Rugby Terms | Explanation & Guide

Rugby is a game that evolved more than 200 years ago as an offshoot from the newly formed Football Association, which governed Association Football (or “soccer”).

There are three different rugby “codes” (union, league, and sevens), and it is a sport that is played across the world. But your first encounter with rugby might be a little perplexing, and the rules can be arcane even to keen fans.

Some terms have made their way from the rugby pitch into mainstream language; for example, “There was a massive scrum outside the electrical store on Black Friday.” In case you want to watch a game with some understanding, we’ve put together a list of rugby terms to help.

Union, league, or sevens?

This article is about rugby union, the most common and popular “code.” Rugby league is played with fewer players (13 rather than 15) and has some differences in play. Rugby sevens is a fast, fairly modern version of the game. It is played with seven players per team, for two seven-minute halves, and it has been an Olympic sport since 2016.

Rugby terms

You’ll find some terms are shared with (American) football, which traces its roots back to rugby, and some slight alterations (e.g., “scrummage” rather than “scrimmage”).

• 22: The 22 is an area defined by a solid line, parallel to the goal line, and 22 meters away. A clean catch in this area from a kick allows the catcher to call a mark and restart play with a free kick. A ball kicked into touch from one 22 to the opposition’s 22 results in a line-out from where it reaches touch, rather than from the point of kicking.
• Advantage: When a team commits an infraction, the referee might not blow the whistle immediately but will allow play to continue until it is clear whether the wronged team can gain an advantage from the situation. This period of play can be quite lengthy, but if no advantage is gained, then the play returns to the location where the offense was committed.
• Attacking: A more common term in rugby for offensive.
• Backs: There are several players known as backs: the full-back, three-quarters (the wings and centers), and half-backs (the fly-half and scrum-half).
• Back row: There are three rows in the scrum, and the third row is known as the back row. The back row comprises the flankers and the number 8.
• Ball: The rugby ball is a distinctive shape. It is about 12 inches long and oval in shape. Traditionally made from leather, they are mainly synthetic now, weighing about 12–13 ounces. Overall it is longer, fatter, and heavier than an NFL ball.
• Binding: In the scrum, there are strict rules about how the players interlock their heads and shoulders to bind. This is to ensure safety and fairness. A scrum can generate 16,000 Newtons of force—equivalent to being hit by a car at 30 mph—so safety is an important feature.
• Blindside flanker: See flanker.
• Breakdown: When a team is running with the ball and is brought to a halt by the opposition, resulting in a ruck or a maul, it is called a breakdown.
• Conversion: After scoring a try, the scoring team has the opportunity to add two points to their total by scoring a conversion. The ball is placed on the ground (or a kicking tee) on an imaginary line drawn parallel to the touchline from the point where the ball was touched down for the try. A try scored out by the touchlines will require the kicker to move further away from the goal line to make the angle to the goal easier. Until the kicker starts their run-up, the defending team must wait behind their goal line but can rush the kicker once they start to move. The ball is kicked to pass between the uprights and over the crossbar of the goal. A successful conversion results in a kick-off for the opposing team. A missed conversion means the ball is still in play.
• Centers: There are two centers, and they play behind the fly-half ready to continue the attack by running or kicking. They are also key early tacklers when the team is defending.
• Crossbar: The rugby goal comprises three poles (two uprights and a crossbar) to form an H-shaped structure. The crossbar is 3.3 yards above the pitch and 6.1 yards wide.
• Defense: It is a feature of rugby that both teams defend with all their players, and sometimes at the same time. There is no defensive or offensive team, although some playing positions might be more attacking in nature.
• Drop goal: A drop goal is a goal scored by a drop kick from open play. If it passes through the uprights above the crossbar, then a drop-goal is awarded, which is worth three points
• Drop kick: A drop kick is executed by letting the ball fall to the ground and striking it as it touches the ground (essentially a half-volley). A drop kick must be used for the beginning of each half and for all restarts, as well as after a dead ball behind the goal line.
