A penalty in rugby union

Rugby union

Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...

 is the main disciplinary sanction available to the referee to penalise a team who commit deliberate infringements. The team who did not commit the infringement are given possession of the ball and they may either kick it towards touch (in which case the ball back

Ball back

Ball back is a piece of terminology in both codes of rugby football.In both codes of rugby, if the ball enters touch, then play is restarted level with the point where the ball left the field of play. The exception to this is if the ball is kicked into touch without first bouncing inside the...

 rule is waived), attempt a place kick at goal, or tap the ball with their foot and run. It is also sometimes used as shorthand for penalty goal.

Reasons to award a penalty

The referee signals that he has awarded a penalty to a side by raising his arm at 45 degrees between vertical and horizontal and blowing a blast on his whistle. The arm is raised on the side that won the penalty. Penalties may be awarded for a number of offences, including:

• Failing to release the ball after being tackled, or the tackling player failing to release the tackled player.
• Entering a ruck
  Ruck
  Ruck may refer to;* Ruck , a contesting for the ball in Rugby Union from a grounded player* Ruck , an aerial contest in Australian rules football between rival ruckmen...
  
   or maul from the side.
• Leaving one's feet in the ruck
  Ruck
  Ruck may refer to;* Ruck , a contesting for the ball in Rugby Union from a grounded player* Ruck , an aerial contest in Australian rules football between rival ruckmen...
  
  .
• Deliberately collapsing a scrum
  Scrum (rugby union)
  In rugby union a scrum is a means of restarting play after a minor infringement. It involves up to eight players from each team, known as the pack or forward pack, binding together in three rows and interlocking with the free opposing teams forwards. At this point the ball is fed into the gap...
  
   or maul.
• Scrum infringements: not binding properly on an opponent (for prop forwards) or a team-mate (for other players); leaving the scrum before the ball has emerged from it; not pushing straight against the opposing pack.
• Being offside
  Offside (rugby)
  In rugby football, the offside rule prohibits players from gaining an advantage from being too far forward. The specifics of the rule differ between the two major codes.-Rugby union:Offside rules in rugby union are complex...
  
   and not making an effort to move to an onside position.
• Tackling infringements: a high tackle (where contact is made above the shoulders); tackling a player in the air or a player holding a team-mate off the ground; or tackling without trying to grasp the ball-carrier and bring him to ground (e.g. a shoulder charge or push).
• Violent or foul play: punching, elbowing, kicking, headbutting, tripping and so forth.
• Throwing or knocking the ball forwards, or out of play in any direction.
• Tackling or holding an opponent who is not in possession of the ball.
• Obstructing an opponent from tackling the ball-carrier (crossing).
• Not retreating ten metres at a penalty.
• Contesting or dissenting from a referee's decision, or using abusive language or conduct towards any match official.
• Any other action the referee considers to be "contrary to good sportsmanship" (such as throwing the ball away while play is stopped in order to prevent a prompt restart, especially if time is close to expiring).

Referees may not penalise some of these infringements if in their judgement the offending player had no intent to break the rules (e.g. a marginally late tackle on a player who has just kicked or passed the ball) or if the offending player was not participating in or affecting the game (e.g. a player who is in an offside

Offside (rugby)

In rugby football, the offside rule prohibits players from gaining an advantage from being too far forward. The specifics of the rule differ between the two major codes.-Rugby union:Offside rules in rugby union are complex...

 position but not interfering with play). Equally, a referee may warn a team about technical infringements (especially at the scrum and ruck) before penalising them. A referee's willingness and ability to do so is a mark of good officiating in that it reduces stoppages in the game and allows the game to "flow".

Restart options

The side that is awarded the penalty restarts the game with a kick or scrum at their option. If a kick is taken, the side that the penalty was awarded against must retreat 10 metres (or to their goal line if closer). There are four ways of restarting the game;

• A tap penalty, often taken quickly to exploit lack of organisation in the opposition's retreating defence, is where a player drops the ball onto his foot and kicks it up into his arms and then carries the ball forward.
• A kick to touch. The side with the penalty gets the throw-in to the resultant line-out
  Line-out
  A line-out is the means by which, in rugby union, the ball is put back into play after it has gone into touch. It is the equivalent of the throw-in in soccer. Rugby league abolished line-outs in 1897...
  
  , from which they have a good chance of securing possession. This is used mainly to gain territory though it is also used as a tactic to gain a platform for a rolling maul near the opponent's try line and muscle over for a score.
• A kick at goal. The kick at goal is usually taken off the ground from a sand or plastic tee (though it is possible to drop kick
  Drop kick
  A drop kick is a type of kick in various codes of football. It involves a player dropping the ball and then kicking it when it bounces off the ground. It contrasts to a punt, wherein the player kicks the ball without letting it hit the ground first....
  
   the ball). If it is successful, they score three points, and the opposition restart from the centre line. (In rugby sevens
  Rugby sevens
  Rugby sevens, also known as seven-a-side or VIIs, is a variant of rugby union in which teams are made up of seven players, instead of the usual 15, with shorter matches. Rugby sevens is administered by the International Rugby Board , the body responsible for rugby union worldwide...
  
  , the scoring team restarts from the centre line.) If the penalty is missed but the ball remains in play, play continues. If the penalty is missed and the ball goes dead a 22 metre drop-out is awarded to the opposition.
• A scrum
  Scrum (rugby union)
  In rugby union a scrum is a means of restarting play after a minor infringement. It involves up to eight players from each team, known as the pack or forward pack, binding together in three rows and interlocking with the free opposing teams forwards. At this point the ball is fed into the gap...
  
  . A team may opt to have a scrum. This would normally be taken if an attacking team wished to have all the defensive forwards tied up in one place allowing the backs the luxury of a one on one confrontation. Alternatively, if a team has ascendancy in the scrums they may try for a pushover try
  Try
  A try is the major way of scoring points in rugby league and rugby union football. A try is scored by grounding the ball in the opposition's in-goal area...
  
  , which may result in the award of a penalty try if the scrums are deliberately collapsed by the defending side.

One of the laws associated with penalties was experimented with in association football, that being that penalties may be moved 10 metres forward of their original position either due to talk-back from the players or offside from a quick tap penalty. This was dropped after variable application by referees, but remains a rugby union rule.