So I've thought about this on and off. I haven't had this experience in a few weeks, maybe a few months. I think Jerry did a really good job with this as my partner last night and it made a big difference for the better with my foosing experience.

But sometimes when a match is called one player will silently begin wrapping a pair of rods and then hold onto them, as if to claim a position for himself. The other will come up a minute later and observing the situation, might or might not choose to say anything about positions.

IMO it's best to explicitly discuss who should play what position, even if it's nothing more than verbally confirming that your own wishes are ok with the other person. I don't think it ever goes without saying what either player should do, at least not in a tournament match where there's a chance that people will care.

Any thoughts, comments, et cetera?

Hmmm. I normally try to ask every dyp partner I get where they want to play, even beginners. It seems like the polite thing to do, but that's just me.

Back in the day, in Colorado, there was a pecking order at dyp's. If you drew certain people (or anyone ranked higher than you) you pretty much just played goal no questions asked.

But I agree Mike, you should always have a quick chat with your dyp partner about positions in the beginning no matter what they are ranked or how long they have been playing.