Rule 47. Penalty 8 - Throw-in
Blue Book 2026, Part 1, Rule 47 · Penalties
In plain English
Penalty 8: throw-in towards the nearest boards.
- The neutral restart: the umpire throws the ball in towards the nearest boards from where the ball was when the whistle went.
- It is what the umpires use when neither side deserves an advantage - a no foul after consultation, a stoppage with the ball still live, a buried ball, or a hit-in nobody took in time.
- Delay in taking a hit-in has its own throw-in, described under rule 14.
On the fieldThe neutral restart. Used when nobody deserves an advantage.
The published wording of this one runs to a couple of sentences, so rather than reprint it: read rule 47 in the Blue Book 2026.
2 questions on this rule
What happens in Penalty 8?
- The umpire awards a free hit to the team that was fouled
- The umpire throws the ball in towards the nearest boards from where the ball was when the whistle was blown ✓
- The team that committed the foul is given a penalty shot
- The player who committed the foul is sent off the field
Where does the umpire throw the ball in for a Penalty 8?
- On the centre line
- Towards the nearest boards, from where the ball was when the whistle was blown ✓
- From the 30 yard line opposite the goal
- Where the ball came to rest
Test yourself
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Every rule here is stated in our own words, with short quoted extracts from the HPA Blue Book 2026 and Green Book 2025 and a link to the book itself. Polo Rules Test is an independent study aid and is not affiliated with the Hurlingham Polo Association. In any dispute the published rulebook governs.