Umpire's Guide to England Netball Club and League Netball All Ages 2026/27

World Netball Rule 16. The sanction for obstruction is a penalty pass.

A defender may try to intercept, deflect or defend a player with the ball if there is at least 0.9 m (3 ft) on the ground between:

• the nearest part of the landing foot of the player with the ball, and
• the nearest part of the defender's nearer foot on the ground.

Measuring in detail:

• One-foot landing: measure from the landing foot. If it's lifted, measure from where it was grounded.
• Two-foot landing: if neither foot moves, measure from the closer foot. If one foot moves, measure from the foot that stays grounded.
• Pivoting: if the player pivots, the measuring point moves with the landing foot, and the defender must readjust.
• Lifted defender: a defender being lifted by a teammate is measured from either defender's nearer grounded foot.

Allowed: from the correct distance, a defender may jump upwards or towards the player and land within 0.9 m, provided this doesn't interfere with the pass or shot. They're also fine if the player with the ball closes the distance. A defender may be within 0.9 m if they make no attempt to defend.

Players without the ball: within 0.9 m of an opponent, a player may stretch out their arms only to catch, deflect or intercept a pass or rebound, or to signal momentarily. They may not use arm movements away from the body to block an opponent's movement, beyond natural body stance.

World Netball Rule 17. The sanction for every contact infringement is a penalty pass.

Interference (17.1-17.3): a player must not make physical contact that unfairly interferes with an opponent's play, whether accidental or deliberate. Examples include pushing, tripping, grabbing, holding or leaning; knocking or hitting (including when shooting); hitting or placing hands on a ball an opponent holds; and pushing the ball into an opponent. To be penalised, the contact must cause one of these:

• the opponent loses the ball,
• interference with their passing or shooting action, or
• a change in their body position that stops them moving freely and puts them at an unfair disadvantage.

Incidental contact that causes none of these is a fair contest. Don't penalise it.

Causing contact:

• A player who jumps must be allowed to land. An opponent must not move into their landing place, and when two players jump together, must yield it to the player who gains possession.
• A player must not move so close to, or so quickly into the path of, a moving opponent that they can't stop or change direction.
• Inevitable contact: a player must not stand so close that the opponent can't move at all without contacting them.

Player safety (17.9): the following are normally dangerous play needing game management on top of the penalty pass:

• contact with an airborne player that puts a safe landing at risk;
• moving into, or failing to yield, a landing place;
• forceful, careless or reckless contact that causes head and/or neck contact.

World Netball Rule 6:

• Any player allowed in that area may take a sanction.
• Free pass: the player taking it can't shoot for goal. If they do, a free pass goes the other way and no goal is scored.
• Penalty pass: the infringer must stand out of play. They move quickly to the position you indicate, beside but away from the thrower, and take no part (including talking) until the ball is released. If they don't, a further penalty pass is awarded, which may be advanced.
• A GS or GA taking a penalty pass in the goal circle may pass or shoot.
• A correctly positioned player may take a penalty pass immediately, before it's set ("taken"). The infringer still may not take part until the ball is released.
• If the infringer is substituted or changes position before the penalty pass is taken, whoever takes their position stands out of play.

World Netball Rule 7: a team shouldn't be disadvantaged when an opponent infringes. Hold your whistle and let play continue when the non-infringing team has a clear and real opportunity to play the ball to:

• a territorial advantage (towards their goal end),
• a tactical advantage (free to play the ball as they wish), or
• a combination of both.

How to signal: call "advantage", state the infringement and the infringer's playing position, and use the advantage hand signal.

Never apply advantage:

• to unfair play, unsporting behaviour or dangerous play;
• to anything that would lead to an immediate suspension or ordering off;
• to any incident with head and/or neck contact, including contact with the goalpost or anything else in the playing enclosure;
• where you suspect a player is seriously injured.

Once you've blown the whistle you must award the sanction. The one exception is a goal scored to the non-infringing team's advantage: award the goal, call "advantage" and state the infringement and position.

World Netball Rule 18 gives you these actions, on top of the sanction for the infringement:

1. Proactive advice: specific feedback to change a player's behaviour.
2. Advance and/or escalate a sanction: move it up to half a third (into the goal circle if the infringement was in the goal third), and/or turn a free pass into a penalty pass.
3. Warning: suspension will follow if the player keeps infringing the foul play rules.
4. Suspension: the player sits out 2 minutes of playing time, starting when play restarts. No substitute is allowed (unless the player was the Centre, when someone must move to Centre), and only one suspension per player per match.
5. Ordering off: the player takes no further part. The team plays one short for 4 minutes of playing time, then a substitute may come on at the next break in play.

Normally you work through these in order, but you can go straight to a higher level for serious offences. You must suspend for dangerous play, unless it's intentional or highly reckless enough to warrant immediate ordering off. To give a warning, suspension or ordering off, hold time, signal the official bench, use the word ("warning", "suspension" or "ordering off") and tell the player why. Advantage is never played for unfair play, unsporting behaviour or dangerous play.

