What the Ruck? (And Maul)

Something that becomes crucial in deciding a rugby match is how teams deal with the breakdown. What do I mean by the breakdown? I mean the mauls and rucks, a pair of distinctive instants within the game that forms a break down of regular play. Each is as different from the other as a front row prop is to a full back. One thing we need to distinguish first is when each forms, so that's where we start. By the way, I apologise if this is a bit heavy!

A maul is formed when the ball carrier is bound to by an opposition player and one of his teammates. A ruck is formed when one player from both teams is bound to each other over the ball. These are the key differences, the number of players and if the ball is in a players hands or not. Technically, a ruck can form in open play if the ball is on the ground. There's a series of laws governing the ruck and maul, so let's tackle them.

Conveniently, we start with the tackle. Rucks usually occur as a direct result of a tackle, and the immediate instructions for the players on the ground is "release." The tackler has to release the player they tackled and the tackled player must immediately place the ball in any direction. (This is why they can score a try after being tackled.) Once the tackler has released, they must either get out of the way of the ball, or get back to their feet. The privilege of the tackler is that they can attack the ball from any direction, however any other player must join "through the gate." "The gate" is the area either side of the tackled player running parallel to the goal lines, and is only as wide as the player on the ground. The arriving players have to come in running parallel to the touchlines, with no angle, otherwise they will be penalised for entering at the side. As the players arrive, they must be supporting their own weight, by not leaning on the ground or the player on the ground. An defending player can come and place their hands on the ball, so long as they are not bound by a teammate of the tackled player before the ball is picked up. If they lose possession of it, the ruck carries on. From then on, any arriving players must come through the gate and bind on to a player, or risk being penalised for side or dangerous entry. Any other players must remain at or behind the back foot of the ruck until the ball is out. The ball is deemed to be out when either the player acting as scrum half picks up the ball, or it goes beyond the back feet. Once the ball leaves the ruck, the ruck is over and players can attack the ball from any direction, provided they were onside before they go for the ball. The ball cannot be kicked back into a ruck, or the pile of players that was a ruck. If this happens, it is a penalty for the opposing team.

Other ways for a ruck to finish include the ball being on or over the goal line, or the ruck becoming unplayable. If it is unplayable, a scrum is the call. As to who takes the scrum depends on what happened immediately beforehand. If a team was going forward, the put in is theirs. If the ruck was stationary, the team who was moving forward before the ruck throws in. If there was no forward movement, the attacking team puts in.

Throughout a ruck, the ball cannot be picked up or played with the hands of anyone except for a player who had their hands on the ball before the ruck had formed. If their hands come off the ball, they must leave it alone and use their feet instead. 

Oh, and everyone's favourite rule... "Use it!" If the ball is available and has been clearly won, the referee will call "use it." Once that has been called, the team who has won the ball must remove the ball from the ruck within five seconds, or the ball will be turned over. So can everyone stop yelling "use it" at scrum halves please??

I'll cover some similarities between the two very quickly. Neither breakdown can be collapsed deliberately, all players must enter from the gate and onside positions, all players must enter with their shoulders and head above their hips, and the offside lines are the same for rucks and mauls. Oh, and I shouldn't have to say it but I will. No jumping onto a ruck or a maul. Seriously. Don't do it!

Onto the maul. As I mentioned before, it forms when the ball carrier is bound to a player from each side, and all of the players are on their feet. Once the maul has formed, the players must follow the same procedure as the ruck. Through the gate, bind, backfoot offside lines, etc. 

A maul ends when one of the following happens:

a) the maul goes to ground legally

b) the ball leaves the maul

c) the ball goes to ground, or touches the goal line

d) the maul becomes stationary or goes backwards for a second time

e) the maul goes to ground legally but the ball is unplayable.

In the event of d and e, the ball is turned over to the team who did not take the ball into the ruck, and a scrum follows. There is one exception to the turn over, and that is in the event of the maul occurring immediately after collecting a kick. If a maul is unsuccessful after the kick, the scrum out in goes to the team that collected the kick. 

Hopefully that answered all your questions... Oh wait. No, sorry! I forgot a request. The "same maul" call. This is a tricky one, but if a maul forms, and the ball carrier and another player that is bound to the ball carrier break away, the maul goes with it, even if the player bound to the ball carrier is a teammate and there is no opposition. It is not obstruction or accidental offside unless the maul runs into another player of their team who is in an offside position, I.e. In front of the back foot of the maul. As an added complication, if same maul is called, then any defending player has to stop the maul legally. They cannot tackle the ball carrier. If they do, they risk a yellow card for a cynical act of foul play and deliberately collapsing the maul. 

Right, now I'm done! Any other requests are welcome, and I hope I've answered your questions about rucks and mauls. There is a variation that came out this year about what happens if a maul forms at a line out, but I'll cover that some time soon in the line out session!