Kicking

“ How much kicking can be done depends on the direction of the wind more than upon anything else.
Do not wait until the third down to kick. Your opponent expects you to kick, because you must. Good judgment should be exercised in the placing of the kicks. A team should not kick from right under its own goal-posts, because of danger of the ball's striking an upright or the cross-bar. Change the territory by running a play out on the end, then kick.
Signals.—A signal is a sign of some kind given to indicate to the player the play to be used, and the time of its execution. ”

“ KICKING
IN executing the kick, the horse stops its forward motion, plants its fore legs firmly on the ground, and using these as a point of support, sends both its hind legs backward and up. This true kick should not be confused with the kick with one hind leg only, which is called in French ruade. In the ruade, the horse is trying to reach some object with the purpose of damaging it. A kick out with both feet may, of course, injure anything that is near enough to be touched; but it is seldom that a horse of good temper will actually try to hit a man in this way. ”

“ I hate the crowded games of twenty or thirty a-side, where for one kick at the ball you receive a dozen on your shins. In “Six and Six” your powers of pluck, endurance, strength, and speed are constantly called into play; it is not all weight and hustling, but speed and scientific kicking, that win the day. Kicking the ball up into the air was considered very bad play, except when the ball had been previously caught before it had touched the ground, when it was allowed, i.e., if the kicker could get the chance, before one of the other side was down upon him. ”

“ A word, half-scolding, half-encouraging, with a gentle pressure of the heel, or a slight touch of the spur or whip, will convince him there is nothing to fear; and, further, will give the animal confidence in his rider on future occasions.
Kicking is a dangerous vice, and generally the result of an idle groom or stable-boy playing with the horse, and pinching him on the loins ”

“ To become proficient as a drop kicker will require long, faithful practice. Care should be taken in learning the art to acquire height and direction, as practically all the drop kicking must be done from behind a scrimmage line and, unless the ball rises instantly, there is much danger of the kick being blocked or at least interfered with. ”

“ Kicking horses have always been the dread of every body; you always hear men say, when they speak about a bad horse, "I don't care what he does, so he don't kick." This new method is an effectual cure for this worst of all habits. There are plenty of ways by which you can hitch a kicking horse and force him to go, though he kicks all the time ”

“ The kicker.—If a horse has the bad habit of kicking, use the snaffle bit to prevent his lowering the head and at the same time push him vigorously with the legs.
It is a mistake to always hold up a kicker's head; it frequently happens that kicking is caused by some pain in the back or hocks, and, if so, raising the animal's head will merely increase his irritability and incite resistance. ”

“ To become a good artist you must study kicking the ball from any position or angle that it may come to you. There is what we call the drop kick, the free kick, the overhead kick, the place kick, and taking the ball on the run. The overhead kick is practically one to be avoided, except in a grave case of emergency, because you are never certain of it coming off, or of placing it to any advantage. ”

“ Kicking.—We should put the animal through{239} the course of discipline described in Chapter IX. The strait-jacket put on loosely, or the kicking-strap, will prevent him doing any mischief. Before putting the animal between the shafts, he should be well driven with the long reins, for from thirty minutes, to an hour; so that he may pay attention to the indications of the rein. If he persists in kicking, he should be made to lie down, and, then, gentled on the ground ”

“ The rider must remember to lean well back, and have her left knee well braced against the third pommel, as in this position it [284] will be almost impossible for him to unseat her by his kicking. If the kick be made during a stand-still, a sharp, vigorous stroke of the whip upon the animal's shoulder will be apt to check him; but if the kick be made while he is on the gallop, a stroke of the whip will be apt to make him run away. Should kicking be an old vice of the horse, he must be ridden with a severe curb-bit, that he may be prevented from getting his head down. ”

“ It may happen at any moment in a most important game that [Pg 103] the kicking will devolve upon them on account of an accident to the third man, and it is, indeed, a foolhardy captain or coach who has not taken sufficient forethought for this contingency. The principal reason why we develop so few really good kickers is, that coaches, captains, and players have given so little attention to the detail of that part of the work. Fully nine tenths of the men who do the kicking upon American teams are more natural kickers than practised ones. ”

“ You want all the kicking practice you can get. I never saw anything feebler than that shot of yours after Drummond’s try.”
“I’d like to see you take a kick like that. It was nearly on the touch-line. Still, when we play you, we shan’t need to convert any of our tries. We’ll get our thirty points without that. Perhaps you’d like to scratch?” ”

“ The kick, although resulting in the loss of the ball, nevertheless gives it to the enemy much nearer his goal. When the wind is strong the side favoured by it usually kicks often, as the other side, not being able to kick back on equal terms, is forced to play a rushing game, which is always exhausting. Again, the kicking game is often resorted to by the side that has the lead in the score, in order to save its men and yet retain the advantage. The only remaining way to advance the ball is on a free-kick after a fair catch, as in the English game. ”

“ The place kick is made by placing the ball in position on the ground and kicking it from this location. The value of a good place kicker to the team cannot be estimated for, by his work, the game may be won or lost. Place kicking has almost entirely taken the place of drop kicking, because it is more accurate. It is used to convert touchdowns into goals, to kick goals from the field, to kick off, and is often used to kick out after a touchback, instead of punting. ”

“ After undergoing the necessary preparation for a good kicking, he enters, and shakes his adversary by the hand, and kicks, and lays hold when he can get a fit opportunity. If he is conscious of superior strength, he goes to work, and by force of arm wrests his opponent off his legs, and lays him flat ”

“ When his side is kicking, the guard should play close to center and block long and effectively. He is practically in front of the kicker and, if he permits anyone to get through his position, the opponent will be directly in front of the kicker and will probably block his kick or interfere with the distance or the direction of the punt. ”

