Hooplem
The new sport of Hooplem was created by Conor J. Doran from Canada in November 2015. Hooplem is a fast-paced combination between American Football, Rugby, Gaelic Football, Ice Hockey, and Aussie Rules Football. The aim of the game is to score more points then your opponent.
Equipment required: A Gaelic Football, proper field, hoops and net.
Point scoring summary:
A goal can be scored by throwing or kicking the ball into the net. This is worth three points, and results in the scoring team kicking off to the other team. A triple can be scored by throwing or kicking the ball through a hoop, and having a team mate catch it in bounds. This is worth three points, and results in a face-off at the centre circle. A hoop can be scored by throwing or kicking the ball through a hoop, and having it hit the ground, or go out of bounds. This is worth two points and results in a face-off at centre. A hoop can be canceled if the defending team manages to catch the ball in-bounds, before it hits the ground. A single can be scored by throwing or kicking the ball through the uprights above the goal, which is worth one point and results in a face-off.
Game Play:
When in possession, a team has three downs to move the ball through each zone (attacking, neutral, defending). When in the zone of possession, the ball can be passed freely (forward or backwards), but when the team enters a new zone (past the line of scrimmage), only lateral passes are allowed, although players are allowed to kick it forward. The opposing team stops this by two-hand touching an opponent in possession of the ball. Contact IS allowed, although only body checking (no tackling, or hits from behind). A body check does not down a player, the defender must two-hand touch them in order to down them. When a player is two hand touched in possession of the ball, and it is not a first down, this triggers a play similar to an Australian Rules Football 'mark'. The tagged player gets a free throw/kick (although they have a seven second time limit to do so, after which the opponent may again attempt to tag them). If a player is tagged for a first down (they enter a new zone before getting tagged), then there is a stoppage in play, and players must line up on their respective sides of the ball. The team in possession must then snap the ball to commence play. If a player is tagged with the ball on third down, then possession is turned over to opposing team where the tag occurred, and a 'first down play' commences. If the ball is thrown and bounces on the ground twice, then play is stopped and there is a face-off at the closest circle to the player who threw the grounded ball (this two bounce limit is void when a player kicks the ball). On the prevailing face-off, if the team that previously possessed the ball retains possession, then a down is added to their down total (thus if an incomplete pass is thrown on third down, then there is no face-off, and the ball is turned over where the ball was thrown from).
Other:
No player from either team, except for the goalie can step inside the hoop crease. If the ball goes out of bounds, the team that did not touch it last throws/kicks in the ball from where it went out, even if it goes out behind the back-zone (behind the goal line). When the goalie has the ball, all players must exit the end-zone.
Kick-offs:
The ball is to be kicked off from behind the penalty crease. All players except for the kicker on the kicking team must be in the end-zone until the ball is kicked. The team receiving has to be in their end-zone until the ref blows their whistle (the kicker must wait until the whistle is blown to kick). The ball may be drop-kicked, or kicked from the ground. The ball has to hit the ground over the half-line; if it does not the opposing team automatically gains possession where the ball first hits the ground.
Face-offs:
Face offs are conducted at the centre of a circle. Only one player from each team is allowed in the circle during a face-off. The referee bounces the ball in the middle of the circle, with each player standing behind their centre-line. No player can touch the ground in between the lines before touching the ball, and no player can touch the ball before it touches the ground. The player that recovers the ball then has seven seconds in the circle to pass it, during which, no other players are allowed in the circle.
Penalty Shots:
If the ball is caught, or ran behind the goal line, then the scoring team is awarded a penalty shot from ten metres away from goal. Any player on the scoring team can then throw, or kick at goal, the hoops, or the uprights. If an attacking player if tagged, or touches the ball down in the end zone, then a penalty is awarded at a distance of twenty metres away, minus the distance into the end zone where the tag occurred (eg. if an attacking player is tagged 4 metres into the end zone, then a 16 metre penalty shot is awarded [20-4=16]). On penalties it is permitted to jump over the line and throw, as long as the ball is released before the player makes contact with the ground.
Field:
A match is 44 minutes long, with four eleven minute quarters. Each team is allowed seven players on the field at once, plus a goalie (eight total). Teams are allowed to flood change (change however many players they want) in between quarters, but only allowed twelve substitutions during play. The field is 110 metres long. The attacking/defending zones are 25 metres each, the neutral zone is 30 metres long. Each end-zone is 10 metres long, and the back-zones (the areas behind the goal line) are 5 metres long each. The field is 60 metres wide, the face-off lines are 1 metre apart, with the large circle having a radius of 10 metres, and the six small circles each having a 5 metre radius. The penalty shot crease is 10 metres wide, and 15 metres long. There is also a circular 1.5 metre radius crease around each hoop. Also, in the end-zone there are parallel lines every metre (used to mark how far in a player is tagged). Additionally, in the penalty crease there are lines every metre so that players know how close to the net they can shoot from. The base of the hoops are 2 metres off the ground. The hoops are circular, and have a diameter of 1 metre. Each goal has a crossbar 2.5 metres off the ground, and is 6 metres wide. The hoops are located 1 metre to the side of each goal, and are located 5 metres off the goal line. The game clock is stopped whenever there is a stoppage in play.
Penalties:
When a player commits to a penalty, they are taken off the field for 2 minutes, and the ball is given to the opposing team on first down. The conceding team then plays for the 2 minutes a player down, unless they concede 3 points, after which the penalized player may come back onto the field.
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- Other new sports
- Complete list of unusual sports
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