THE
CANADIAN RULE BOOK
FOR
AMATEUR
TACKLE FOOTBALL
RULE 7
-FOULS AND PENALTIES
(Covering cases not specifically covered previously)
Holding is defined as the use of the
hands and /or arms to grasp or encircle an opponent, except when a player tackles
the ball carrier, and is illegal at all times.
Penalty:
Team A 1.2D – L10 DR, 3D DG – L10 DR, 3D DNG – LB
PBD.
Team B DG – L10
PBH, DNG – L10 PLS.
NOTE:
The use of hands and arms is permitted:
(a) By
the ball carrier to ward off an opponent.
(b) By a blocker, as outlined in Rule
4, Section 5, Article 1(e)
.
(c) By a defender to reach the ball carrier, but the hands may not be used to
grasp any opponent except the ball carrier.
(d) By a player of the kicking team to ward off a blocker preventing his
approach to the ball carrier after a kick or kick
off.
Blocking from the rear is blocking an
opponent, other that the ball carrier, from the rear by charging into the
opponent’s back with the body, or throwing the body across the back of his
legs. The application of penalty is
determined by the point of initial contact, and the official who rules on the
play must see the play in its entirety. It is illegal except as follows:
(1)
it occurs in the Close Line Play area (between offensive tackles within 2
yards on either side of the Line of
Scrimmage) and it is made by a player who
was positioned in this area when the ball was snapped. OR
(2)
the initial point of contact is on the side or front of the opponent. OR
(3) the initial point of contact is from the rear, due to the action of the
opponent, such as turning his back on the blocker
after the blocker has
committed himself to the block.
NOTE
1. The position of the head of the blocker in front of, or behind, the
opponent does not determine whether the block is
legal or not. The point of contact is the determining factor, modified by (1)
(2) (3) of this article.
Penalty: Team A –
1.2D – L15 DR, 3D DG – L15 DR, 3D DNG – LB PBD.
Team B – DG – L15 PBH, DNG – L15 PLS.
Blocking
an opponent by pushing him from the rear with extended arms or bumping him above
the waist from
behind is illegal, and is defined as illegal use of hands.
Penalty: Team A –
1.2D – L10 DR, 3D DG – L10 DR, 3D DNG – LB PBD.
Team B – DG – 10 PBH, DNG – L10 PLS.
Tripping is the intentional use of the
lower leg or foot to obstruct any opponent below the knee.
Penalty: Team A – 1.2D – L10 DR, 3D DG – L10 DR, 3D DNG – LB PBD.
Team B – DG – L10 PBH, DNG L10 PLS.
Contacting the kicker, while he is in
the act of kicking, is illegal, unless the contact is slight and incidental,
subject to the following:
(a)
The act of kicking begins when the kicking foot leaves the ground, and
ends when the foot returns to the ground (or a player lying on the ground) after
kicking or attempting to kick the ball. Should the kicker momentarily fumble the
ball, he shall be given this protection, provided he stays in his normal kicking
spot. If he leaves this spot, or
makes any motion to pass the ball, he shall be considered as a ball carrier,
under this rule and under Rule 5 – 5 –1-b.
(b)
This article does not apply to a “quick kick” or “return" kick.
(c)
A “B” player shall not be penalized if he blocks or touches the ball
prior to contacting the kicker, or if contact by a Team A blocker causes him to
contact the kicker, or if a B player contacts an A player in such a way as to
drive him into the kicker.
Penalty:
L10 PLS.
The following acts are defined and
classified as Rough Play, and are illegal:
The deliberate charging of a kicker,
passer, or receiver of a kick or pass in such a way as to cause calculated
injury.
The striking of an opponent with the
fist, heel of the hand, knee or elbow, or kicking an opponent.
Butt blocking, butt tackling or
spearing, if done deliberately in such a way as to cause calculated injury may
be penalized under this section.
Grasping the facemask, as covered in Section
3, Article 5, may be penalized under this section, if in the opinion of
the Referee it was a deliberate attempt to injure an opponent.
Any other act of roughness or unfair
play considered by the Referee to warrant disqualification may be penalized
under this section.
Penalty:
Articles 1 to 5. Disqualification of the offending player, and L25 from the
appropriate point as covered
in Rule 8, Section 5. If
the official is unable to identify the offender the distance penalty only shall
be
applied. If both teams offend,
the players involved shall be disqualified but no distance penalty shall
be
applied. Play shall be resumed at
the appropriate point as outlined in Dual Penalties,
Rule
8 Section 6 Automatic 1D to Team A for Team B
Rough Play.
A player shall be disqualified from
further participation in the game, with substitution permitted, if:
(a)
He has been called for Rough Play.
(b)
He has been called for physical abuse of an official.
The disqualification penalty cannot be
declined by the non-offending team.
Any act of unnecessary roughness or
unfair play that is not considered serious enough to disqualify, shall be
penalized under this section. The
following acts are defined, and classified as Unnecessary Roughness, and are
illegal.
