ABOUT SPORTS: RUGBY

What is rugby ?

A team game played with an oval ball that may be kicked, carried, and passed from hand to hand. Points are scored by grounding the ball behind the opponents' goal line (thereby scoring a try) or by kicking it between the two posts and over the crossbar of the opponents' goal.

Where did rugby originate from ?

Rugby was just not born, it is a game that developed through the centuries, its origins can be traced back nearly two thousand years when China and Japan were playing an early form of the sport. The new body was quick to organise the first International match, which took place within six months of formation of the Rugby Union. England played Scotland in Edinburgh. The difference in the approach to the game is highlighted by England having developed their backs and wanting to run the ball whilst Scotland strongly held the view that passing the ball out from the forwards was an act of cowardice. The Scots were crafty in their approach for when they laid out the field they restricted the width by nearly a third which ended the English idea of running the ball. Within twenty five years after the formation of the Rugby Union radical developments had taken place in the style of play and there was a need to regularly update the laws. The game spread rapidly with separate controlling bodies being established in Scotland, Ireland, Wales, New Zealand, Queensland, New South Wales, Zimbabwe and South Africa where seven provincial bodies had also been formed.

Forms of rugby

• Rugby Sevens

Traditionally, sevens was considered a bit of fun to wind down the season. Nowadays, however, it is seen as an extension to the season with more and more sevens activities taking place. Sevens is viewed as an important stage in the development of future internationals. It truly is a global sport with a huge worldwide following. Sevens match consists of two halves of seven minutes with a one-minute half-time break.

• Veterans/15 man's Rubgy

Age inevitably takes it's toll on the bodies of even the most hardened rugby players, but the passion and desire to play still lives on. Veterans rugby is a modified version of the game that provides an excuse to go out and get some fresh air before enjoying a quiet pint or two after a game. Veterans rugby league consists of two halves of 40 minutes, with injury time added on at the end of each half. In between the two halves, there is a 10-minute break after which both teams change ends and attack the half they were defending.

Rugby world cup history