Place kick
Encyclopedia
The place kick is a kicking style
commonly used in rugby league
and rugby union
. It is also seen in Association football, American football
and Canadian football
.
and Canadian football
for kickoffs
, extra point
s, and field goals
(a variation is the Squib kick
). The place kick is one of the two most common forms of kick in gridiron-based football codes, along with the punt. The punt, however, cannot score points (except in Canadian football where it counts as a single
). The place kick is the nearly exclusive method of kicking in arena football
as well as most other indoor football leagues, since punting is not legal in arena football.
It typically involves placing the ball
on the ground. To keep the ball in position, a mound of sand, a hole in the turf, or a plastic tee
is sometimes used. A holder
is required to hold a ball upright during field goal and extra point attempts; a holder can also be used during kickoffs, but is usually only used when weather conditions prevent the ball from standing on its tee by itself.
In the comic strip Peanuts
, Charlie Brown
often tries to place kick a football, but Lucy
always pulls it away.
, free kick
, goal kick
, Kick-off and penalty kick
.
when kicking for goal, but fell out of favour in the mid-20th Century in favour of the Drop punt
.
for kick offs and some kicks at goal (penalty goals
and conversions).
The lack of a consistently successful place kicker in a team can be detrimental to a team. Anybody on the team can take a penalty or conversion kick although there is often a regular kicker. Sometimes teams will use different players to kick depending on what side of the field the kick is to be taken from.
on which to place the ball. Players might also use their boot to mould the ground where the ball will be placed, making a divot behind the ball to allow greater access to the kicking foot.
Kickers attempt to position the ball in a way that allows them to kick the ball's "sweet spot". Kicking the sweet spot will result in the ball travelling further and is located about a third of the way up the ball.
, which tends to, hook the ball to the left for a right footed kicker.
Kickers usually pace out their kick before taking it. This begins with the kicker standing over the ball with their feet in kicking positions. They then measure out a run up. When the ball is kicked, usually with the instep of the foot, the kicker will follow through with their swing.
Most of the top kickers can kick a goal from approximately 60m, or just inside their own half.
.
Kick (football)
Kicking is a method used by many types of football, including:* Association football* Australian rules football* International rules football* American football* Canadian football* Gaelic football* Rugby league* Rugby union...
commonly used in rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
and rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
. It is also seen in Association football, American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
and Canadian football
Canadian football
Canadian football is a form of gridiron football played exclusively in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed prolate spheroid ball into the opposing team's scoring area...
.
American and Canadian football
Place kicks are also used in American footballAmerican football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
and Canadian football
Canadian football
Canadian football is a form of gridiron football played exclusively in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed prolate spheroid ball into the opposing team's scoring area...
for kickoffs
Kickoff (American football)
A kickoff is a method of starting a drive in American football and Canadian football. Typically, a kickoff consists of one team – the "kicking team" – kicking the ball to the opposing team – the "receiving team"...
, extra point
Extra Point
Extra Point is a twice-daily, two-minute segment on ESPN Radio that covers generic sports-related topical news and opinion. The AM edition airs Monday through Saturday at various times between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m. ET, and the PM edition airs Monday through Friday between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. ET...
s, and field goals
Field goal (football)
A field goal in American football and Canadian football is a goal that may be scored during general play . Field goals may be scored by a placekick or the now practically extinct drop kick.The drop kick fell out of favor in 1934 when the shape of the ball was changed...
(a variation is the Squib kick
Squib kick
A squib kick is a term used in American football meaning a short, low, line drive kickoff that usually bounces around on the ground before it can be picked up by a member of the receiving team. The ball is kicked so short that it forces the receiving team's slower players to recover the ball first...
). The place kick is one of the two most common forms of kick in gridiron-based football codes, along with the punt. The punt, however, cannot score points (except in Canadian football where it counts as a single
Single (football)
In Canadian football, a single is awarded when the ball is kicked into the end zone by any legal means, other than a successful field goal, and the receiving team does not return, or kick, the ball out of its end zone...
). The place kick is the nearly exclusive method of kicking in arena football
Arena football
Arena football is a variety of gridiron football played by the Arena Football League . It is a proprietary game, the rights to which are owned by Gridiron Enterprises, and is played indoors on a smaller field than American or Canadian outdoor football, resulting in a faster and higher-scoring game....
as well as most other indoor football leagues, since punting is not legal in arena football.
It typically involves placing the ball
Football (ball)
A football is an inflated ball used to play one of the various sports known as football.The first balls were made of natural materials, such as an inflated pig bladder, sometimes inside a leather cover...
on the ground. To keep the ball in position, a mound of sand, a hole in the turf, or a plastic tee
Tee
A tee is a stand used to support a stationary ball so that the player can strike it, particularly in golf, tee ball, American football, and rugby.- Etymology :...
is sometimes used. A holder
Holder (American football)
In American football the holder is the player who receives the snap during field goal and extra point attempts made by place kick. The holder is usually positioned between seven and eight yards behind the line of scrimmage. The holder kneels down and places the hand farthest from the line of...
is required to hold a ball upright during field goal and extra point attempts; a holder can also be used during kickoffs, but is usually only used when weather conditions prevent the ball from standing on its tee by itself.
