Lacrosse Rules and Regulations

A field sport of Native American origin, lacrosse is played with a rubber ball and each player possesses a lacrosse stick. Objective of the game is to score the maximum number of goals by shooting the ball into the opponent's goal. The basic lacrosse rules and regulations state that opponent teams can field a maximum of 10 players, out of which there should be 3 attackmen, 3 midfielders, 3 defensemen and a goalkeeper. Duration of the game is 60 minutes and it is divided into quarters of 15 minutes. The half-time break is 10 minutes long, while there is a gap of 2 minutes each, between the 1st & 2nd and 3rd & 4th quarters. The teams change sides at half-time. The college lacrosse rules differ from that of high school and youth games in terms of duration. A youth lacrosse game lasts for 32 minutes while the high school games continue for 48 minutes. The other lacrosse rules for beginners are presented in the paragraphs below.

Rules and Regulations for Lacrosse

The game of lacrosse begins with the field lacrosse positions as mentioned above. Out of 3 midfielders, 1 should stay at the center to get ready for a face-off. Remaining 2 midfielders need to stay in the wing areas. Ball is placed at the center, between midfielders for a face-off. Play begins with a whistle, after which the midfielders in wing areas can move. It is mandatory that 3 of the attackmen need to stay in the offensive half of the field, throughout the game. Four players (goalkeeper and 3 defensemen) need to stay in the defensive half. The remaining 3 players (i.e. midfielders) can move across the entire field.

Women's Lacrosse
The rules of women's game are a bit different from the men's lacrosse rules. The following lacrosse rules for girls would help in differentiating it from the men's game. There are 12 players in each team, out of which 6 are defenders, 5 attackers and a goalkeeper. The manner in which lacrosse game starts is also different from that of the men's game. As the whistle is blown, the horizontally held sticks are pulled away and the ball is flung upwards. Unlike the physical contact game of men, women's lacrosse doesn't allow physical contact or rough checks. The legal or correct way is that they pass from a minimum distance of 7 inches from a player's head (or bubble). Only the goalkeeper is allowed to touch the ball with hands.

There are two types of fouls defined in lacrosse, the major and minor foul. For a minor foul, the player who has violated rules is positioned 4 meters away from the direction she is approached from. Punishment for a major foul involves placing the offending player 4 m behind, instead of the front position.

Indoor Lacrosse Rules
Lacrosse rules and regulations for this format are a modified as per the requirements. The indoor or box lacrosse is played with 6 members in each team. Out of the 6 players, 1 is goalkeeper while the remaining are known as runners. In this form of game, it is allowed to replace a goalkeeper by other players of the team. The stick to be used in box lacrosse should have a length between 40-46 inch.

The rules and regulations governing the sport of lacrosse should increase our understanding of the game. The information pertaining to different formats of lacrosse should provide some useful details about this game.