• Equipment: Beyond the goalposts and the ball, the equipment is fairly limited. Many players choose to wear mouthguards, but despite the physicality of the game, absolutely no upper-body protection is allowed, and the head can only be protected by a scrum cap, which is made of thin foam and designed to prevent “cauliflower ear.” It offers no protection against concussive injuries. Players wear boots with studs (known as “cleats” in the US) and might wear thin protective “shin guards” or “shin pads” under their socks.
• Flanker: There are two flankers in a rugby team, an openside flanker and a blindside flanker. Interestingly, their position on the pitch depends on where the scrum, ruck, or maul is. The flankers form part of the back row of the scrum, with the blindside flanker taking up position on the side of the scrum nearer the touchline (i.e., with less space), while the openside flanker will be on the “open” side with more space between the scrum and the touchline. The blindside flanker wears shirt number 6 and the openside number 7.
• Fly-half: The fly-half is one of the backs, a key player in moving the ball from the scrum-half to the attacking line of fellow backs to attack the opposing team. The fly-half is often the goal kicker in the team and is most likely to attempt a drop-kick. With the scrum-half, they control the play, much like a quarterback in the NFL.
• Forwards: The forwards comprise props, the hooker, flankers, locks, number 8, and back-row forwards.
• Free kick: A free kick, when awarded, can be taken from the ground, as a drop kick, a punt, or a tap kick.
• Goal: The rugby goal is H-shaped, and the scoring area is between the two uprights and above the crossbar. The uprights are heavily padded at the bottom to protect players when they collide with them.
• Hooker: Of the three front-row forwards, the hooker is the smallest physically. They link with a prop forward (or prop) in the front row, and their name comes from their responsibility to hook the ball with their feet after the put-in and direct it to the players behind them. The hooker also throws the ball in at a line-out.
• Kick-off: The game is started, and restarted after half-time, by a drop kick from the center of the pitch. After points are scored, the non-scoring side also restarts with a kick-off.
• Line-out: A line-out is a throw-in from the touchline. The two teams line up a number of players (usually seven, but determined by the team in possession), with a space between them. The ball is thrown by the scrum-half between the two teams who contest the throw.
• Locks: There are two locks who form the second row of the scrum. They are usually the tallest in the team and are the targets for the throw-in at the line-out.
• Mark: When a player cleanly catches a ball kicked by the opposition, they can call out “mark!” This allows their team to restart with a free kick.
• Maul: When a player has the ball and is stopped by the opposition (but not tackled), then a maul is formed. The player must remain on their feet, and while they shield the ball from the opposition with their body, players from each side gather on their side of the ball and push against the opposition. The team in possession tries to move the ball towards their opponents’ goal, and the other side tries to prevent this and, if possible, to gain possession of the ball (known as a turnover). A physically dominant team might make rapid progress, turning the maul into a rolling maul.
• Number 8: With all the charming and unusual names for playing positions, it seems odd that there is a position simply called number 8! This player is a back-row forward with the flankers and binds between the two locks. They will sometimes run with the ball as it emerges from the scrum rather than passing to the scrum-half.
• Offside: The laws regarding offside in rugby are very complicated. Because the ball can only be passed backwards, any player who is in front of the ball will very likely be in an offside position. There are specific offside rules for scrums, line-outs, rucks, and mauls. An offside infringement results in a penalty for the other team (although they may choose a scrum instead).
• Pack: Another name for the group of forwards who make up the scrum.
• Pass: The main way of passing the ball in rugby is to throw it with the hands. When thrown, the ball must not travel forwards toward the opposition goal; it can only travel laterally or backwards.
• Penalty: There are many infractions for which a penalty can be awarded, including offside, a high tackle, or collapsing a scrum. On many occasions a referee will indicate by a raised arm that a penalty has been gained, but that at the moment advantage is being played. On being given a penalty, a team can choose to kick for touch, kick at goal, a tap kick penalty (where the penalty taker taps the ball with their foot, then runs with it and creates an attack), or they may choose to have a scrum. If they kick at goal, then the ball is usually kicked from the ground (but it can also be a drop kick), and, if successful, three points are awarded.
• Penalty try: Although quite rare, a penalty try is awarded when a foul by the defending team is judged to have prevented an otherwise certain try. When awarded, the usual five points are gained, and the team has the opportunity to convert the try as well.
