Rugby 3º ESO

LET´S PLAY RUGBY.-

HISTORY.-
Rugby was born in England in 1823, in the city of the Rugby. Some students were playing a football match (kicking the ball with their feet) and, suddenly, a student decided to take the ball with his hands and to run until the last line. His name was William Web.
At the beginning, “the football with the hands” was only practised in the “Rugby School” but, in a short period of time, this game was played in universities, especially in Scotland and the North of England.
In 1846, a group of students in the “Rugby School” wrote the first rules of rugby, that were adopted for other schools and universities.
This new sport was spread successfully in the English colonies such as South Africa and Australia.
In fact, the best rugby teams are in England, including Scotland, Wales, Ireland, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.
In this way, the most famous rugby tournament is the RBS 6 NATIONS CHAMPIONSHIP, that is contested each season over seven weekends during February, March and sometimes, April and England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France and Italy take part in it.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE GAME.-

Rugby is played at a fast pace. All players in the field, must be able to tackle and defend, making each position both offensive and defensive in nature. There is no blocking of the opponents, and there are only five substitutions per game allowed for each time. A rugby match consists of two 40-minute halves. Finally, rugby is considered to be a gender equity sport as approximately 25% of all players in the United States are female.


PLAYERS AND POSITIONS.-

A rugby team has 15 players on the field of play. Each team is numbered the exact same way. The number of each player signifies that player´s position. Players numbered 1-8 are forwards, who are usually the largest, strongest players in the team whose main job is to win possession of the ball. Players numbered 9-15 are backs who tend to be the smallest, fastest and most agile players.


FIELD OF PLAY.-

Rugby is played on a field, called a pitch, that is longer and wider than a football field, more like a soccer field. A typical pitch is 100 meters (110 yards) long 70 meters (75 yards) wide. Additionally, there are 10- 22 meters end zones, called the in-goal area, behind the goalposts. The goalposts are H-shaped cross bars located on the goal line and are the same size as American football goalposts.


MOVING THE BALL.-

Rugby is started with a kickoff to the opponent from mid-field.
There are several ways to move the ball. Any player may carry, pass or kick the ball. Play is not stopped and continues when the ball hits the ground or when a player is tackled.

Running: when running the ball, players may continue to run until they are tackled, step out of bounds or run beyond the goal line. Players run the ball to advance toward the opponent´s goal line.
Passing: the ball may be passed to any other player. However, it may only be passed laterally or backward, never forward.
Kicking: any player may kick the ball forward at any time. Players typically kick the ball to advance it or to the opposing team to obtain relief from poor field position.


SCORING.-

There are four ways for a team to score points.
TRY: five points are awarded to a team for touching the ball down in the other team´s in-goal area.

CONVERSION: following a try, two points are awarded for a successful kick through the goalposts. The attempt is taken on a line, at least ten meters, straight out from the point where the ball was touched down.

PENALTY KICK: following a major law violation, the kicking team, if in range, has the option to “ kick for points”. Three points are awarded for a successful penalty kick. The kick must be from the point of the foul or anywhere on a line straight behind that point. The ball can be played in the kick fails.

DROP GOAL: Three points are awarded for successful drop kick. A drop kick may be taken from anywhere on the field at any time during the play.


RESTARTING PLAY.-


LINE-OUT: If the ball goes out of bounds, it is restarted with a line out. Both teams form a line perpendicular to the touchline and 1-meter (3 feet) apart from one another. A player of the other team throws the ball in the air in a straight line between the two lines.

SCRUM: It is used to restart the game after the referee has whistled a minor law violation. A bound group of players from each team form a “ tunnel “ with the opposition. The non-offending team puts the ball into the tunnel by rolling it into the middle and each team pushes forward until one player is able to hook the ball with the feet and push it to the back row players of his/her team.


TACKLES.-

Players in possession of and carrying the ball may be stopped by being tackled by the opposing team. Players are tackled around the waist and legs and, in general, may not be tackled higher. Once a player

is tackled, however, play does not stop. The player must release the ball and roll away from it to allow other players on their feet play the ball.

VOCABULARY.-
-to tackle: placar
-gender equity: igualdad de género
-kickoff: saque inicial
-relief: alivio, desahogo
- to release: liberar, escapar
-to hook: enganchar


ASK THE QUESTION:

1.-How many players are there in each team?_______________________________________________
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2.-What ways are there to move the ball? _________________________________________________
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3.- Write with your own words the description of the game ( write at least, 60 words.) _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4.- The name of the student who invented this sport is____________________________. In a short period of time, the game was played_______________________________________________________
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The most famous rugby tournament is_____________________________________________________
and the countries that take part in it are____________________________________________________