Piling On occurs when a player runs
into, throws his body against, or falls upon a ball carrier, after the play has
been terminated by the official’s whistle, or even before the whistle, where
the ball is clearly dead (Rule 1, Section 8, Article
1h) Tackling a player when
he is clearly out of bounds, or throwing the ball carrier to the ground after
the ball is dead, is illegal. These
fouls are considered to be committed after the ball is dead (Rule
8, Section 5. Article 11).
It is illegal to contact the passer
immediately after he has passed the ball. Exception
– contact by a B player, who initiated an attempt to black the pass while the
ball was still in the passer’s possession, and in the Referee’s opinion, the
contact did not constitute unnecessary Roughness or Rough Play.
Unnecessary roughness against a punter,
or field goal kicker is illegal.
The holder of a place kick for a field
goal or convert attempt shall be given the same protection as a kicker.
It shall be illegal to grasp
the facemask of an opponent, by closing the fingers on
the facemask, regardless to what extent the face mask is pulled.
It shall be illegal to tackle around the
head, in the open field, or straight-arm tackle to the head, commonly referred
to as “clotheslining”.
Spearing is deliberate and malicious
driving of the helmet into a player who is down, or is held so that he is going
down, or whose forward progress has been stopped, or who is in a position unable
to protect himself. A player shall
be called for Spearing even if he commits himself before the ball is dead, if he
used the head and helmet as the primary or main point of force.
(a) Butt Block – no player, including the ball carrier, shall deliberately
use his helmet to but or ram an opponent.
(b)
Butt Tackle – no player shall intentionally strike the runner with the
crown or top of his helmet, or with the facemask.
NOTE:
The facemask is considered to be part of the helmet, in the application
of this rule.
The illegal use of hands and arms shall
be ruled as unnecessary roughness if contact is make with the fist, heel of the
hand, or elbow, if the blocking arm is cocked by swinging back of the body line
prior to contact, or if the blocking arm is driven upward and forward in such a
manner commonly known as an “elbow smash”, or if the blocker turns his body
at the waist or pivots in a manner to add force to the blow, or if contact is made with
clasped hands, or if the opponent is struck above the shoulder with the hand or
arm in an unnecessarily rough manner including the striking of the head,
commonly called a “head slap”.
It shall be illegal for any Team A
player to block and opponent below the waist in an area from 5 yards ahead of
the line of scrimmage, from sideline to sideline, extending back to the Team A
dead line, if:
1. The A player is stationed, or in motion, 3 or more yards outside of the
Close Line Play Area, at the snap of the
ball.
OR 2 The A player is stationed initially 3 or more yards outside of the
Close Line Play Area and moves toward the ball
so that he is less than 3 yards from the
close line of play area at the snap of the ball.
OR 3. The A player is stationed initially less that 3 yards
from the Close Line Play Area, and either before or after the
snap of the ball, moves more than 3
yards from the Close Line Play Area.
AND 4. Moves in the direction of the ball to make the block.
(The direction of the ball is toward the position of the ball
when it was
snapped)
It shall be illegal for a player to
block an opponent, at the knee, or below the knee, when the opponent is already
in contact with a teammate of the blocker.
This “contact” should be fairly solid, not the type of contact being
made as one player brushes past another. To
be illegal, the block should be delayed until the first contact is well
established.
Penalty
for Unnecessary Roughness:
Team A - L15 from the appropriate
spot, as per Rule 8, Section 5.
Team B - L15 from the appropriate
spot, and 1D to Team A.
(a)
The use of profane, obscene, insulting language or gestures to an
opponent, official, or spectator by any player, or occupant of the team bench is
prohibited.
(b)
Unsportsmanlike conduct, such as throwing the ball at an opponent, an
official, or occupant of the team bench is prohibited.
(c)
Tactics by players, which delay or hinder the smooth operation of the
game shall be penalized under this section.
These tactics include spiking the ball, and/or deliberately throwing or
kicking the ball away after it has been declared dead on a play.
(d)
Running into, or contacting an official is to be avoided.
Penalty: (1) L10 from point where the ball would have been put into play if no other
foul occurred, or added to
the
penalty for any other foul.
(2) If an
objectionable conduct penalty is called after the Referee has
whistled time in for any down,
the
penalty will be L10 PLS DR, and the distance
chains will not be moved (unless a first down is
gained
from a penalty against
Team B).
If the foul is of a serious nature, the
player or occupant of the bench may be disqualified with no distance penalty.
A disqualified player or occupant of the bench may be banished form the
game site at any time at the discretion of the Referee.
(e)
Failure to wear mandatory equipment
Penalty:
(1) L5 form the point where the ball would have been put in play if no other foul occurred, or
added to
the penalty for any other foul.
(2) Removal of the player until the proper equipment is worn, with immediate
substitution, and no game
delay.
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