What is a ruck?
A ruck is a contest for a ball that is on the ground. Law 15 says it forms when at least one player from each team is in contact, on their feet, and over the ball. A tackle can turn into a ruck. A ruck can only happen in the field of play, the area between the try lines and the touchlines.
Offside lines exist even earlier. At a tackle, they appear as soon as one player is on their feet and over the ball (Law 14.10).
How is a ruck different from a maul?
The difference is where the ball is. In a ruck it is on the ground, and players win it with their feet or by pushing the other team off it. In a maul a ball carrier holds it off the ground, with at least one player from each team bound on and everyone on their feet.
How do you join a ruck legally?
- Arrive on your feet and join from behind your own offside line (Law 15.5).
- Join alongside the hindmost player, the one nearest your own try line, never in front of them (Law 15.6).
- Bind onto a team-mate or an opponent with the whole arm, from hand to shoulder. The bind must come before, or at the same time as, any other contact (Law 15.7).
- Keep your head and shoulders no lower than your hips (Law 15.3).
- Join or get back behind your offside line straight away (Law 15.8).
- You can leave and rejoin, but only from an onside position (Law 15.9).
Where is the offside line at a ruck?
Each team has its own offside line. It runs parallel to the try line through the hindmost point of any player in the ruck, from either team. Hindmost means nearest that team's own try line (Law 15.4). If that point is on or behind the try line, the try line is the offside line. World Rugby's clarifications also call it the hindmost foot of the ruck.
A player in the ruck who moves round its side and ends up past the offside line must get back behind the hindmost foot before taking part in play once the ball is out. Offside at a ruck gives away a penalty, taken at the offending team's offside line.
Can you use your hands in a ruck?
Not once the ruck has formed. The only exception is a player who got their hands on the ball before the ruck formed and stays on their feet (Law 15.11). The laws call the first team-mate of the tackler to arrive and contest the ball the jackler, or stealer. World Rugby's breakdown guidance says to reward the player who wins that race, and that the jackler must support their own body weight throughout.
What about the scrum-half? The player playing the ball away picks it up, and the moment they lift it off the ground the ruck is over (Law 15.19). A World Rugby clarification looked at scrum-halves who move beyond the back foot of the ruck and move the ball with their hands. It said this does appear to go against the pure wording of the law, but causes no material offence, so referees keep play going as long as the contest for the ball is clearly over.
What is allowed, and what is not?
Players in a ruck may push the other team off the ball, or play it with their feet as long as they do it safely (Laws 15.10 and 15.14). Rucking means legally using your feet to try to win or keep the ball. These are the main offences and what the referee gives.
| Offence | Law | Referee gives |
|---|---|---|
| Joining in front of the hindmost player | 15.6 | Penalty |
| Joining off your feet or from an offside position | 15.5 | Penalty |
| Not binding, or charging in without a bind | 15.7 and 9.20 | Penalty |
| Head and shoulders lower than the hips | 15.3 | Free-kick |
| Handling the ball after the ruck has formed | 15.11 | Penalty |
| Not trying to stay on your feet | 15.12 | Penalty |
| Not moving away from the ball, or playing it, while on the ground | 15.15 | Penalty |
| Intentionally collapsing the ruck or jumping on top of it | 15.16 | Penalty |
| Falling onto the ball as it comes out near the ruck | 15.16 | Penalty |
| Kicking the ball out of the ruck | 15.16 | Penalty |
| Putting the ball back into the ruck | 15.16 | Free-kick |
| Pretending the ruck is over when it is not | 15.16 | Free-kick |
| Rolling, pulling or twisting an opponent | 9.20 | Penalty |
| Not playing the ball within five seconds of "use it" | 15.17 | Scrum to the other team |
A penalty gives the other team the option of a kick at goal. A free-kick does not (Laws 8.18 and 8.29). A World Rugby clarification adds that a player who dives over a ruck near the try line and makes contact with players on the ground can be penalised.
What does "use it" mean at a ruck?
5 seconds
Time to play the ball after "use it"
Law 15.17
When one team has clearly won the ball and it is available to play, the referee calls "use it". The ball must then be played away within five seconds, or the referee awards a scrum to the team that did not have the ball (Laws 15.17 and 19.1). World Rugby has asked referees to call "use it" as soon as the ball is clearly won and to hold teams to the five seconds, which cuts the time for extra players to join the ruck.
How does a ruck end?
- The ball leaves the ruck (Law 15.19).
- The player playing the ball away lifts it off the ground (Law 15.19).
- The ball in the ruck is on or over the try line (Law 15.19).
- The ball becomes unplayable. If the referee decides it will probably not come out within a reasonable time, a scrum is awarded and the team that was last moving forward throws in (Law 15.20).
When the scrum-half goes to get the ball from the ruck, the ball is not out until they have picked it up from the ground. World Rugby's guidance on offside at the ruck says a player who takes out the scrum-half before the ball is off the ground is offside. Once the scrum-half has picked the ball up, a defending player may tackle them, with one limit that World Rugby is still testing as a global law trial. A player who is or was part of the ruck may not play an opponent who is within one metre of it and trying to play the ball away (Law 15.18).
Does the ruck law change for sevens or junior rugby?
World Rugby's published variations for sevens, tens, under-19 and Game On rugby do not change Law 15. Unions may set their own age-grade law variations, which coaches must follow, so check with your union for junior rugby. Law updates can also take effect at different times for different competitions. If your league is mid-season, check with your union when a change applies.