Rugby Laws Explained for the Dippy
By Razcal
February 13 2003
An Occasional Series. Part 1 The Offside Law(s) With apologies to those who understand the laws I feel some people may find it helpful to have some of them explained.
By Razcal
February 13 2003
An Occasional Series. Part 1 The Offside Law(s) With apologies to those who understand the laws I feel some people may find it helpful to have some of them explained.
The offside laws I feel are those which are most often misunderstood. There is one person 10 yards from my seat who continually shouts out offside every game, usually erroneously.
In rugby there are lots of ways to be offside. So let's start with the static phases first.
Scrums:
When a scrum is formed the players not taking part have to be behind the back foot of the player in their team in the scrum who is nearest his own try line. The requirement is satisfied if you are 6 millimetres behind this foot, you do not have to be six feet behind it.
Usually the attacking side are a long way behind the back foot so they can have space to attack and time to build up momentum and adopt lines of running. Defenders usually line up as near to the scrum as they are allowed so they can get to the attackers as quickly as possible.
If the scrum is in one 22 and you are sitting level with the other 22 angles can be deceptive. You may feel a defender is offside but a spectator level with the scrum would not. If you do not understand this find a room with a clock in it. Get 3 friends. Sit one directly in front of the clock. Seat one to the extreme right of the room and one to the extreme left. Ask each to tell you when the second hand reaches 4. Each person will start to shout 4 at a different time because of the angle they are looking at the clock at. As soon as the ball leaves the scrum it is in open play and offside no longer applies until a ruck or maul is formed. The defenders can rush forward past the line they were held to while the ball was in the scrum.
Things to look out for:
a) centres going back behind the back foot line, being checked by the ref who now turns away to try and work out what is going on in the front rows. As soon as he turns his back centres like to sneak forward past the legal limit so they can tackle the attackers sooner. Number tens do as well. This season I have seen Contemponi and Grayson move up to stand behind the ref's back in a blatantly offside position. Rob Andrew was a past master at this. The solution is for the referee to ask the linesmen to alert him. Some refs do some do not.
b) Slow ball from the scrum half to the number 10. This gives defenders the opportunity to close down the centres legally. If the ball is passed to a centre he gets tackled immediately. Offside scream the crowd. No just bad handling skills.
The scrum half putting the ball in has to be in front of his back foot so he can put the ball in. The other scrum half can stand next to him. He becomes offside if he moves past the ball before it leaves the scrum. No 8s like to tease the other scrum half and make him think the ball is coming out to tempt him to go for the ball and fall offside. Until a few years ago scrum halves would pretend to pass the ball at the base of the scrum so that the opposition centres would cross the offside line too early. Clive Woodward once famously fell for this in Cardiff and cost me a lot of money/ er cost England the game. Scrum halves are not allowed to dummy pass in this way now.
Lineouts:
The players not in the line out have to be at least 10 yards behind the line out, unless they are the scrum half or hooker. They can go past this line when the ball "leaves the line of the lineout". This happens by the ball being passed out of the line out, knocked away from the line out or caught and driven past/ behind the imaginary line running through the middle of the line out.
In practice this is so complicated when line outs turn into mauls referees tell players by waving with their hands when the ball has left the line out and only then can they cross the imaginary line 10 metres behind the line out. If a ruck or maul has formed they can go right up to the same back foot rule as for scrums.
Things to watch out for.
a) One linesman has to mark the line out so only one is left to ensure both sets of backs are 10 metres from the line out. This means one lot will certainly try and cheat by moving forward if the linesman is not watching them. The further from the line out you are the easier this is to try.
b) Players jumping for the ball in the line out, missing and landing "accidentally" near the opposition scrum half so they can scrag him when he gets the ball. If the ball is still in the line out he is offside i.e in front of the ball still in the line out.
If you have the Cardiff game on video look for Munster encroaching illegally within the 10 metre zone at our defensive line out where Corry knocks on leading to the set of plays resulting in "The Hand Of Back".
Rucks and Mauls:
A ruck is where 3 or more players from both teams contest a ball on the ground. A maul is where 3 or more players from both teams contest a ball not on the ground. Once a ruck or maul forms every player has to get behind the back foot of the last player involved in the ruck or maul of his own team. You can join the maul or ruck so long as you join from behind this back foot line.
Things to look out for:
Players who never make it back to behind their own back feet. They are in a prime position to tackle opponents or intercept the ball. If they do this they are offside. If they do not do this they are merely in an offside position and might not be penalized
Players who join the ruck or maul legally but then creep up the side to pounce when the ball is out. They can only pounce if they start from behind the back foot.
Players crouching down on the opposite side to a ruck or maul from the referee. They appear to be starting a 100 m race. But they are hidden from the view of the ref by the bodies in the ruck or maul. They can sneak forward and pounce illegally when the ball comes out.
Offside in Front of a kicker:
If a player kicks the ball and it goes out of play no one is offside. If the ball does not go out of play any player on the same team as the kicker who is in front of him must retreat towards his own line. It does not say how fast but standing there with your arms up looking innocent as we did in my day doesn't count. As soon as you fail to retreat or worse move towards the ball you are offside. The kicker or any team mate behind him need to rush forward towards the ball to place the other players on their team onside.
Things to look out for.
At scrums, rucks or mauls a winger moving behind a referee's back while the scrum half kicks. The winger has an illegal head start in his chase for the ball. Using the linesman is the solution.
Players in front of the kick pretending to be too injured to retreat making a miraculous recovery.
