URL:http://www.thestar.com/thestar/editorial/sports/970408SPB3b_SP-RESULTS8.html Toronto Star Home Page April 8, 1997 RESULTS _________________________________________________________________ Yesterday's Question: Do you think full body contact should be allowed in women's hockey? YES 252 75% NO 85 25% RESPONSES _________________________________________________________________ The banner in the arena Sunday night in Kitchener says it all: ``Men invented hockey and women perfected it.'' Why would we want to lower our calibre of hockey to become like men's hockey, which is based on brutality and intimidation? Hockey should be about skill, speed and finesse not size, power and slamming your opponent into the boards. Don't mess with a good thing. B. Lee Cox Thornhill After watching this world championship, how could anyone argue that full contact shouldn't be allowed in women's hockey? The refs were rarely enforcing the rules regarding body checking and the majority of players on all three teams that I saw play ignored the no-contact rule. I saw women from 5-foot-2 to 5-foot-11 throwing good, clean body checks. Why should the women have to play with different rules than the men when it is clear that they want to play hockey as it is meant to be played? Kristen Varcoe Midhurst, Ont. There was enough contact in the game so that players were not just allowed to roam freely in the offensive zone. If you added that dimension to the women's game, then there would be more fighting, cheap shots and more injuries. It sure was nice to watch the game and not see constant pushing and shoving every time a whistle was blown or the goalie froze the puck. J. Dunlop Peterborough Yes, there should be full body contact in women's hockey. There were some pretty good hits on Sunday night. The only problem with this, though, would be the fact that only Canadians and Americans play the hard-hitting style of hockey. Mark Andre Pusey Toronto Not allowing full body contact in women's hockey takes away from the game. The Canadian women were impressive, but watching them outshoot many of their opponents by 50-plus shots in a game of shinny won't keep many fans glued to their seats. At least if full contact is allowed, some of the lesser teams can slow down the other teams and make a game of it. All in all, without full body contact the sport cannot grow. T. Sacco Richmond Hill Yes to full contact in women's hockey. Hitting increases the entertainment value. Let's not tailor the game to suit their skill level, rather they should train to perform at a higher level of skill which includes hitting. Women as a general population are more polite than men - however, ``excuse me could you move'' just isn't conducive to an intense, fast-paced game. Rick LeGault Kitchener Contents copyright © 1996, 1997, The Toronto Star. User interface, selection and arrangement copyright © 1996, 1997 Torstar Electronic Publishing Ltd.