TOUCH FOOTY – THE BASICS & THE NOT SO BASICS
Touch Football – The Sport
Touch Football, often referred to as `Touch’ or `Touch Footy’, is a sport that can be played anywhere at any time. The sport’s governing body in the country is Touch Football Australia, as recognised by the Australian Sports Commission.
Touch Football Australia operates using an affiliated network nationwide; ensuring participants in affiliated competitions are covered by the sport’s National Insurance Scheme, whilst experiencing quality fields, organised draws and dedicated volunteers, effectively the Touch Football experience.
Touch Football – The Game
The overall aim in a game of Touch Football is for your team to score more touchdowns than your opponents. This is achieved by placing the ball in your opponents `Touchdown Zone’.
Played on a rectangular field 70 meters long by 50 meters wide, a game of Touch Football is played over 45 minutes, divided into two 20-minute periods with a five-minute halftime break.
Teams can be made up of up to 14 players with a maximum of six players on the field at any one time. However, some competitions do allow 7, so be sure to check before starting. Teams must move the ball down the field toward their `touchdown zone’, without passing the ball forward, dropping the ball on the ground or kicking it. Each team has six `touches’ before they need to handover the ball to their opponents.
When touched an attacker must stop and `roll the ball’, unless it is the sixth touch. Defenders are required to be back a minimum of five meters when an attacker rolls the ball or risk being called `offside’ by the referee. Any infringements will result in either a resent of the ‘count’ or a turnover.
For a complete version of the Rules of the Game download the new handbook below: