RUGBY RULES

Dominion, Volume 32, Issue 225, 21 June 1939, Page 5

RUGBY RULES

Carrying The Ball Back Over The Goal Line POINTS FOR PLAYERS Au innovation known as "the question box" wa.s introduced recently, states the weekly report of the AA ellington Rugby Referees' Association. Quite a number of the questions were connected with a player taking the bail back over his own goalline. ' "It should be generally known by players that if a defending player xyiliiilly kick, pas's, knock, or carry the ball back over his own goal line, and it is there made dead, the ball .shall be brought back and a scrummage formed at the place from which it was kicked, passed, knocked or carried back. This law covers heeling back or an intentional fumble whereby the ball goes into a player’s own in-goal, provided it is made dead in each en.se. Should, however, a defending player kick, pass, knock, or carry the ball back over his own goal line and an attacking player gains possession of the ball and touches down a try must be awarded. Then again there is the player who, when hard pressed, throws the ball into touch. Those players should note that, if a player wilfully knock or throw the ball from the field, of play into touch, touch-in-goal, or over his own dead-ball line, the opposing team shall be awarded a penalty kick at tlie place where such knock or throw occurred. “It is evident that there are quite a number of players who do not correctly understand the rule governing what they call ‘charging into the line-out.’ There is nothing to prevent a player from running into the line-out to take the ball from the throw-in if there be a gap, but he run into an opponent while doing so, a penally kick for charging must be awarded.” Heeling the Ball. “It now transpires that the question which was reported to have been asked of the New Zealand Rugby Union differs from the one actually sent in by the union concerned,” stated the report referring to a ruling given laist week on heeling the ball in the scrum. As there still existed doubts over the scrummage laws, it was made clear that the ball could be hooked when it had passed one foot of the player on each side in the front row of the .serum and had touched the ground. Should the ball come out from the channel it was put in. or between the feet of either of the outside players of each front row on the .side on w’hieh the ball was put in. it must be put in again. The ball was playable, however, if it came out behind the feet of the outside man of the front row, whether it came out in front of the middle row or not.