THIS STONE
COMMEMORATES THE EXPLOIT
OF
WILLIAM WEBB ELLIS
WHO WITH A FINE DISREGARD FOR THE RULES OF FOOTBALL,
AS PLAYED IN HIS TIME,
FIRST TOOK THE BALL IN HIS ARMS AND RAN WITH IT,
THUS ORIGINATING THE DISTINCTIVE FEATURES OF
THE RUGBY GAME
A.D. 1823
"Rugby" on this server
can be interpreted as referring only to rugby union unless explicitly
stated otherwise. A
www server for rugby league
is operated by
South Africa are the current rugby union world champions, and the
last world cup
encompassed teams from New Zealand (the runners up and winners in
1987),
France, England, Australia (winners in
1991),
Scotland, Canada, Ireland, Western Samoa,
Italy, Wales, Japan, Ivory Coast, Tonga, Romania, and Argentina.
The
next world cup
will be held in Wales in 1999. Qualifying
rounds will be staged around the world starting probably as early as
1996. It is expected that there will be 20 participants in 1999.
The structure of the game in most countries is such that there are
various levels from club rugby at the bottom, through some district
or provincial level, to a national setup with the full national side
at the apex.
One important thing about rugby is that it is not just a game for national
sides and top players. Many countries start kids playing rugby very young,
and there are veterans matches and tournaments around the world for those
who continue to enjoy playing until very late in life. In between there are
clubs for the serious and social players, most clubs running more than one
side to cater for the variations in ambition and ability.
Most countries also have their own internal competitions and national
championships. Some also join together to play matches between their
various sides. A good example of this is the current
Super 10 which
involves provincial sides from New Zealand, South Africa and Australia
along with the South Pacific Champion (currently Tonga).
Another example of international
cooperation might be the recent establishment of an inter provincial/district
competition involving sides from Scotland and Ireland. Also, in late 1995
there will take place an inaugural European club championship involving
12 clubs from Wales, Ireland, France and Italy. In 1996 Engalnd and
Scotland will join, bring the number of teams to 16.
The IRFB typically meets twice per year (normally about March and
October).
The game is controlled at the local level by Rugby Unions which are
normally organized on National boundaries, though Northern Ireland
and Eire play under the auspices of one union and some US clubs
near the border play in Canadian unions.
Also of interest, though not strictly a game, is the
Super Coach CD-ROM.
You might also be interested in
on-line games.
If you don't know of a local club try searching in the country-specific section, or failing that post a query to rec.sport.rugby.
In the US, studs may not contain nails and plastic studs with metal caps
are banned, as are American football boots with female studs, i.e. having
a threaded post that can become exposed.
Many players recommend that the "tight-five" forwards (i.e. front row and
locks) wear particularly sturdy boots with high tops. This is because
they tend to get their toes stood on a lot. Loose forwards
and backs usually prefer lighter weight boots for greater mobility.
The following is based on the numbering scheme for player's jerseys
currently laid down by the I.R.F.B. for International Matches.
It is commonly, though not universally, adopted by other teams.
(Common variations are the interchange of
6 and 7, the interchange of 11 and 14 or a renumbering of the backline
so that the wingers are 13 and 14. The English club Bath omit the no. 13
jersey because one of their players was once killed wearing it. Some
English clubs even use letters instead. Further, an interesting story is told
about a Scotland vs England match at Twickenham in 1926. King George asked the
president of the S.R.U. about the lack of numbers on the Scots
players' backs and was informed, "This is a rugby match, not a cattle sale".)
Anyway, assuming the displayed numbering scheme:
Players 1-8 are forwards (often referred to as the pack);
players 1-5 are sometimes called the tight-five, or
front-five, (players 1-3 are the front-row) and players
6-8 are the loose forwards (or loosies), or backrow.
Players 9-15 are backs.
and we also give a country by country list
including the position names in several non-English languages.
As can be seen there is quite a bit of variation. The IRFB has considered
standardizing the names but has not moved forward with this proposal. It
is worth noting though that the Laws of the Game already define the terms
prop and hooker. One problem with standardizing the names is that the positions
themselves are not completely standard. For example, many teams play left and
right centre rather than inside and outside centre and a few teams even
play left and right flankers.
Of more concern than the variation (which could be considered healthy
cultural diversity) are
some ambiguities and conflicts.
In particular the use of "wing forward" for a flanker is
not recommended (it's also an archaic term for an obsolete position
associated with the old 2-3-2 scrum, popular in NZ in the 1920s) nor is
"breakaway" for the no. 8 (some recognising the term as applying only to
the flankers).
Similarly the use of "halfback" requires caution (it being recognised
as applying only to the no. 9 position in some countries whereas
others consider both the no. 9 and no. 10 to be halfbacks). One should
especially avoid calling the no. 10 just plain halfback, without a
qualifier such as "outside". Possibly the worst abuse is the occasional
use of "lock" in Australia to refer to the no. 8.
