What Is Footwork in Netball?

Footwork is one of the first rules every new netball player has to unlearn their instincts for — it's the reason you can't just run the ball up the court.

The rule in plain English

When you catch the ball, whichever foot touches the ground first becomes your landing foot. From that point:

You may pivot on the landing foot — turning your body while it stays in contact with the same spot on the floor.
You may step and land with your other foot as many times as you like.
You cannot lift the landing foot and put it down again ("re-ground" it), and you cannot drag it across the floor, while you're still holding the ball.

If you catch the ball while jumping and land on both feet at once, neither foot may be lifted and re-grounded — you have to release the ball before you can move either foot again.

The same principle applies if you lose your balance: falling to the ground and then re-grounding the landing foot to get back up is also a footwork infringement, even though it happens through a fall rather than a deliberate step.

A simple example

You catch the ball while running, and your right foot lands first. That's your landing foot. You can pivot on your right foot, stepping around with your left, to face a new direction and look for a pass. What you can't do is push off your right foot to take another stride forward — that's a footwork infringement.

Legal vs illegal footwork

Legal	Illegal
Pivoting on a planted landing foot	Lifting the landing foot and putting it down again
Stepping repeatedly with the non-landing foot	Dragging the landing foot across the floor
Landing on two feet and passing before either moves	Landing on two feet, then stepping with one before releasing
Jumping to catch and landing on one foot, then pivoting	Jumping to catch, landing, then hopping to gain ground

What the umpire is looking for

Umpires watch the landing foot specifically at the moment of catching and through to the moment the ball is released. A footwork call is about that foot's contact with the floor — not about speed, balance, or how far the player travelled.

Restart

A footwork infringement is restarted with a free pass, taken by the non-offending team from the spot where the infringing player was standing when the infringement occurred.

Common misunderstandings

"I only moved a little bit." Any re-grounding or dragging of the landing foot counts, regardless of distance.
"I was off balance." Losing balance doesn't excuse re-grounding the landing foot — players are expected to control their landing. This includes falling to the ground and re-grounding the landing foot while getting back up, which is treated the same as any other re-grounding.
Confusing footwork with held ball. Footwork is about foot movement; held ball is about holding onto the ball for too long. They're separate rules and can happen independently.

Player tips

Practise catching and immediately identifying your landing foot before you decide which way to pivot — see the skills section for landing and pivoting technique breakdowns.
Plan your pivot direction while the ball is still in the air where possible, so you're not adjusting your feet after landing.

Umpire tips

Position yourself so you have a clear sightline to the landing foot, not just the ball — the infringement happens at floor level.
Call footwork promptly and clearly so both teams understand exactly which foot and which movement triggered it.

Footwork interacts closely with held ball — both limit how long and how freely a player can control the ball once they have it — and with the restart mechanics shared with most other minor infringements, covered in centre pass for how play resumes after a goal.