This is a new type of game. A main "scoring ball" remains at all times on the field, while teams run back and forth throwing their team ball against it, like billiard balls.

The team ball can be passed around or can be used to knock the other team's ball out of the air. Only the net keepers can touch the scoring ball of course.

The field is enclosed to faciliate ricochets and the game may slow to the pace of old cricket if played on grass.

Considered giving every player a team ball, but it seemed as if there would be too many projectiles on the field. Game name needs some work too.
-- 4and20, Jun 24 2013

The balls could be large and light - zorblike perhaps - which might go some way to speeding things up.
-- calum, Jun 24 2013


If the scoring ball was large but light (beach ballish), and the team balls were noticeably heavier and bouncy (red rubber ball) so they could be recovered easily, speed of play wouldn't be to bad.

Rather than having team specific balls, I'd be inclined to have a half dozen or so on the field, but it's a penalty for any one player to hold one for to long, which limits the ability to hoard them to control the scoring ball.
-- MechE, Jun 24 2013


[+] for a new game that sounds fun.

Depending on the skill level of the participants, I think it might be best not to have a goalie. Unless this becomes a professional sport, a lot of people trying to play it will have a hard enough time throwing the team ball accuractely enough to hit the the scoring ball let alone control its direction. Maybe just let the goals be two opposite walls of a gym.

To discourage hitting the scoring ball with the team ball held in hand, limit movement to one or two steps for anyone holding a team ball. This will also encourage passing among teamates. With each team having their own team balls, and maybe some dodge-ball type rules about being hit by the opposing team ball, interceptions won't be an issue, so this game could be enjoyable by a team with diverse skill levels. Those that can't throw well can still help retrieve the ball. They can make very clumsy passes to team members without worrying about interceptions.

For the dodge-ball like rules, it seems that being hit by (or touching) the opposing team ball should result in a very minor penalty. It should be enough of a penalty to discourage blocking the opposing team ball, but minor enough that it's not worth targeting opponents, causing the game to degrade into a game of dodge-ball. Different rules depending on whether the ball hit the player or whether the player hit the ball wou dbe too hard to referee. Perhaps anyone who makes contact with the opposing team ball can't take more than 1 step (allow standing up and rotating on one pivot foot) until they touch their own team ball.

The penalty for touching the scoring ball should be much greater. Otherwise it woud be definitely worthwhile to block the goal with a well-placed kick.

// This would also mean no fouling is possible. // It might have less fouling, but you'll still have players that want to run somewhere when the opponent is in the way, and the opponent may often be in the way intentionally. Head shots against members of the opposing team at close range with your team ball might be considered a foul depending on how heavy the team balls are.

Hmm... Here's a possible rule to reduce contact and intentionally targeting opponents. Any time you touch an opponent, each player is stuck in place until touching their team ball. Any time an opponent is hit by a team ball they are frozen in place, but also the person who threw the ball is frozen in place (unless the team ball has bounced off the scroing ball). So if an opponent approaches the person holding the team ball, the one holdinghte team ball can simply tag that person to make them freeze. They are automatically unfrozen since they are holding their team ball. Any contact with an opponent should reset the step count allowing them to get two steps out of reach so they can have an unobstructed throw.

Hopefully rules like these could make the game all about catching, passing, running, and accurately throwing the team ball, not about blocking, intimidating, etc.
-- scad mientist, Jun 24 2013


[bigs] and [scad], it is indeed an attempt to create a game that everyone can play in a nonaggressive sense.

In terms of rules, which sadly, may be necessary, it seems like an "arm-length" rule for blocking, as informally played in Ultimate Frisbee might work. I think the scoring ball also needs a distance rule. If you're standing that distance away from the ball, the defense can only stand next to you, really.

It seems excessive to ban all blocking, but am torn as to whether "clearing" the team ball should be a penalty on defense. It's easy to imagine constant, aggressive clearing slowing down the scoring game.

For that reason, I'm leaning towards making it 3 team balls per team, but keeping them as team balls to minimize scrums and pileups (and the nasty clean-up). It's also why I thought ball handlers still need to run at will. The speed of passing the ball should enforce passing on its own.

The penalties freezing players or turning the game into dodgeball light are very inventive and worth trying to mix up a new game. I'm inclined to minimize rules, but I did browse the rules for Handball after checking the annos, and there, penalizing aggressive defense seems to be a matter of referee discretion. This has apparently led to highly aggressive yet high-scoring games.
-- 4and20, Jun 25 2013



random, halfbakery