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There are some general positions in Field Hockey, which can be broken up into specific roles. Some have different names in many areas, but are all roughly the same position:

Backline: This consists of the fullbacks, any sweeper and the goalkeeper.

There are usually two fullbacks. Their job is to help the goalkeeper after a save, mark and tackle runaway players and generally try and stop the other team getting into the circle and having a shot. The goalkeeper's job is fairly simple: if the opponent takes a shot, stop it any way possible, if necessary by taking the ball (and sometimes player) out before the shot can be made. A sweeper is not used in all formations, but if so is meant to assist the goalkeeper by clearing the pads and tackling a breakaway player.

Halfline: The left, centre and right halves.

The left and right halves help the backs when on defense and the outer forwards when on offense. They collect passes from the backs, take most sideline hits, and mark the wings and inners of the other team. The centrehalf is a dual-role. They have to be good at everything - passing, tackling, helping, shooting, free hits - because of their central position on the field. They are involved in most set plays and are always expected to be in support.

Forwardline: The wings, inners, any other forwards, and strikers.

The wings are supposed to create havoc and confusion for the backs and goalkeeper, by ranging in and out from the post to the corner on offense (hoping to get a pass or deflection) on offense and staying high to get a breakaway on defense. The inners help link passes to the wings and centreforward, usually marking the halves, and trying to create opportunities for a good shot or a penalty. The centreforward is the central attacker. They pass to the wings for deflections, pass back to the halves for them to create deflection opportunities, and generally make a presence in the circle felt to distract the defense.

These are just brief overviews of what most positions do; obviously playing a sport gets more complicated in real life. Some teams may use all of these positions while some use more of one sort and less or none of another; other teams may merge the roles of some positions and create new ones to fit their specific formation.


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15y ago

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