Here’s the interpretation of the throw-in rules for each age group….OSYSA Rec rules preside…

U4/U5 and U6/U7 leagues:  to make a proper throw-in, the player keeps both feet on the ground, stays behind the line, places the ball completely behind the head before throwing it, each hand is on opposite sides of the ball and the ball is thrown in-bounds without excessively spinning the ball.  It is NOT expected that 3 – 4 year olds and K/1^st graders can achieve this!  As coaches ref the games, give them all the flexibility in the world…help them learn the proper technique but don’t enforce it…don’t ask the thrower to re-take the throw when it’s not done the first time.

U8/U9  leagues:  to make a proper throw-in, the player keeps both feet on the ground, stays behind the line, places the ball completely behind the head before throwing it, each hand is on opposite sides of the ball and the ball is thrown in-bounds without excessively spinning the ball.  It’s expected that players in this league know how to throw the ball in correctly…but don’t always remember to do so in the heat of the battle!  It is appropriate to quietly remind/prompt the player to throw the ball in correctly with a simple “hey John, remember to keep both feet on the ground,” etc…no yelling, just a quiet prompt. 

In this age bracket you can’t expect perfection even if the player remembers the proper technique.  In a game, therefore, the player will be given another chance to throw-in the ball if he/she did it wrong the first time (or second or third, etc).  After a few attempts, the player should be able to get it close enough so play can continue.  Under no circumstances will the ball be turned-over to the opposing team when a player makes an improper throw-in.

U10/U11/U12 leagues:  to make a proper throw-in, the player keeps both feet on the ground, stays behind the line, places the ball completely behind the head before throwing it, each hand is on opposite sides of the ball and the ball is thrown in-bounds without excessively spinning the ball.  it’s expected that players in this league know how to throw the ball in correctly and should remember to do so in the heat of the battle.  It is appropriate to quietly remind/prompt the player to throw the ball in correctly with a simple “hey John, remember to keep both feet on the ground,” etc…no yelling, just a quiet prompt.  In a game, the player will be given a second chance to throw-in the ball correctly if he/she did it wrong the first time.  After two attempts, the ball turns over to the opposing team and they throw it in to start play. 

U13 leagues and thereafter: to make a proper throw-in, the player keeps both feet on the ground, stays behind the line, places the ball completely behind the head before throwing it, each hand is on opposite sides of the ball and the ball is thrown in-bounds without excessively spinning the ball.  it’s expected that players in this league know how to throw the ball in correctly and should remember to do so in the heat of the battle.  It is no longer appropriate to quietly remind/prompt the player to throw the ball in correctly.  In a game, if the player improperly throws the ball in, the ball turns over to the opposing team and they throw it in to start play…no 2^nd chances.