This essay will identify the principles of play applicable to invasion games; it will examine how the principles of play are implemented in similar and different ways in hockey, football and basket ball. It will focus on the effects of the rules/laws of each game, attacking and defending.
             Play according to Huizinga is 'a voluntary activity or occupation exercised within certain fixed rules of time and place, according to rules freely accepted but absolutely binding, having its aim in itself and accompanied by a feeling of tension, joy and the consciousness that this is different from ordinary life'
             To perform effectively in game, players must have a full understanding of the objectives, styles and the principles of play required of them during the different phases of the game and in the different areas of the court/pitches.
             Invasion games are team games where the purpose is to invade the opposition's territory with the purpose of scoring (Dr Paul Webb 2003). They should be competitive, institutionalised, and should involve vigorous physical exertion and complex skills. There are four main principles of play applicable to invasion games. Those being pressure, possession, go forward and support. These apply throughout all invasion games but mainly football, hockey and basket ball. Pressure can be applied when in attack and in defence, when attacking the team is placing pressure on the opposing team as they are likely to score, when defending the team applies pressure on the attacking team to try to force errors from the other team. Possession mainly applies to attacking as when you are attacking one of the main aims is to keep possession in order to score, and if you lose it you fight to regain it at the earliest opportunity. It can also apply in defending towards the end of a game when your team is winning and you just want to keep possession to pass the time, to stop the opposition from gaining possession and sc...