[ayso45-refs] U8G - slide tackling

[Bob Henderson]

Let me answer your question from the perpective of a Referee.   There is
nothing in the Laws of the Game prohibiting "slide tackles" that are done
safely and do not otherwise meet the requirements for a foul (make contact
with the ball first,  do not endanger the safety of the opponent, are not
done in a careless, reckless manner or with excessive force).   Nor are
there any AYSO National rules or regulations that prohibit slide tackles at
any age.
 
That said,  I agree with you that it seems very unlikely that a U8, or even
a U10 player, can execute a slide tackle safely, without commiting a foul or
endangering himself or his opponent.  It is also unlikely that the opponent
has the control and physical ability to avoid tripping over the defender's
legs even if the tackle is done correctly.
 
In the U8 official course,  we, the instructors, suggest that any attempt at
a slide tackle be considered as "Dangerous Play" and a free kick be awarded
to the other team (direct for U8, and indirect for U10).    I would strongly
suggest that no coach should teach sliding tackles as a technique for that
age group and in fact should advise his or her players against them.
 
Additional comments are welcome from the Referee and Coach Adminstrators.

 Bob Henderson


Region 45 Director of Referee Instruction
Starships piloted,
  dragons slain,
    soccer refereed 

-----Original Message-----
From: Robert Blackburn [mailto:rblackburn at equinix.com] 
Sent: Tuesday, November 06, 2007 6:21 PM
To: Robert L. Henderson; kevinhendren at yahoo.com; leslie at cina.com
Cc: Drew VH; ayso45jane at yahoo.com
Subject: U8G - slide tackling


Hi all:
 

This email isn't a complaint about slide tackling per se, but about a lack
of specific direction on this topic for U8.  In the U8 section of the
coaching binder, there is no explicit direction on slide tackling-- whether
it's allowed or not allowed.  The only related direction given, is that
players are not to be ejected because that would be a loss of a teaching
opportunity.
 
Last week, a couple players on the opposing U8G team tried slide tackling.
There were only 3 attempts, no one was hurt, it didn't affect the outcome of
the game, etc.   I don't think the other coach was trying to teach it to
everyone, but there were at least 2 players who were trying to use the
technique.
 
The problem is, I don't think any U8 player can consistently control a slide
tackle and ensure an opposing player is never accidentally injured.  And I
know there are plenty of U8 players who have no idea what a slide tackle
is... 30% of my team never played organized soccer before this year!
 
Can we get some definitive guidelines from board people for coaches to know
whether slide tackling is allowed?  If it's not, all the coaches are on the
same page.  And if it will be allowed, then we can individually prepare our
players for potentially seeing a slide tackle and if we want teach the
technique.
 
Is this a reasonable request for clarification?  I would have asked sooner,
but I never saw a U8 player try slide tackling until this past weekend.
Thanks,
Robert   tel: 650 513-7152  /  mobile: 650 520-8559
U8G-15 / Blue Tigers 


  _____  

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://ayso45.org/pipermail/ayso45-refs_ayso45.org/attachments/20071107/d5fa056b/attachment.html