RUGBY
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The Pitch
This is not recruiting schpiel, that’s actually what the playing surface is called. The Laws of the Game state that the playing surface shall not exceed 100 meters (328 ft.) in length by 70 meters (226.4 ft.) in width. In your playing career, you’ll encounter every sort of field imaginable, from full size, regulation pitch to bowling alley to postage stamp. The size of the pitch depends on the restrictions of
the park or venue being played and/or the style of the home team.
Teams with superior forward packs may prefer narrow fields, as it
hampers the ability of opposing backs to run wide with the ball and gives
their pack a narrower field to cover. Conversely, teams with great back lines obviously prefer all
the space they can get. |
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There are many lines that partition the field.
The most crucial are the goal lines, of course drawn at each
end of the field. The touchlines
are clearly marked at the edge of the field and a solid halfway line
is drawn at the 50-meter mark. At
each end of the pitch, another solid line is drawn from sideline to
sideline 22 meters (72.2 ft.) from the goal line.
A dashed line is drawn on either side of the halfway point 10
meters (32.8 ft.) from the 50-meter line.
Other dashed lines are drawn parallel to the sidelines at 5 and
15 meters out from the sidelines.
These dashed lines mark zones used at lineouts (which shall be
explained in due course). One thing (two actually) that no field can do without
is goal posts. The
goal posts are set along the goal lines themselves, not at the back of the
end zone as in American football. The
posts are centered on the goal line, with the uprights being 5.6 meters
(18.3 ft.) apart. The
crossbar is suspended between the uprights 3 meters (9.8 ft.) above
the ground. The uprights extend upward past the crossbar only as far as
the team erecting them desires, but have to be at least 3.4 meters. |
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There are three variations (more or less) of rugby union played: 15-a-side, 10-a-side, and 7-a-side. Fifteens is generally considered real rugby, while sevens is more or less reserved for only the most fit and fastest players. Tens is for teams that can’t muster fifteen. Tens usually omits a winger, the fullback, and all three loose forwards, whilst sevens makes use only of the front row, the halfbacks, a center, and a winger (those are the positions, not necessarily the players filling them). Every player in rugby wears a more-or-less similar uniform, or kit. This consists of a jersey, shorts, socks, and shoes. The jersey and shorts must be devoid of any metal artifacts. No metal buttons, zippers, or any other implement. The socks, well, the socks should match those of others worn by your team and generally be knee high, like soccer socks. If not, it's no big deal. The cleats may have metal or molded spikes, but there can be no toes spike in rugby. Every player is inspected by the referee before a match and if any metal is found on a player (earrings, jewelry, zippers, etc.) they are told to remove it or not play. If a toe spike is found, the player is told to remove it or not play. As far as protective gear, ruggers may wear thin shoulder pads (as detailed in the rugby laws) and cushioned helmets similar to the old-style leather helmets of American football, called scrum caps. Braces, other pads, and other protective gear may be used as it conforms to the laws of the game. Oh, and a mouthpiece (gum shield) is not a bad idea either. This is a pretty physical game.
All players on the rugby pitch are trying to score...that is, to set the ball down in the end zone and put points on the board. They are also trying to keep the other team from doing the same thing. Whoever is the most successful at both will win. Ruggers move the ball up the pitch using three methods: kicking, running, and knocking on. Only the first two methods are legal. Any player can kick the ball any time he wants. Strategic kicking is a vital and huge part of the game. Kicking for the hell of it is also rather wide spread, but it's not recommended and those who engage in it are not well-loved by their teammates.
Running with the ball is what everyone loves doing. However, unlike American football, the ball carrier cannot run behind any of his own teammates. In fact, if any of his teammates are in front of him on the field - anywhere - they are offsides and could be the cause of a potential penalty. The ball in rugby is the line of scrimmage. Any players on the same team as the ball carrier that are in front of the ball carrier as he chugs upfield had best do their darnedest to get back behind the ball carrier or far away from the path of the ball carrier...or he will be offsides and the cause of a penalty.
A ball carrier's teammates support him by following him upfield at close proximity. They are thus in support of the ball carrier and are readily available for him to dish it off when he has no further route upfield. The pass in rugby must be either directly lateral or behind the ball carrier. All the ball carrier's teammates that are behind him are eligible to receive a pass from the ball carrier. If the ball carrier throws the ball forward...infraction. If he accidentally drops it forward...infraction. In either case, the other team gets the ball.
