question . . . not on this topic, but because some refs are viweing and commenting here.

I have recently seen a call from refs. . . . sort of like an offside call, but instead they move their hand back and forth in front of them, somewhat like an "over and back" viloation in basketball. Then the non-offending team gets a free kick. Is this essentially an offside call. maybe the player was "off" then the ball was kicked but then came back and recived it "on-side"? Therefore the "over and back" type hand movement.

I just had not seen this call until recently.

 

The player was in an offsides position when the ball was kicked, but received the ball in an onsides position (since the call is made when the ball is played) So, yes, you are correct.

[EHSParent]

The player was in an offsides position when the ball was kicked, but received the ball in an onsides position (since the call is made when the ball is played) So, yes, you are correct.

 

Thanks, BigG. I was stupified last night (a not unfrequent occurrence), but then thought I might have figured it out on the ride to work.

[akula21]

atdenton,

 

I'll be the first to say it... thanks for what you do. Thanks for educating yourself, and being evaluated on a consistant basis. Thanks for doing a thankless job, for very little pay. Thanks for responding with class and reserve to posts that would incite most people to wrath.

 

You can come up an ref in Knoxville anytime.

 

 

 

atdenton, what are you doing on feb 15th at midnite? I heard two crazy coaches are playing a game then. /rolleyes.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":rolleyes:" border="0" alt="rolleyes.gif" />