Guiding the puck with your finger

Hi All

Simon T, this may be a Q for you... Why is is illegal to guide the puck with your finger?

Its not like you can hang onto the puck with your finger and cause any great change to the game.
Sure it gains the player and advantage, but so do good skills.

I reckon guiding the puck, should simply be another little asset in a players game.

Chuck the guiding rule!!!

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Chuck the guide rule

The problem with chucking that rule out is the fact that lots of players (well some i know!!) would abuse the change, i.e. they would stick their index finger out and use the whole length to "guide" the puck. So as long as the rule stays as it is, it should be fine. As the puck is allowed to rest against the index finger

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Sawston Piranha\'s website: www.gbuwh.co.uk/sawston

Yeah, but what is worng with guiding the puck with your whole index finger... ? So waht. Most intelligent players probably wouldnt do that as their is potential to damage their fingers. But really I cant see why using an part of you index finger, whole or otherwise is a problem. Why is there a rule about it?

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Chuck the guide rule

...maybe safety, for one?

i think the bigger picture though is that, if you don't allow people to stick their fingers out, then it takes a great deal of skill and practice to effectively control the puck on the front of your stick. if you let people stick their fingers out, someone who has invested a tenth amount of the time can get the same control. isn't that a bit crappy? a lot like turning using the stick or pushing the puck with your forearm... one takes skill and practice, one is far easier but isn't really fair.

if you start to slip in small things like that, then where do you stop? it's hard to play the puck up the wall using only the stick... much easier to glove it, and less skilled players can take this shortcut to get parity.... you want to make that legal too?

how about stopping a pass with the playing area of your stick... quite hard sometimes. far easier and takes far less practice and skill to knock it down with your glove or arm. bit of a shortcut there. should that be legal too?

comes down to a choice, do you want to make the game easier to play for people who can't be bothered practicing, or would you like to give the players that are willing to put time and effort into their skills an advantage?

pretty easy choice isn't it?

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it's more polite on the grating than on the subs bench

Hi Michaela - I'm with Liam!!!

People use their finger to help them swerve without having to spend the time practicing. That's the only reason they do it - and given that there are people out there who can do it just as well without the outstretched finger it would be a bit unfair to allow it for the ones who can't be bothered developing their skills!!!

Cheers,

Simon

liam pretty much summed it up

So, what you are implying is that we should stick with a rule because a few people have spent hours underwater to perfect swerving without using a bit more of their finger????

This is the underwater hockey equivalent of "let them eat cake".

How many injuries and bashing could we save in a pool if beginners and other folks who dont have the years of practice could just swerve around players? Bash Bash!

As for all the batting down and stuff up the wall. No I dont want that changed. Just this rule to make the sport less of a underwater rugby match and more like it should be played.

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Chuck the guide rule

Are you suggesting that there would be fewer injuries this way?! next time your playing stick your finger straight out and find out how quickly it gets broken.

Also this is like saying why can't football player use their hands, because it might make it easier for the new player to learn.

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Sawston Piranha\'s website: www.gbuwh.co.uk/sawston

Yes, I think less barging and bashing..... However, in the first ever for UWH, I am gonna retract. In order to determine if it is a UWH thing or across the board, I did a straw poll of people whos interest in UWH doesnt even get to apathy.

The results of the poll were that the majority (7/8) thought that guiding the puck with your finger sounded like cheating. Ouch. They thought that people may as well just pick the puck up off the bottom.

So there you go.

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Chuck the guide rule

it defeats the purpose of the game, which is to guide the puck with your stick

why don't they use their feet or hands in field hockey? or just pick up the puck in ice hockey? or handball in soccer?

it's part of the rules that make the game what it is