O Great Ones

[grinderpete]

Great Ref Minds -
I remember a rule that said that on a clear the goalie couldn't catch a ball in his crease after it had already been in his possession in the crease once on the same clear. Is this still the case? I searched the rule book, but couldn't find any reference to it.

[LaxRef]

Great Ref Minds -
I remember a rule that said that on a clear the goalie couldn't catch a ball in his crease after it had already been in his possession in the crease once on the same clear. Is this still the case? I searched the rule book, but couldn't find any reference to it.

No such rule. No defensive player may enter the crease with possession, but you can pass the ball in an out of the crease as many times as you want, as long as you do it in under 20 seconds.

You also can't deliberately create a loose ball in order to re-enter the crease. However—and this is a point of great confusion—if the GK legitimately drops the ball in the crease and picks it up, he gets a new 4-second count. Most people think the 4-second count continues.