England Netball's domestic additions:

• Ordered off: the player is automatically banned for the whole of the team's next scheduled fixture in that competition. If it happens in the final match, the ban carries into the next period or season of the same competition. The umpires complete the paperwork for the league or competition organiser.
• Two suspensions within the same competition period or season: an automatic ban for the next scheduled fixture. This is a requirement in some domestic competitions and an England Netball recommendation in others.
• Bench: team officials or bench players ordered from the playing enclosure are automatically banned for the next scheduled fixture.

World Netball Rule 3.12: players may not wear anything that could endanger themselves or others:

• No body piercings, including earrings.
• No adornment that could endanger player safety, and no communication devices.
• Any other adornment must be securely covered with tape or padding. The same goes for medical devices.
• Player monitoring devices must be secured inside the playing uniform.
• Fingernails short and smooth.
• Hair tied back (for example ponytail, plait or braids) and free of adornment.

England Netball's domestic guidance adds:

• Can't be removed: dermal piercings, and flat religious rings or bracelets kept on for religious or cultural reasons, must be padded or taped.
• Ear tunnels and stretchers: these shouldn't be removed. Replace them with a flat silicone spacer, taped in place.
• Beading: hair beading that can't be removed can be covered with a scarf or bonnet.
• Head coverings: a hat, scarf or bonnet is allowed if it's soft, has no embellishments and has loose edges secured. Caps and visors are not allowed.
• Gloves: not normally worn. They are allowed with a medical certificate, or in extreme weather (especially outdoors and in school and junior netball), if plain, soft, seam-free and without grip material.
• Sunglasses: only for genuine medical reasons, with a medical certificate.
• Glucose monitors: must be covered. An insulin pump must be secured under the uniform.
• Uniform: apply the uniform rules sensibly and inclusively at grassroots level. Tracksuits and clothing in club colours shouldn't bar a player.

World Netball default (Rules 2.1-2.4):

• Four quarters of 15 minutes.
• 4-minute intervals between quarters 1-2 and 3-4.
• 12-minute half-time (or 8 minutes, if the event organiser and both teams agree).
• Teams change ends each quarter.
• If a penalty pass is awarded in a team's attacking goal circle before time is signalled, time is extended for that penalty pass to be taken.

England Netball domestic variations:

• National competition: World Netball timings.
• Regional and county competition: preferably the World Netball timings, but quarters and intervals may exceptionally be shorter.
• Local competitions, tournaments and community netball: preferably the World Netball timings, but the match may be played in halves instead of quarters, and periods and intervals may be shorter.

Extra time (only if the organiser announced it before the match): a 4-minute interval, then two halves of up to 7 minutes each with a 1-minute half-time. If the scores are still level, play continues until one team leads by two goals. Domestic competitions may vary the extra-time requirements.

World Netball Rules 10.9-10.22:

• Holding time: hold time for injury or illness when an on-court player makes a verifiable request, or without a request if the injury is obvious or serious. Also hold time if you see an open wound or active bleeding, including blood-stained clothing.
• 30 seconds: the player must leave the court within 30 seconds and be treated off court. The timekeepers tell you when 10 seconds remain. If the primary care person says the player can't be moved safely within 30 seconds, extend the time and tell the official bench.
• Who can come on: only primary care persons may come on to assess the player. In England, if a team has no qualified primary carer, it must name before the match the person responsible for dealing with injuries.
• Substitutions: during the stoppage both teams may make substitutions or team changes. If no substitute is made, play resumes with the position vacant. If the player was the Centre, someone must move to Centre.
• Returning: a player (or substitute) for a vacant position may only come back at the next break in play. Entering while play is in progress is treated as a late player.
• Blood: blood-stained clothing must be replaced within the stoppage time. A ball with blood on it is swapped, and blood on court is cleaned before play restarts.
• Concussion: a primary care person may ask the reserve umpire to stop play so a player with suspected concussion can be substituted.

Scoring and timing: under World Netball Rule 5.3 the technical officials are two scorers and two timekeepers. England Netball's Domestic Rules Guidance allows fewer at lower levels:

• National competition: the full World Netball requirement applies.
• Regional and county competition: preferably the full requirement, with an exceptional minimum of 2 scorers and 1 timekeeper. Umpires do not keep score or time the match.
• Local competitions, tournaments and community netball: preferably at least 1 scorer and 1 timekeeper. Ideally umpires shouldn't keep score or time.
• If there are no timekeepers when a player is suspended, the umpire who isn't timing the match times the suspension.

Injured umpire: a reserve umpire isn't always available. The umpires can't be changed unless one or both are injured. If that happens:

1. The next best qualified umpire takes over.
2. If there isn't one, a team member who holds an umpiring qualification takes over.
3. If no replacement is available, the match is abandoned and referred to the competition organiser.

England Netball's umpiring pathway

The INTO, C and B awards don't expire. You must keep meeting the award competencies and stay up to date with rule changes.

Eligibility to umpire: you may only take to court if you hold full England Netball membership (with its insurance) and are either qualified or "in training". In training means within 2 years of attending an INTO course. After that you must not umpire until you take a new INTO course.