20 Rugby Union / Betfair Education / 18 March 2008 / Leave a comment

Scrum:

A method of restarting the game from dead-ball situations or as a result of infringements such as slow ball from rucks or mauls, forward passes and knock-ons.
Only forwards can compete in a scrum, so it is eight versus eight. Roles in the scrum are highly specialised, and due to the dangerous nature of a scrum there are strict rules on twisting, collapsing, and forming the scrum. The teams aim to push the opposing team backwards and gain possession; however it is unlikely for the team feeding the ball into the scrum to lose the ball.

Line-out:

The line-out is unique to rugby union. It is a method of re-starting dead ball situations from the point where the ball crossed the touchline and left the field of play. An equal number of players line up from opposing teams ranging from three to eight. A player throws the ball down the centre of the line with players aiming to gain possession.
The team who did not last touch the ball choose the number and throw the ball unless the ball was kicked out when advancing down the field as a result of a penalty being awarded.

Ruck:

When a player is tackled and taken to ground they must release the ball. Players from both sides come together aiming to either gain or retain possession of the ball. A ruck is formed when players from either side make physical contact with the opposition. The ball can only be handled by players on their feet, players must join the ruck from the back (an onside position) and all players in a team must be bound (holding on) to another member of their team.

Maul:

A maul is also a coming together of opposing teams aiming to gain but mainly retain possession and improve field position. The major difference from a ruck is that the ball is not on the ground, it is passed from player to player as the maul moves, e.g. England's famous 'truck and trailer' play. Each player must be bound to at least one team mate and like a ruck, players entering the maul must do so from an onside position.

Sin-bin:

In most cases, the referee will first ask the captain to warn his players about misconduct. Serious fouls, repeated acts of indiscipline or dissent can result in the player is sent from the field of play for ten minutes on the sidelines.

Penalty Try:

If the defensive team make an infringement which the referee deems to have prevented a try-scoring opportunity, a penalty try is awarded. No matter where the try would have been scored the team get a conversion attempt from in front of the posts; it is effectively a guaranteed seven points.