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Rugby union (short for '''rugby union football''' and often referred to as simply '''rugby''', to a lesser extent '''football''', or '''union''' in countries familiar with rugby union and Rugby League ), is an outdoor sport played by teams of 15 players with an Oval ball. It is one of the two main codes of Rugby Football , the other being Rugby League . There is also a quicker seven-a-side variation called Rugby Sevens , which exists in both forms. OVERVIEW See Also: Playing rugby union An adult-level rugby union match lasts for 80 minutes, consisting of two halves of 40 minutes each plus time added on for injury, and is controlled by a single Referee , two Touch Judge s, and in most professional matches, a television match official (TMO), commonly called the Video Referee . The object of the game is that each team of fifteen players score as many points as possible, with the team scoring the greater number of points being the winner of the match. Points may be scored by either scoring a try or a goal. A try is scored when the ball is grounded within the in-goal area and is worth 5 points. A goal is scored by kicking the ball between the uprights and above the crossbar of the goal posts. There are 3 ways to score a goal: (i) a drop goal (scored in open play where the ball must hit the ground immediately before it is kicked); (ii) a penalty goal (awarded after the opposing side infringes against the laws of rugby and may be kicked from a stationary ground position or by drop kick); and (iii) a conversion (awarded after a try is scored) by either a drop kick or a place kick. A penalty or dropped goal is worth 3 points; a conversion is worth 2 points. The pitch must be no more than 100 meters in length, not including the in-goal area. The length of the in-goal area can vary but must be at least 10 meters and no more than 22 meters. The width of the pitch may also vary but must be no more than 70 meters wide. The goal posts are situated on the center of the goal line with the upright posts placed 5.6 meters apart and the crossbar is placed 3 meters above the ground in an 'H' shape. The overall height of the goal posts must be over 3.4 meters. A typical passage of rugby takes the following form: the team in possession of the ball moves the ball up the field in an effort to ground the ball over the opponents' goal line in order score a try until such time as the ball carrier is tackled. They then form a ruck in order to win the ball back. This process repeats until one team makes a mistake that violates the Laws of the game, moves off the field of play or a try or goal is scored. The team in possession may choose to advance by kicking the ball forward. The ball may be passed from one player to another as long as the ball does not travel forwards. Rugby union is one of the few ball games where the ball cannot be passed forwards. Any team mate nearer the opposition goal than the ball carrier is offside and out of the game, and must not interfere with play, meaning that American Football -style blocking is forbidden. The team not in possession attempts to stop the ball carrier by tackling them, which consists of grabbing hold of them and bringing them to ground. A tackled player must pass or release the ball, allowing the opposition to contest possession of the loose ball. Play does not stop unless there is an infringement of the laws, or the ball / ball-carrier leaves the field of play. If the ball goes into touch (out of the field of play), the game restarts with a line-out. If the game stops due to an infringement, play restarts with either a scrum, free kick or penalty kick (depending on the severity of the infringement) to the non-infringing team. The attacking team may score by kicking the ball between the posts and above the cross-bar. The ball may only be kicked from the ground: either from a place kick following the award of a Penalty or from a Drop Kick in open play. A successful kick at goal is worth three points. The attacking team may also score by grounding the ball in the in goal area. This is called a " Try " and is worth five points. After scoring a try, the attacking team are awarded a free kick at goal, called a Conversion , worth two points if successful, from a point directly in line with where the try was scored, and any distance away from the posts along that line. Tries are the main form of scoring, and the primary aim of most teams is to score tries. Drop goals and penalty kicks are usually augmenters, a safer option against a steadfast defense or to punish ill-disciplined opposition. On some (usually rare) occasions, a team may be awarded a penalty try, if their opponents commit a foul which is deemed by the referee to have illegally prevented a try, or if they have persistently stopped play close to the try line through foul play. PLAYERS See Also: Rugby union positions A rugby union team consists of 15 players: eight forwards, numbered 1 to 8, and seven backs, numbered 9 to 151. Depending upon the competition, there may be up to seven replacements (substitutes or reserves). Professional rugby contains seven reserves, with a player being allowed to be substituted only once, unless they are a front-row specialist player and are replacing an injured front-row player. Another exception to this rule is the "blood bin", where a player with a visible and bleeding injury must leave the field and then return to continue play after receiving treatment providing this is within 15 minutes of the player leaving the field (actual time, not game clock). A player sent to the blood bin may be replaced by another player during treatment. If the bloodied player returns to play within 15 minutes, it is not counted as a substitution. The main role of the forwards is to gain and retain possession of the ball. They take part in set pieces of the '' Scrum '' and the Line-out . Generally, forwards are larger than the backs, which generally makes them stronger but slower. Forwards also have a role in taking the ball forwards, but generally do so by driving into the opposing forwards. Increasingly back row forwards such as flankers and the number 8 are becoming athletic and fast, staying out of the breakdown to participate in running moves with the backs. The role of the backs is to move the game forward by running or kicking the ball. The scrum-half will gain possession of the ball from the forwards and usually feed it to the fly half (no.10) who then controls how the attacking team will proceed. The backline will tend to score its tries by focusing on the tactical placement of players, creating holes in the opposition defense line. A successful