In the comic strip Peanuts
Peanuts
Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward...
, Charlie Brown
Charlie Brown
Charles "Charlie" Brown is the protagonist in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.Charlie Brown and his creator have a common connection in that they are both the sons of barbers, but whereas Schulz's work is described as the "most shining example of the American success story", Charlie...
often tries to place kick a football, but Lucy
Lucy van Pelt
Lucille "Lucy" van Pelt is a fictional character in the syndicated comic strip :Peanuts, written and drawn by Charles Schulz. She is the main bully and the older sister of Linus and Rerun. Lucy is a crabby and cynical eight-year old girl, and often bullies the other characters in the strip,...
always pulls it away.
Association football
Place kicks in association football are the corner kickCorner kick
A corner kick is a method of restarting play in a game of association football. It was first devised in Sheffield under the Sheffield Rules 1867...
, free kick
Direct free kick
A direct free kick is a method of restarting play in a game of association football following a foul. Unlike an indirect free kick, a goal may be scored directly against the opposing side without the ball having first touched another player.-Award:...
, goal kick
Goal kick
A goal kick, called a goalie kick in some regions,is a method of restarting play in a game of association football.-Award:A goal kick is awarded to the defending team when the ball goes out of the field of play by crossing the goal line when the last person to touch the ball was from the attacking...
, Kick-off and penalty kick
Penalty kick
A penalty kick is a type of direct free kick in association football, taken from twelve yards out from goal and with only the goalkeeper of the defending team between the penalty taker and the goal.Penalty kicks are performed during normal play...
.
Australian football
The technique was once used in Australian rules footballAustralian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
when kicking for goal, but fell out of favour in the mid-20th Century in favour of the Drop punt
Drop punt
A drop punt is a type of kick in various codes of football.It is the primary method of disposing the ball by foot in Australian rules football and the name describes its technique. The ball is held vertically, and dropped and kicked before it hits the ground, resulting in the ball spinning...
.
Rugby league
The place kick is commonly used in rugby leagueRugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
for kick offs and some kicks at goal (penalty goals
Penalty (rugby)
In rugby football, the penalty is the main disciplinary sanction available to the referee to penalise players who commit deliberate infringements. The team who did not commit the infringement are given possession of the ball and may either kick it towards touch , attempt a place kick at goal, or...
and conversions).
The lack of a consistently successful place kicker in a team can be detrimental to a team. Anybody on the team can take a penalty or conversion kick although there is often a regular kicker. Sometimes teams will use different players to kick depending on what side of the field the kick is to be taken from.
Place of kick
Kick offs are taken from the centre of the halfway line. A kick at goal from a penalty kick can be taken at any point along an imaginary line perpendicular to the touchline between the place the offence was marked by the referee and the kicker's goal line. Conversion attempts may be taken at any point along an imagingary line perpendicular to the touchline from where the try was scored.Placing the ball
Most kickers use some form of aid to allow them to strike a preferred part of the ball. Popular aids used include kicking tees and mounds of sandSand
Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and non-tropical coastal...
on which to place the ball. Players might also use their boot to mould the ground where the ball will be placed, making a divot behind the ball to allow greater access to the kicking foot.
Kickers attempt to position the ball in a way that allows them to kick the ball's "sweet spot". Kicking the sweet spot will result in the ball travelling further and is located about a third of the way up the ball.
Kick
The most common kicking style is the round-the-corner kickRound the corner kicking
Round the corner kicking was an innovation in the 1940s of Willie Horne, the Barrow, Lancashire, England and Great Britain captain and rugby league player. His distinctive round the corner style of kicking enabled him to kick over 100 goals in the 1945–46 season and then he scored more than 700...
, which tends to, hook the ball to the left for a right footed kicker.
Kickers usually pace out their kick before taking it. This begins with the kicker standing over the ball with their feet in kicking positions. They then measure out a run up. When the ball is kicked, usually with the instep of the foot, the kicker will follow through with their swing.
Most of the top kickers can kick a goal from approximately 60m, or just inside their own half.
Rugby union
In rugby union, the most commonly position for a goal kicker to play is fly-half as that position requires good kicking skills from hand. Slightly less commonly, the full back will kick (another position which requires kicking from hand). If the goal kicker is neither of those two positions, the remaining three-quarter backs and scrum-half might kick. Goal kicking forwards are extremely rare, but not unknown, the most exception in recent years having been the Australian second row John EalesJohn Eales
John Eales AM is an Australian former rugby union player and the most successful captain in the history of Australian rugby.-Early life:...
.
External links
- BBC: Rugby league - Skills - Kicking skills - Place kick (Includes animation)