(The halfback may put the ball in on either side of the scrum but only
an imbecile would not choose the loosehead side because otherwise
the opposing hooker would be between him and his own hooker.)
The traditional roles of these two players are somewhat different.
Since most of the back play is usually on the open side where there
is more space it is usually the openside flanker's job to be the first to
the breakdown of play and get his hands on any loose ball (or to cause a
breakdown by tackling the ball carrier or otherwise harrying him into
error). Thus, at a scrum where the ball has been won by the opposition,
he will generally break as soon as the ball is out and make a beeline for
the flyhalf who can be frequently seen desperately trying to get a kick
away from underneath the body of the openside diving into the
tackle.
The openside must therefore have very fast acceleration and
be very quick over short distances.
The blindside flanker on the other hand must be
able to stop a blindside move and if the play goes openside he must
then get to the breakdown as quickly as possible where he may be needed
to tidy up after the openside. While he must be fast he doesn't need
to be as fast as the openside and his role is more of a stabilizer
than havoc-wreaker.
In some parts, a fend (i.e. a hand-off) is erroneously interpreted
as a stiff arm
tackle. This is not correct; a fend is not a tackle and a fend
with a stiff arm (and open palm) is perfectly legal, provided it is not
executed with a striking action. (A fend to the face of an opponent
could also be interpreted as dangerous.)
It can run over a networked CD and supports Soundblaster (though
that is not really necessary and the sound quality is not the best).
It is available from
This was produced in
conjunction with the RFU and is also available
from the RFU shop at the
RFU's Twickenham address
(phone no.: +44 81 891 4141).
They accept Access/Visa/Switch or Delta credit cards.
1 2 3
6 4 5 7
8
9
10
11 12
13
14
15
A partial list of the individual position names is:
SuperCoach,
4 Harbour Buildings
Waterfront West
Dudley Road
Brierley Hill
West Midlands DY5 1LN
United Kingdom
for 39.95 British Pounds. (There is a special price of 14.10 British Pounds
for teachers/educational establishments and up to 2 additional copies
may be purchased for 12 British pounds. It is rumoured that secondary schools
can even get a free CD.) Prices include VAT.
In a World Cup game in South Africa in 1995, Simon Culhane scored 45
points (1 try, 20 conversions) for New Zealand in a
record smashing 145-17 victory over Japan.
This edged out the World Cup
record established only a week previously by Gavin Hastings of Scotland.
Hastings scored 44 points against Ivory Coast in a then record breaking
89-0 victory.
Hastings' tally included 4 tries, 2 penalties and 9 conversions.
The previous record was held by Didier Camberabero of France who scored
30 points for France against Zimbabwe in the 1987 World Cup. This
feat was equalled by Rob Andrew for England against Canada in a test
on Dec 10 1994. (Andrew scored 6 conversions and 6 penalty goals.)
These two therefore tie for fourth place.
The statistics for other players as of 1993 were:
However, Andrew Mehrtens of New Zealand has now beaten Fox's record
for the fastest 100 points in test rugby, scoring 100 points in just
5 tests.
This record on debut eclipsed the previous record set only a month earlier
by Andrew Mehrtens. Mehrtens (of Canterbury), also playing at first-five,
scored 28 points in his test debut for New Zealand against Canada in
Auckland, April 22, 1995. His tally included a try (5), three penalty
goals (9) and seven conversions (14) and was only two points short of the
then third place (and once) world record test score.
New Zealand won the game 73-7 in what was Canada's
heaviest defeat in an international. The game was a build-up for both
sides prior to the 1995 World Cup. (Mehrtens was rested for the above
World Cup pool game with Japan.)
Prior to these two feats the previous record on debut had been 23 by
Matthew Cooper, also of New Zealand.
Name Country Years Points Matches Average
M.Lynagh Aus 1984-93 760 60 12.67
G.J.Fox NZ 1985-92 573 41 13.98
H.Porta Arg 530
S.Bettarello It 483
A.G.Hastings Scot 1986-93 424 45 9.42
D.Camberabero Fr 1982-93 354 36 9.83
H.E.Botha SA 1980-92 312 28 11.14
M.J.Kiernan Ire 1982-91 308 43 7.16
P.Thorburn W 1985-91 304 37 8.22
J.M.Webb Eng 1987-93 296 33 8.97
The records for various "landmarks" were all held by Grant Fox:
Points Games
100 6
200 13
300 18
400 26
He also has the highest success rate (see above) making him arguably
the greatest place kicker the game has ever seen.
With thanks to Benjamin Clegg, now at
BENC@OREGON.UOREGON.EDU for many items.