Slashing in Men’s Lacrosse: Key Rules and Scenarios
Slashing in men’s lacrosse is a personal foul where a player uses their stick to strike an opponent recklessly, causing a dangerous situation. This is called when the stick is used with excessive force or in an uncontrolled manner, making contact with the opponent’s body or stick. It can occur even without contact if the intent is deemed reckless by the referee.
Key Points:
• Reckless swinging: Slashing can be called even if the player doesn’t hit their opponent.
• Contact areas: Hits to the head, neck, back, or legs are particularly scrutinized.
• One-handed checks: At youth levels, one-handed swings are often penalized immediately.
• Severity: The penalty can range from 1-3 minutes depending on the force or intent behind the slash.
Elaboration:
• Reckless Swinging: A slashing foul doesn’t necessarily require contact. If a player swings their stick in an uncontrolled or forceful manner with the potential to cause harm, it can be flagged. The referee may also penalize this based on how close the swing was to hitting the player’s body or stick.
• Key Contact Areas: Hits to vulnerable parts of the body—such as the head, back, or legs—are typically called more strictly as these can cause injuries. A reckless swing to an opponent’s hands or arms may also draw a penalty if it’s excessively forceful or wild.
• One-Handed Swings: In youth leagues, any one-handed swings are almost always automatically flagged as slashes due to the higher likelihood of injury or reckless play, while older leagues might allow more leniency based on control.
• Severity and Penalty Time: Depending on the force of the slash and whether it caused injury, referees can assign a penalty ranging from 1 to 3 minutes. A more severe or intentional slash could also lead to ejection from the game.
Scenarios:
• Example 1: A defender runs behind an attacker and swings their stick with both hands, hitting the player’s arm. If the swing was aggressive or uncontrolled, a slashing penalty would be called, and the defender would serve a 1-2 minute penalty.
• Example 2: In a youth game, a defender swings one-handed at a player’s stick but misses, striking the air. Even though there was no contact, the referee calls a slash because the swing was uncontrolled and could have caused injury.
• Example 3: A player aggressively checks an opponent’s hands with their stick while aiming for the ball, but they miss and strike the opponent’s shoulder with excessive force. The player would likely serve a longer penalty due to the reckless and dangerous hit.