backline will cause the opposition defense to commit too many players at strategic points creating space to open up for the faster, outside backs (wingers and fullback). The following diagram locates the various positions in the 15-man team. All members of the starting 15 wear jerseys, numbered from 1 to 15, and keyed to their positions (though Alternatives exist); see Rugby Union Positions and Rugby Union Numbering Schemes for more information). The first eight players, known as ''forwards'' or ''the pack'', play in the '' Scrum ''. The remaining seven players are the ''backs''. EQUIPMENT Introduction A traditional rugby union kit consists of a collared jersey (often imitated by fashion labels and called a " Rugby Shirt "), Shorts , long Socks and boots with Studs .Some modest padding is allowed on the head, shoulders and collarbone, but it must be sufficiently light, thin and compressible to meet IRB standards . Players also may opt to wear a mouthguard. Rugby shirt and Shorts Rugby shirts need to be able to take plenty of tugging and pulling. They also need to be lightweight, comfortable and strong - all at the same time. Modern shirts use new lightweight water-resistant, synthetic fibers.The tight forwards wear shirts that have panels for their team-mates to grab onto. The back of a jersey will usually have the player's position number and sometimes their surname printed above it. The team logo traditionally will be placed on one side of the upper chest.Sponsor logos and club competition logo may also be included in the design.Most rugby teams usually will have two jersey designs,for home and away games. Rugby Shorts are traditionally made from cotton, designed to take the strains of rugby union.Second row forwards now use special line-out shorts which have reinforced stitching to help them to get lifted in the line out. Boots Generally there are two types of boot worn: the 8 stud or the 6 stud. The 8 stud is most often worn by the tight forwards (props, hooker and locks) to provide them with extra grip for scrummaging and mauling. The 6 stud is worn by backs as it allows for more agility and quicker movement around the field. Plastic "blade" studs, common in Soccer , are an increasingly frequent choice among backs. Body protection Padding and protective vests are now becoming more commonly worn by players. Predominantly the padding gives protection to the bony prominences of the shoulder and clavicle, but also provides additional protection to the biceps and the chest. Padding must be approved by the IRB . Players may use fingerless gloves (a.k.a. "mitts") to better grip the ball. Hard plastic or metal are prohibited in rugby kit. Any protective equipment that may cause injury to another player is prohibited. No form of metal is allowed in any rugby kit, except for studs on boots. Spectacles are prohibited for play; many players wear contact lenses. IRB list of approved equipment . Headgear The Headgear , also called a "scrum cap",is usually made from light plastic materials capable of taking impact. Protective headgear is becoming popular due to the perceived protection from cuts and head injuries that can occur, particularly by the boots of players involved in Rucking . Headgear also helps reduce the growth of Cauliflower Ears . Scrum caps have not been shown to reduce concussive injury. Mouthguard An essential part of the safety equipment needed for rugby is the Mouthguard . It protects the teeth and gums and can reduce both damage around the jaw and the chances of getting a concussion. The best mouthguards are made by a dentist. A mold of the mouth is first taken and then the mouthguard is cast around this mold, providing a tight fit in the mouth and around the teeth. Unmolded rubber mouthguards, which one can mold in hot water, are also available. HISTORY See Also: History of rugby union See Also: Women's rugby The origin of rugby football is often credited to a young man named William Webb Ellis who "took the ball in his arms caught the ball and ran" while playing a form of football at Rugby School in 1823. However historians have questioned the authenticity of this story, beginning with an official investigation by the Old Rugbeian Society in 1895. Nonetheless, the trophy for the Rugby World Cup bears the name of "Webb Ellis" in his honor, and a plaque at the school commemorates the "achievement". Playing football has a long tradition in England, and football games had probably taken place at Rugby school for 200 years before three boys published the first set of written rules in 1845. However, the game they presented resembled " Hurling To Goal " a variant of the Celtic sport of Hurling , described by Richard Carew in his 1602 work, 'Survey of Cornwall'. Cornish hurlers traveled to London to play 'demonstration matches' of the sport several times in the seventeenth century. Until the formation of The Football Association (FA) in October 1863 opposing football teams agreed on a set of rules before each match. Teams that competed against each other regularly tended to agree to play a similar style of football. Rugby football has a claim to the world's (as it was known), formed in London in 1839 , and Guy's Hospital Football Club (1843). However the continuity of these two clubs has not been established by documentation. Dublin University Football Club is the world's oldest documented football club in any code, having been formed in 1854 ; it currently plays rugby union in the All Ireland League Division Two. Likewise Edinburgh Academical Football Club was formed in Scotland in 1857-58. Blackheath Rugby Club was founded in 1858 and is the oldest documented rugby club in England. It was a founding member of The Football Association . When it became clear that the FA would not allow running with the ball in hand and to "charge, hold, trip or hack him, or to wrest the ball from him" ('hack' meaning to kick opposing players' legs, a feature of the rugby game at the time), Blackheath withdrew from the FA, just over a month after the initial meeting. Other rugby clubs followed this lead and did not join the FA. For the next few years rugby clubs continued to agree on rules before the start of each game as they had always done, but on January 26 , 1871 , the Rugby Football Union (RFU) formed, leading to the standardization of the rules for all clubs in England that played a variety of the Rugby school laws.>2 Soon most countries with a sizeable rugby community had formed their own national unions. In 1886, the International Rugby Board (IRB) become the world governing and law-making body for rugby. The RFU recognised it as such in 1890. |
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