Clarification 1-2022

Clarification in Law by the Designated Members of the Rugby Committee

Request

With the new GLDO laws being trialled, a number of potential scenarios have been queried by Members:

1. How should play be restarted when there is a simultaneous touchdown in in-goal, with hands of a player from each team on a loose ball?
2. How should play be restarted when there is doubt about grounding in-goal?
3. How should play be restarted when a defender takes/plays the ball into in-goal and it then becomes dead by being held up?

Clarification of the designated members of the Rugby Committee

1. For a try to be awarded, Law 8.2a says an attacking player has to ground the ball first. Where there is simultaneous grounding by an attacker and a defender, the attacking player did not do so ‘first’, so a try cannot be awarded.

   Therefore the defender’s touch takes precedence in determining the restart.

   The correct restart then depends on how the loose ball first entered the in-goal area. In this scenario it is likely to come from one of these situations:

   • Kicked into in-goal by an attacker = Goal line drop-out (Law 12.12b)
   • Charged down from the field of play into in-goal; or a penalty/drop kick at goal strikes the post and remains in in-goal = 22 Drop out (Law 12.11) *See below
   • Passed into in-goal by a defender and ball becomes loose = scrum on the 5m line, attacking throw in (Law 19.1 table row 5)

2. Scenario 1 is only realistically determined by use of a Television Match Official with slow motion replays. Either with, or without a TMO, where there is doubt about who grounded the ball first, Law 21.17 declares a restart of a 5m scrum, attacking team throws in.

3. Law 19.1, table row 5, says that when a defender takes the ball into their own in-goal and is then made dead - which includes being held up - the outcome is that a scrum is given, 5m from the goal line, in line with where the ball became dead. The attacking team throws in.

   Under the new Global Law Trials for season 2021-22, Laws 12 and 21 were amended with the intention of encouraging the attacking side to score a try rather than rely on a scrum 5 restart if they fail to do so. This now predominantly results in a goal line drop-out. We recognize that the current wording of Law 21.16 conflicts with 19.1 and will be amended accordingly when World Rugby Council determines the law trial outcome.