As far as keeping the other team from scoring, all players are expected to nurture good tackling skills. Every player on the rugby pitch will throw a tackle numerous times during a match. Some will feel like that's all they do. If you can't tackle or don't like the physicality of sudden impact...don't play rugby (Deion Sanders take note). However, 90% of the tackles in rugby are form tackles, that is: wrapping your arms around a runner's legs and bringing him to the deck. Yes, there are some big hits, and those are not illegal. Some tackles are illegal, however, and can actually result in a player being sent off the field. A rugger cannot clothesline a ball carrier...or any other player on the field for that matter. A rugger must be sure to keep his tackles low, below the shoulders. Any tackle above the shoulders (especially the beheading "helmet charge" sort of tackle beloved of linebackers and safeties) invites the wrath of the official. If it is especially dangerous, the offender could be sent off. This is bad. If a rugger is sent off the field by the official due to illegal play, that player cannot be replaced. Thus, the offender has just cost his team a man and they must play with 14 rather than 15...while the other team will still be at full strength. The disadvantage here is obvious. Another necessity of stopping the ball carrier is that a defender must make an attempt to wrap him up. Simply launching yourself into the ball carrier's abdomen and hatcheting him down is illegal and will be penalized. Simply caroming into the ball carrier to force him out of bounds is illegal. You must make an attempt to wrap him up and bring him to the ground.
Those are the bare basics of what all players do. Now onto the more specific responsibilities of the positions, which we'll cover for real rugby – fifteens – by unit here.
The front row is the center of the scrum, the platform around which the pack is built. The front row consists of the Tighthead and Loosehead Props, usually beefy sorts with good backs and lots of balance and strength, whose job it is to provide stability for the rest of the scrum and support the Hooker, who stands between the Props and whose job it is to use his feet to hook the ball back to his own side during a scrum…sort of like a hockey face-off with feet.
Behind the Front Row, laying almost horizontal and grabbing
the props for support, is the Second Row, or Locks. These two players provide the thrust for the scrum when the
ball is put in and the pushing starts. Think
of them as the engine room. Usually
these players are quite tall and powerful…for obvious reasons.
The Loose Forwards are the Number Eight (so called because that is the jersey number he wears), who is more or less a rangy second row-type and leans at the very back of the scrum, using his feet to keep the ball controlled for delivery to his scrum half and to shield the scrum half from the opposing scrum half, and the Wing Forwards (or Flankers), who position themselves on the Props’ outside hips to provide some stability for the big guys and to be in good shape to instantly break off and chase the ball (and the ball carrier) down when the opposition gets the ball out of the scrum. On offense, the Loose Forwards support the play by trailing closely behind in order to either take the ball themselves and continue moving forward or by driving into the breakdown to provide thrust over the ball and help in retaining possession of the ball for their team. On defense they race around the field like a virus, tackling everything in sight and generally making life miserable for any opposition player unlucky enough to be holding the ball.
The Scrum Half acts a go-between, getting the ball from the forwards to the backs. At lineouts he is responsible for taking the ball from the forwards and passing it to the backs. At scrums he puts the ball into the tunnel between the opposing Front Rows and collects it at the feet of his Number Eight if his team wins the hook…or harasses his opposite number if his team loses the hook. In loose play, his primary role is directing traffic and taking the ball from the pile and delivering it the backs.
The Fly Half is the back line general, directing the backs in attack and defense, running with the ball in hand, kicking for tactical advantage (or just to get the ball the heck out his own end of the field), and generally providing inspiration through the incredible execution of his awesome responsibilities. He also sets the backs in motion by sometimes passing the ball on to other players.
The Inside and Outside Centers are the meat and potatoes of the back line, usually receiving the lion’s share of action on defense and usually responsible for breaking the gain line (an imaginary line across the field that marks the point where the forwards don’t have to run backward to support the offense after a set play) on offense. Most designed plays run in the back line are run using some combination of centers and other positions or the two centers in tandem. Like Flankers, you have to revel in contact to play this position.
The Back Three are the Wingers (one on the left, one on the right) and the Fullback. These are usually the fastest players on the field. The Wingers are primarily responsible for making use of ball provided cleanly by the Centers after having broken the gain line…that is, SCORING. They also participate in defense by providing coverage at the Fullback position when the Fullback moves into the back line on offensive plays. The Fullback provides explosiveness on offense by bursting at speed into the attacking back line in an effort to break the gain line and provide a clear avenue for his Wingers to score. On defense he covers deep in the event that the opposition kicks the ball, which he can field and counterattack with. He is also the last line of defense. If the opposition breaks through and is surging downfield for the score, the Fullback may be (and usually is) the only player between the foe and a certain five points. At that point, it’s Death Before Dishonor. Basically, this unit is responsible for everything where speed is of paramount importance.
