Rushed behind

In Australian rules football, a rushed behind occurs when the ball passes through the goalposts and was last touched by a defending player. A rushed behind scores one point for the attacking team, but it also prevents the attacking team from scoring a goal, worth six points.

A rushed behind typically occurs when a defending player touches the ball after it has been kicked and as it heads toward the goal; by touching the ball, the defender ensures that the attacking team scores only one point rather than the full six. It may be less risky for a defending player in possession of the ball to deliberately concede a rushed behind rather than try to prevent any score outright. A deliberately rushed behind results in a free kick to the opposing side unless under immediate pressure—a rule implemented in the 2009 AFL season. If the ball is kicked by an attacker and touched by another player simultaneously, it is considered rushed.[1]

Rushed behinds are statistically credited to no player; scoresheets will simply include the tally of total rushed behinds credited to a team's score. This is comparable to extras (aka sundries) in cricket.

It is impossible for a defending team to directly concede a "rushed goal" worth six points. In other words, if a player kicks what would be the equivalent of an own goal in soccer, only one point is conceded.

  1. ^ "Laws of Australian Football 2021" (PDF). Australian Football League. 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2021.