[Mtg Ruler]

I see kicking as the best way to get the balls into the goals, even in your own zone, because then you dont have to spend the time to move to the goal, then move back to get another ball.

for regionals, I expect there to be a wide range of kickers, but still many teams will push the balls (either to a really bad kicking design, or no kicking mechanism at all). Once the championships roll around, i think there will be more kickers than pushers.