[Pius Friesch]

I find it very difficult to call travel violations without compromising my defense.

A thrower gains a significant advantage by dragging their pivot foot to step around the marker or by shuffling their feet to move their center of mass, which allows for quicker pivots.

However, when I focus on watching for travel violations while playing defense, it compromises my marking. If I pay attention to how someone moves their feet, I can’t watch what’s happening around me or downfield. If I focus on the thrower’s feet, my marking suffers because I can’t see where they’re looking or how their upper body is positioned.

As a result, calling travel violations often isn’t the best strategy for competitive play, especially at higher levels where break throws are more crucial, and quick give-and-go moves are common.

This situation frustrates me because it feels like I have to learn to travel to improve my game, which goes against the spirit of the game. I’ve also noticed that even when players are made aware of their tendency to travel, it doesn’t always stop them. Foot movements are usually subconscious, built into muscle memory, so they’re not necessarily intentional rule violations but rather a learned tolerance for bending the rules.

I’m unsure what rule changes could prevent this issue. Offside has a similar problem, but there, players can get help from the sideline to suggest a call, although it’s still up to the players to enforce it. Perhaps a similar addition could be made to the rules for travel violations.

Alternatively, the travel rules could be loosened to avoid this contradiction. This way, everyone can learn to use dragging and shuffling feet without being at odds with the spirit of the game. By allowing a bit more flexibility in foot movements, players wouldn’t have to constantly worry about unintentionally violating the rules, and the game could flow more naturally.

• This topic was modified 4 months, 4 weeks ago by Pius Friesch.