Possession (sports) opportunity to score. In bat-and-ball games including baseball and cricket, the ball is controlled by the fielding team, which are on defense. In several sports, possession is exchanged after the offensive team scores, or when the defensive team physically takes control of a "live" (in play) ball through a fumble, interception, or steal. In gridiron football, possession is additionally controlled through a series of allotted plays called downs, over which the offensive team must move the ball a certain distance down the field, or lose possession. Possession at the start of a game, or in a neutral restart, may be
Rugby union gameplay touch line. Care has to be taken not to kick it too far, because if it travels through their opponents in-goal and becomes dead the opposition is awarded a scrum from where the kick occurred. The disadvantage of "kicking for territory" is that it almost always gives possession of the ball to the opposing team. If a clearing kick is caught by the opposition, then they can counter-attack by running, passing, or kicking the ball back toward the clearing team. Attacking kicks are also employed, usually if the opposition is out of position or running at them is proving ineffective.