NSW JUNIOR GOALBALL

Targeting the reduction of juvenile obesity and diabetes, Junior or Schools Goalball encourages inclusion integration and understanding.

Junior Goalball is a good reason for a child to leave their computer and get out of the home, and actually play an exciting and competitive physically demanding sport. The physical and hearing skills that are developed by the sport are life skills that will enhance future safety and give a better life style.

The basic concept of Schools Goalball is that the goalball teams are comprised of sighted and vision impaired players, who will represent their schools in a final play off against other schools goalball teams. The factor of all players  are required to wear blindfolds creates a 'level playing field' between the sighted and vision impaired or blind competitors.

Junior Goalball (or School Goalball ) is played with a smaller, lighter, softer goalball than standard Goalball.

The Junior Goalballs are about the size of a soccer ball, and one of them is inflated and bouncy, with bells inside it for sound localisation, the other is softer, with bells inside and holes on the outside.

Junior Goalball is also played on a smaller court, 7 metres, by 18 meters.

There are NO taped tactile orientation marks on the court.

The players recognise their positions, and orient themselves, from the position of the three gym mats which are laid in each of the team areas, just in front of the goal lines.

The referee, or teacher in Schools Goalball, recognises the various areas of the schools goalball court from coloured witches hats, that are placed outside the court, on either side of the court opposite the line positions.

With these exceptions, the rules of 'Senior' Goalball apply.

A version of Junior Goalball is known in Europe as Torball and is very popular there, but it is not a Paralympic sport.

(Court Diagram)

Comparison of the Standard Goalball and the Junior Goalball (Torball)