“ Candidates for the teams are put through a severe course of practice in catching punts and hard-thrown passes, in quick starts, falling on the ball, tackling a mechanical dummy, in blocking, breaking through the line, and all kinds of kicking, although in matches the kicking is generally left to one or two men who have shown themselves particularly expert. ”

“ Kick, kik, v.t. to hit with the foot.—v.i. to thrust out the foot with violence: to show opposition or resistance: (of a gun) to recoil violently (see also Bullet) : (print.) to work a press by impact of the foot on a treadle.—n. a blow with the foot: the turn of kicking the ball at football, the person who kicks or kicks off: the recoil of a gun: (slang) fashion.—adj. Kick′able.—ns. ”

“ Kick. To kick over, verb. phr. (Winchester) .—To kick a ball up in the air, when it is rolling along, or lying on the ground: considered very bad play.—Mansfield (c. 1840) . Ibid., 217. Kick-in.—In a game at football the bounds on each side were kept by a line of Juniors, whose duty it was to KICK the ball IN again whenever it passed outside the line. See Kicking-in.
Kicking-in, subs. (Winchester) .—See quot., and Kick.
c. 1840. Mansfield, School-Life at Winchester College, p. 138. But football wasn’t all beer and skittles to the Fags. ”

“ Rule 9 proscribes tripping, kicking, or jumping at a player, intentionally handling the ball, holding or pushing an opponent, or charging an opponent violently or dangerously, or charging from behind unless the player charged is intentionally obstructing an opponent. In other breaches of the rules the outcome is a free kick. ”

“ In conjunction with this work, all types of kicking steps are taught, front kick, side kick, back kick, hitch kick, and65 the others. Since strength for kicking comes from the abdominal muscles, a workout that will especially exercise these muscles around the waist line is essential, and a series of strengthening activities is given to this end.
Imagine that you are in practice costume, one of a class of students similarly dressed, standing in line on a padded rug in my Foundation Technique studio. ”

“ The requirements for good kicking are cool-headedness, a good eye, a good leg, and a good square-toe shoe. There are three kinds of kicks—a punt, a place, and a drop. Of these, the most important is the punt. There are two kinds of punts—a common punt, which is generally used, and a "twister," or "floater." The latter, which is not of much importance, is made by dropping the ball so that the longer axis will be horizontal, or at right angles to the body (ends resting to and away from the body) , and giving the impetus to the ball a little to one side. ”

“ The full back must also be a good kicker or else able to take the place of the man who does the kicking, when the time comes for such a play. The kicking must be done from the full back's position, and, if the regular occupant of the position does not do it, the full back should be able to take some other position to assist in strengthening the defense, weakened by the withdrawing of the kicker from his regular position. ”

“ Hitting the object, and nothing else, counts as a kick, and kicking higher than the object without hitting it is not a kick. Springing from the ground counts as a try. A competitor may omit his trials at any hight, but if he fail at the next hight he shall not be allowed to go back and try the hight which he omitted. ”

“ Swiping the ball—Any one knows, instinctively, the difference between a tip and a swipe; and, though swinging the crosse in front, or at the side of the body, and hitting the ball, as in shinty, is not actually prohibited, it is generally deemed unfair, and is repudiated by all good players. It has not a shadow of skill to excuse it, is dangerous and unnecessary, and is not only a death-blow to science, but destroys the originality and beauty of the game.
Kicking—Often helps to introduce pretty and effective play. ”

“ The trainer gave George the football and told him to kick it to Bailly. George stepped on the grass and swung his leg. If the ball had travelled horizontally as far as it did toward heaven it would have been a good kick. For half an hour the trainer coached interestedly, teaching George the fundamentals of kicking form. ”

“ I suppose there are more unsettled points in wrestling, or it is harder to see whether the men are playing fair, for the crowd was much more excited now than at the backsword play, a hundred voices shouting to the umpires every moment to stop this or that practice. Besides, the kicking, which is allowed at elbow and collar wrestling, makes it look brutal very often ”

“ Of course, at home or at school, among their mates they may be knocked about; the hitting is done with a swinging blow on the head or on the back, and very rarely with a forward blow, for the art of boxing being unknown, the hits peculiar to it are seldom resorted to. Kicking is not practised because, with the clogs on, the kicker is as likely to hurt himself as the kicked, while with the sandals or bare socks it is naturally out of the question. People stamp with their clogs, but that can only be done on a fallen foe. ”

“ This position is one that varies with the different kickers but the one suited to most players allows the ball to strike the ground in an almost vertical position with the top slanting toward the kicker. As in place kicking, the ball must be kicked by the toe and closely watched as the kick is made. The direction of the goal should be fully known before the player receives the ball. The ball must be hit the instant it reaches the ground. Do not wait until the ball has rebounded and catch it on the instep. No one can be accurate who kicks with the instep. ”

“ There must, of course, be discretion as well as accuracy in the passing. Whether the exigencies of the situation should require this to be long or short, as a rule it is advisable to keep the ball low rather than lift it. High kicking is, indeed, under any circumstances likely to destroy its own object In the case of a high wind it is not easy to do it to a nicety, and, moreover, if the ball is sent in the air, it gives the opposite backs a chance of getting to it and of heading it away. ”

“ The sun and wind are important factors that enter into the playing of the game and their influence on the play must be carefully noted and considered. On their direction depends largely the style of kick to be employed and the number of times kicking should be resorted to. ”

“ He who has caught it then proceeds to place it for another to kick, as hereafter described in the case of a fair catch. If the touch down be near enough to try a goal, then two of his side are commissioned by the head of the side to take it out, one of them, who is to kick it, being naturally chosen for his expertness in place kicking. Then he who is going to kick it takes it up, brings it to the line of the goal, and touches it down in a line with the place at which the person who ran in touched it down. ”