• Positions: Unlike soccer, for instance, where players wear their squad number on the shirt, the starting line-up in a rugby game wear the numbers 1 to 15 on the jerseys, which indicate their playing position.
• Props: The front-row forwards who are on either side of the hooker are usually the strongest of the pack. If injury means that a team does not have a prop then the scrum is uncontested—neither team pushes, and the ball goes to the team with the put-in.
• Punt: A punt is taken by dropping the ball and kicking it before it touches the ground.
• Put-in: The act of rolling the ball into the scrum.
• Referee: The referee in rugby is the final authority on play. They are noted for their careful explanation of the decisions taken, the lack of tolerance for talking back or dissent, and the firmness of their explanations. There are two assistants who mainly indicate decisions referring to touch but also more general adjudications. The referee tells the timer (the person controlling the clock on the scoreboard) when to start and stop.
• Ruck: When a player is tackled and goes to ground, they must release the ball. Their teammates (the forwards) form a ruck, pushing against the opposing players, allowing the ball to be released backwards and for the attack to continue.
• Scoring: A try is awarded five points; a conversion, two; and a penalty or drop goal, three points.
• Scrum or scrummage: A scrum is awarded to a team for an infraction by the opposition not deserving of a penalty. A scrum sees three rows of players on each side engage with the opposition, bodies parallel to the ground, arms interlocked, and pushing against each other to maintain equilibrium. The team awarded the scrum have the put-in. This is where the scrum-half rolls the ball in the gap between the feet of the front-row forwards. After the put-in, the teams push against each other trying to move the ball forward and to prepare for it to emerge between the legs of the third-row forwards. Most of the time, the team with the put-in will win the scrum, and when the ball emerges, the scrum-half will offload the ball, usually to the fly-half, who will then instigate a new attack with the backs.
• Scrum-half: A key player who, along with the fly-half, dictates the play in a team. Responsible for the put-in at scrums, the scrum-half receives the ball from scrums, rucks, mauls, and line-outs.
• Tackle: The tackle is the bone-jarring action at the heart of rugby. When an opponent has the ball, the tackler must try to stop them, ideally by wrapping their arms around their opponent’s legs and bringing them to the ground. It is illegal to tackle above the shoulder or while the opponent is jumping. A tackle can create forces of up to 2,000 Newtons, equivalent to being dropped onto a hard surface from three feet in the air! Tripping is not allowed, except using the hand for a tap-tackle. If, after the tackle, the tackling side manages to take possession of the ball, it is called a turnover.
• Tap kick: A penalty or free kick can be taken as a tap kick, whereby the player holding the ball taps it with their foot, keeping it in their hands, and then running with it or passing.
• Touch: A ball that crosses or touches the touchline is “in-touch” and therefore out of play. In most circumstances, this results in a line-out to the team that didn’t play the ball out. The main exception is if the ball is kicked to touch from a penalty, in which case the kicking team has the line-out. If a player who is carrying the ball crosses or even touches the line, the ball is in-touch. If the player is within the bounds of
• Try: The ultimate aim of any team is to score a try. A try is scored when the ball is touched down over the opposition’s goal line. It must be in the control of the attacking player, who must be seen to exert downward pressure on the ball for the try to be given. A try is worth five points, which can be added to with two points for the conversion. The nearer to the goalposts the try is scored, the easier the conversion is, so players will often touch it down between the uprights. A loose ball that is touched down by the defending team is “dead,” and the game restarts with a kick by the defending team.
• Uprights: The side posts of the goal, which are placed 6.1 yards apart and must be at least 3.7 yards tall (in reality, most are taller).

Frequently asked questions about rugby terms

Is rugby the same as football?

Rugby union, rugby league, soccer, and American football all trace their roots back to soccer in England. Rugby developed when Association Football (soccer) changed its rules and restricted the use of the hands during the game.

Rugby league is the least popular of all these codes but has more in common with American football than rugby union has.

If you’re ever confused about terms you hear regarding rugby or want to learn the rules, you can always ask QuillBot’s AI Chat for advice.