Ninh explains The Rules of Korfball The object of the game is for your team to
score more goals than the opposing team. 8 players take to the court at any one time
and to score these goals, you must shoot the ball into the korf – which is a basket with
no net. Unlike Basketball however, there must be 4
females and 4 males on the court at any one time – making this one of the few mixed
gender sports in the world. Hang on a minute, this is just like basketball
right? Not quite. Whilst Korfball is sometimes seen
as a mixture of basketball and netball, it is a completely different game with completely
different rules. Firstly, there are two zones – an attacking
zone and a defending zone. Two players of each gender must stay in each zone.
The court is 40m long and 20m wide and zones are 20m x 20m.
The korfs are located 6.67m away from the outline and are 3.5m above the ground.
There are 2.5m circles that denote the post area and the penalty spot area. More on this
later.
Secondly, once two goals have been scored, the zones change – meaning that the attackers
are now the defenders and vice versa. This means that all players, male and female get
a chance to defend and attack, making this a role equality sport as well.
Thirdly, you can only mark one person and it has to be a person of the same gender.
So a male cannot try to guard a female and you can’t have two defenders guarding you
at the same time. In Korfball the movement of the ball has to
be quick, as once you are ‘defended’ you can no longer shoot the ball. These are the
four requirements of being defended
and once you are defended, you can only pass to a teammate. You cannot shoot the ball.
You’ll see a lot of pre-prepared passing sequences in order to free up a shooter to
take a clean shot. This is the essence of the game.
Players aren’t allowed to run with the ball. Once the player has received the ball, the
foot that the player first lands on is known as the landing foot. They cannot lift this
foot off the ground, but may pivot on it whilst moving the other leg.
Should a player lift a landing leg and put it back down, this is known as ‘travelling’
and the ball is awarded to the other team. The opponents will try and take the ball away
from you by intercepting passes, blocking shots, retrieving loose balls and defending
the shooters. However, an opposing player cannot touch another
player (known as contact) and must be defending one player who is of the same gender.
There’s also a lot of things you cannot do in Korfball, some of which we’ve discussed
already, but here’s some of the other things you cannot do.
The game is played in 2 x 30 halves quarters, for a combined playing time of 60 minutes.
Highest score at the end of time, wins. If you’re a little confused, don’t worry
about it – as you will pick this up easily. But there’s just a few things you’ll need
to know about before playing or watching a game.
For example … Free Pass
After a foul, a free pass may be awarded. This is taken from the penalty spot and all
other players must be 2.5m away outside the penalty spot circle. The player cannot shoot,
so must quickly pass the ball to a teammate, as there is a 4 second time limit.
Penalty. For serious fouls or players that are denied
a clear scoring opportunity, a penalty shot may be awarded. They get to shoot the ball
from the penalty spot unopposed and players must be outside both the post circle and the
penalty spot circle until the ball has left the players hands.
Time out To take a break or discuss strategy, each
team is allowed a timeout. This usually lasts 60 seconds and amount of timeouts permitted
vary depending on the league you’re playing in.
Substitution. You are allowed to change players four times
in a game of Korfball. Players must be of the same gender and must be made in a stoppage
of play. Throw off.
To start the game, or to restart the game – a throw off is used. The team with the
ball must pass to a teammate. Out Ball
If the ball leaves the sides of the area of play, the team who did not touch it last is
awarded the ball and must pass to a teammate from the sidelines.
Korfball is popular in Europe, and as you watch or play Korfball, the rules will become
clear. If you have found this video at all helpful,
please like, share and subscribe. It takes me ages to make one of these things
and good karma is very much appreciated. Be sure to follow me on twitter also, but
in the meantime, enjoy Korfball!
Ninh Ly, @NinhLyUK, www.ninh.co.uk