Every position on the rugby field has a designated number,
thus every team that plays rugby utilizes the same numbering scheme and there is
therefore no retiring of jersey numbers. The
numbers are:
1 – Prop
2 – Hooker
3 – Prop
4 – Second Row
5 – Second Row
6 – Wing Forward
7 - Wing Forward
8 – Eight Man
9 – Scrum Half
10 – Fly Half
11 – Left Winger
12 – Inside Center
13 – Outside Center
14 – Right Winger
15 – Fullback
Numbers 16 through 22 are spare numbers used by reserve players, who fill in wherever there’s a need when the occasion warrants. Replacements are recommended to be two front row players and five whatever-you-have players.
The game starts when the referee, after having the team
captains (one captain per team, not fifty like in American football) call the
coin toss to determine who gets what and who starts where, blows the whistle.
The kicking team lines up just behind the kicker on their side of the
50-meter line. The forwards on the kicking team gather in a line on one side
of the field while the backs do the same on the other side.
The fullback usually hangs back somewhere around the 22-meter line.
To start the game, the kicker places the ball on the ground at the center
of the field for a place kick. He
must send the ball at least 10 meters to the opposing team.
Usually, the kick is VERY high and to the opposition forwards,
lined up in an exploded scrum opposite the kicker’s forwards to receive the
ball. By kicking it high, the
kicker gives his forwards a chance to dash into the area wherein the ball comes
down, perhaps coming up with it themselves.
If the ball does not go at least 10 meters, the receiving team has the
option of either playing it (which is rare) or taking a scrum at midfield.
If the kick goes out of bounds on the fly, the receiving team may take
either a lineout at the spot it went out or a scrum at midfield.
If the ball bounces out of bounds, a lineout is awarded to whichever team
was not the last to touch it inbounds.
The Scrum |
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| If a rules infraction occurs, such as a player dropping or throwing the ball forward, the referee will set a scrum. This is the mob-like pack-down by which rugby is most recognized. The Front Row binds together and the Second Row joins in by slipping their heads between the hips of the Props and Hooker. The Second Row’s shoulders will wind up shoving against the butts of the Front Row. The Number Eight slips in between the hips of the Second Row players and the Wing Forwards bind onto the Props’ outside hip. Every player then binds together tightly and the opposing Front Rows come together, with the Props grabbing hold of their opposites in an effort to both steady the scrum and overpower the opposition. The Scrum Half, at a signal from the Hooker, rolls the ball into the tunnel between the Front Rows and the packs will both drive forward in an effort to shove their opponent backward and off the ball. At the same time, the Hookers will both strike at the ball with the feet in an effort to hook it backward through the legs of their own scrum. The Scrum Half dashes to the back of the scrum and most often retrieves the ball from the feet of the Number Eight. Sometimes the Number Eight will pick the ball up himself and run with it. Once the ball is taken from the scrum, the scrum is over, the shoving stops, and the big men get themselves up and chase the action across the field, hoping that their puny backs have managed to cross the gain line. | ||
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The LINEOUT |
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A lineout occurs when the ball is taken or kicked out of bounds. Where the ball was kicked from and how it went out of bounds will determine where the lineout is taken. The 22-meter lines at either end of the pitch are zones beloved of any punter. If a player receives a ball and boots it from behind his own 22-meter line, the lineout will be taken wherever the ball crossed the touchline, whether in the air or bouncing over it. If a player kicks the ball from anywhere in front of his own 22-meter line the lineout will be taken from wherever the ball last touched the ground or another player before going out. So if someone boots a high ball and it sails out of bounds in the air, the lineout is taken from the same latitude as where the ball was kicked. If a player kicked it and it either bounced out of bounds or caromed off of another player en route to going out of bounds, then the lineout is taken from that latitude. Either way, the team that kicked or was the last to touch the ball before it went out of bounds loses possession (except in the case of penalties…discussed below) and the other team will throw the ball into the lineout.
The lineout is basically the two forward packs lining up and getting ready to maul. Each pack lines up in equal numbers perpendicular to the point on the touchline wherefrom the ball is going to be thrown and between the 5-meter and 15-meter lines parallel to the touchline. The backs and any other player not in the lineout must remain at a 10-meter distance from the lineout on their side of it, and that 10 meters must be maintained until the lineout is over. The only exception is the scrum half, who stands close to the lineout in order to take the ball from the forwards and deliver it to the backs. Everyone else has to keep their distance.
A 1-meter No Man’s Land (or tunnel) must be made and maintained between the packs lining up. The player throwing the ball in (usually, but not always, the Hooker) will loft the ball straight into the lineout above that No Man’s Land at a verbal signal from the player making the lineout calls. In the lineout itself, two (usually) of the six or seven men therein will jump for the ball, one toward the front of the lineout, one toward the back. The team throwing in has the advantage in that they know (supposedly) what position the ball is being thrown to. In the old days, the jumper had to rely purely on his own height and vertical leap to secure possession, but now the players in front of and behind the jumper in the lineout may take hold of the jumper after he jumps and hoist him even farther into the air, significantly increasing his ability to grab the ball.