Not Offside:
A player makes a break towards the tryline. Fearing he is about to be tackled he passes to a team mate. Then an opposition player comes from behind them and intercepts the ball as he runs towards his own try line."Offside" shout the crowd. No it is not, it is open play and while looking unfair is perfectly legal. The England v France game in 2002 had an example of this which was incorrectly interpreted by the majority of the English press.
In rugby there are lots of ways to be offside. So let's start with the static phases first.
Scrums:
When a scrum is formed the players not taking part have to be behind the back foot of the player in their team in the scrum who is nearest his own try line. The requirement is satisfied if you are 6 millimetres behind this foot, you do not have to be six feet behind it.
Usually the attacking side are a long way behind the back foot so they can have space to attack and time to build up momentum and adopt lines of running. Defenders usually line up as near to the scrum as they are allowed so they can get to the attackers as quickly as possible.
If the scrum is in one 22 and you are sitting level with the other 22 angles can be deceptive. You may feel a defender is offside but a spectator level with the scrum would not. If you do not understand this find a room with a clock in it. Get 3 friends. Sit one directly in front of the clock. Seat one to the extreme right of the room and one to the extreme left. Ask each to tell you when the second hand reaches 4. Each person will start to shout 4 at a different time because of the angle they are looking at the clock at. As soon as the ball leaves the scrum it is in open play and offside no longer applies until a ruck or maul is formed. The defenders can rush forward past the line they were held to while the ball was in the scrum.
Things to look out for:
a) centres going back behind the back foot line, being checked by the ref who now turns away to try and work out what is going on in the front rows. As soon as he turns his back centres like to sneak forward past the legal limit so they can tackle the attackers sooner. Number tens do as well. This season I have seen Contemponi and Grayson move up to stand behind the ref's back in a blatantly offside position. Rob Andrew was a past master at this. The solution is for the referee to ask the linesmen to alert him. Some refs do some do not.
b) Slow ball from the scrum half to the number 10. This gives defenders the opportunity to close down the centres legally. If the ball is passed to a centre he gets tackled immediately. Offside scream the crowd. No just bad handling skills.
The scrum half putting the ball in has to be in front of his back foot so he can put the ball in. The other scrum half can stand next to him. He becomes offside if he moves past the ball before it leaves the scrum. No 8s like to tease the other scrum half and make him think the ball is coming out to tempt him to go for the ball and fall offside. Until a few years ago scrum halves would pretend to pass the ball at the base of the scrum so that the opposition centres would cross the offside line too early. Clive Woodward once famously fell for this in Cardiff and cost me a lot of money/ er cost England the game. Scrum halves are not allowed to dummy pass in this way now.
Lineouts:
The players not in the line out have to be at least 10 yards behind the line out, unless they are the scrum half or hooker. They can go past this line when the ball "leaves the line of the lineout". This happens by the ball being passed out of the line out, knocked away from the line out or caught and driven past/ behind the imaginary line running through the middle of the line out.
In practice this is so complicated when line outs turn into mauls referees tell players by waving with their hands when the ball has left the line out and only then can they cross the imaginary line 10 metres behind the line out. If a ruck or maul has formed they can go right up to the same back foot rule as for scrums.
Things to watch out for.
a) One linesman has to mark the line out so only one is left to ensure both sets of backs are 10 metres from the line out. This means one lot will certainly try and cheat by moving forward if the linesman is not watching them. The further from the line out you are the easier this is to try.
b) Players jumping for the ball in the line out, missing and landing "accidentally" near the opposition scrum half so they can scrag him when he gets the ball. If the ball is still in the line out he is offside i.e in front of the ball still in the line out.
If you have the Cardiff game on video look for Munster encroaching illegally within the 10 metre zone at our defensive line out where Corry knocks on leading to the set of plays resulting in "The Hand Of Back".
Rucks and Mauls:
A ruck is where 3 or more players from both teams contest a ball on the ground. A maul is where 3 or more players from both teams contest a ball not on the ground. Once a ruck or maul forms every player has to get behind the back foot of the last player involved in the ruck or maul of his own team. You can join the maul or ruck so long as you join from behind this back foot line.
Things to look out for:
Players who never make it back to behind their own back feet. They are in a prime position to tackle opponents or intercept the ball. If they do this they are offside. If they do not do this they are merely in an offside position and might not be penalized
Players who join the ruck or maul legally but then creep up the side to pounce when the ball is out. They can only pounce if they start from behind the back foot.
Players crouching down on the opposite side to a ruck or maul from the referee. They appear to be starting a 100 m race. But they are hidden from the view of the ref by the bodies in the ruck or maul. They can sneak forward and pounce illegally when the ball comes out.
Offside in Front of a kicker:
If a player kicks the ball and it goes out of play no one is offside. If the ball does not go out of play any player on the same team as the kicker who is in front of him must retreat towards his own line. It does not say how fast but standing there with your arms up looking innocent as we did in my day doesn't count. As soon as you fail to retreat or worse move towards the ball you are offside. The kicker or any team mate behind him need to rush forward towards the ball to place the other players on their team onside.
Things to look out for.
At scrums, rucks or mauls a winger moving behind a referee's back while the scrum half kicks. The winger has an illegal head start in his chase for the ball. Using the linesman is the solution.
Players in front of the kick pretending to be too injured to retreat making a miraculous recovery.
Not Offside:
A player makes a break towards the tryline. Fearing he is about to be tackled he passes to a team mate. Then an opposition player comes from behind them and intercepts the ball as he runs towards his own try line."Offside" shout the crowd. No it is not, it is open play and while looking unfair is perfectly legal. The England v France game in 2002 had an example of this which was incorrectly interpreted by the majority of the English press.
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