Fouls
Ordinary fouls occur when a player impedes or otherwise prevents the free movement of an opponent who is not holding the ball. The most common is when a player reaches over the shoulder of an opponent in order to knock the ball away while in the process hindering the opponent. Offensive players may be called for a foul by pushing off a defender to provide space for a pass or shot. The referee indicates the foul with one short whistle blow and points one hand in the direction of the attacking team (standing roughly in line with the position of the foul), who retain possession. The attacker must make a free pass without undue delay to another offensive player. If the foul has been committed outside the 5-meter line, the offensive player may also attempt a direct shot on goal, but the shot must be taken immediately and in one continuous motion. Because of this rule the hole set will often set up at or beyond the five meter mark hoping to get a foul, shoot, and score. If the offensive player fakes a shot and then shoots the ball, it is considered a turnover. If the same defender repetitively makes minor fouls, referees will exclude that player for 20 seconds. To avoid an ejection, the hole defender may foul twice, and then have a wing defender switch with him so that the defense can continue to foul the hole man without provoking an exclusion foul. The rule was altered to allow repeated fouls without exclusions, but is often still enforced by referees.
Major fouls (exclusion fouls) are committed when the defensive player holds, sinks or pulls back the offensive player away from the ball before the offensive player has had a chance to take possession of the ball. This includes dunking (sinking in FINA rules), intentional splashing, pulling back, swimming on the other player's back,stopping the other player from swimming or otherwise preventing the offensive player from preserving his advantage. A referee signals a major foul by two short whistle bursts and indicates that the player must leave the field of play and move to the penalty area for twenty seconds. The referee will first point to the player who commits the foul and will blow the whistle, then they will point to the ejection corner and blow the whistle again. The player must move to the penalty area without impacting the natural game play. If the player does not leave the field of play, the player will be kicked out for the remaining time of the game with substitution. The remaining five defenders, to cover the six attackers on a man up situation, usually set up in a zone defense in front of their goal. The attacking team can expect to score, by adopting a 4–2 or 3–3 formation, and moving the goalkeeper out of position. A player that has been ejected three times must sit out the whole match with substitution, much like the six personal fouls in basketball.
Drawing the ejection (forcing defense to commit a major foul) occurs when an offensive player takes advantage of a defensive player by using body position and/or grabbing on their wrists to make it appear as though the defensive player is committing a "major foul", therefore resulting in the ejection of that player and gaining a 6 on 5 advantage. Another common way to draw an ejection is by staggering stroke while being chased to make it appear as though the defensive player is pulling the swimmer back.
Brutality fouls A brutality is called when a player kicks or strikes an opponent or official with malicious intent. The strike must make contact with the player for a brutality to be called, and must be with intent to injure. Otherwise the player is punished with a misconduct foul, with substitution allowed after 20 seconds or a change of position. The player who is charged with a brutality is excluded from the game for 4 minutes, and the team is forced to play with one less player than the other team for that duration. In addition to the exclusion a penalty shot is also awarded to the opposing team, if the foul occurs during actual play. Previously, the team who was charged with a brutality would be required to play the remainder of the game with one less player, similar to a red card awarded in football. All brutalities have to be reported by officials and further actions may be taken by the relevant governing body. These actions could include more games added on to the one game suspension.
A misconduct foul is an unsportsmanlike act. For unacceptable language, violence or persistent fouls, taking part in the game after being excluded or showing disrespect, a player is ejected for the remainder of the game with substitution after 20 seconds has elapsed. There are two kinds of misconduct fouls that a player can incur. If a player physically assaults another player and the referee deems it not to be severe enough to warrant a charge of brutality, the lesser charge being Misconduct-Violence can be applied. If the incident does not involve physical (or attempted) contact, the referee can impose a Misconduct charge. In most competitions Misconduct-Violence carries heavier sanctions than Misconduct.
A penalty shot or 5-meter is awarded when a major foul is committed inside the 5-meter line and a probable goal was prevented by the foul. This is usually awarded if the defensive player in on another players back. This usually means that the offensive player is in front of and facing the goal. The penalty shot is attempted from 5 meters. Any defenders flanking the player taking the shot must be no closer than 2 meters. The goalkeeper must be on the goal line. In high school rules, the goalie must keep their hips even with the goal line. They are allowed to lean their upper body over in order to kick up higher. The referee blows the whistle and the player must shoot immediately.
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