One of several things will happen when the ball touches the jumper’s hand. He will either swat it instantly to his scrum half at the apogee of his leap for super-rapid delivery to the speedy backs, come down with it in both hands and become the center of a maul wherefrom his team will hope to secure quality, stable possession from which to work set plays, or he will drop it and turn it over to the other team. Each of these occurs in more or less equal proportion. Once the ball leaves the lineout or the ensuing mall moves far enough for the referee to declare that the lineout is over, the backs and everyone else may close in and play resumes as normal.
RUCKS
AND MAULS
After a set play, the ball will travel for a bit
across the field, bouncing from one player to the next, but will
invariably wind up stopped somewhere.
A ball carrier may either be tackled, stopped upright by the
opposition, or the ball may have been dropped and is wobbling around on
the ground. Depending on the
actions of the players surging into the breakdown, a ruck or a maul will
be established. A RUCK is when the ball or the ball carrier
has been taken to the ground. Players
from both sides rush in, grabbing hold of each other’s waists,
shoulders, arms, whatever to bind together and surge in right over the
ball. They will undoubtedly come to grips with players from the
other team doing the same thing. As
soon as they meet over the ball, a ruck is formed and no one is allowed to
stick their hands into the pile to grab the ball, on pain of a
penalty…amongst others. The
only way to get the ball out of the ruck is to try raking it back with
your feet. This, of course,
is bad news for any player on the ground when the ruck forms, and it is
standard practice to cover your head and your…other parts in order to
avoid brain damage and/or neutering.
The best thing to do is to try wriggling out, but that is not
always possible. And woe
betide any player foolish enough to lay on top of the ball or otherwise
restrict the opposition’s fair licks at it…his uniform shall be
shredded and his flesh will be rent…and he will cost his team a penalty. A MAUL is formed when a ball carrier is stopped upright or takes it into a mob and is held there on his feet. A tug of war commences between the ball carrier and the opposition, who want to become ball carriers. Around this tug of war forms what amounts to a ruck, but since the ball is off the ground and there is still a rumble going on, it is called maul. It is a common forward practice to employ what is called a rolling maul, where one of the forwards carries the ball into the opposition, followed closely by his teammates. The forwards bind on in a precise and controlled manner and the ball is peeled from man to man to man, and the man that peels rolls forward off one side of the maul, is quickly stopped by the opposition, but once again is supported by his teammates. Eventually, the opposition numbers dwindle, especially if the rolling maul is rapidly executed, and the forwards thereby gain space, position, and suck in more of the opposition from the rest of the field, reducing the number facing their backs. When an opportune time presents itself, the ball is taken from the maul and spun to the backs for a successful attack. |
SCORINGThe object rugby is, of course, to win. You can't win if you don't score. You score in rugby by either carrying the ball over the goal line and touching it down or kicking it through the uprights over the crossbar. When you carry the ball over the goal line, you haven't scored. When you touch the ball to the ground in a controlled manner you earn what is called a TRY. A try is worth 5 points. Sometimes players cross the goal line but no try is awarded. This may be because the player knocked it forward when he tried to set it down, or because the ball was held up by the opposition and did not, in fact, actually touch the ground, or the defenders may have knocked the ball (or the ball carrier) through the back of the try zone and into touch. The bottom line is, if you don't touch the ball to the earth, you don't score a try. After scoring the try, the scoring team attempts the conversion kick, which is worth 2 points more. This kick is taken from a point in the field straight out from the point at which the ball carrier touched it down in the try zone. Thus, if you touch the ball down under the posts, the conversion is attempted in front of the posts. If the ball is touched down in the corner, then the conversion is taken from the sideline. It is obviously better, then, to run as far toward the middle of the field as possible before touching the ball down (but make sure you're in the try zone first...better 5 points than none at all). If a team is awarded a penalty within range of their goal kicker, they may opt to take a shot at goal. This shot is taken from wherever the penalty was called, so it could be anywhere on the field. A penalty goal is worth 3 points. However, if the kicker misses, the other team gets the ball. A fourth manner of scoring is the drop goal. This kick, like the penalty goal, is worth 3 points. Any player, at any time, at any point on the field, may attempt this kick. It must be a drop kick, that is, the ball must touch the ground and bounce up before your foot strikes it. Hence the term "drop" kick. You drop the ball from your hands, it strikes the ground and bounces, and your foot strikes it and you score. Hopefully. If not, the ball is turned over to the other team. The fly half or scrum half is usually the player that tries this goal, but any player on the field may attempt it. |
MOREThere is obviously much more to rugby than this, but this should get you started on the road to understanding the game and thereby getting ready to play it. So choose a position, get your kit on, and hit the pitch! It's game time! |
