95-607: Sydney is an Australian rugby union team that competed in the National Rugby Championship (NRC). Formerly known as Sydney Rays , the team is one of two sides from New South Wales in the competition; the other being the NSW Country Eagles . The current team plays as the all-of-Sydney side in the NRC and wears the traditional blue and yellow colours of Sydney's representative rugby teams. It draws on
190-570: A British Isles team visited Australia and New Zealand—although a private venture, it laid the foundations for future British and Irish Lions tours; and the 1888–89 New Zealand Native football team brought the first overseas team to British spectators. During the early history of rugby union, a time before commercial air travel, teams from different continents rarely met. The first two notable tours both took place in 1888—the British Isles team touring New Zealand and Australia, followed by
285-497: A haka before each match, leading Welsh Rugby Union administrator Tom Williams to suggest that Wales player Teddy Morgan lead the crowd in singing the Welsh National Anthem, Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau , as a response. After Morgan began singing, the crowd joined in: the first time a national anthem was sung at the start of a sporting event. In 1905 France played England in its first international match. Rugby union
380-587: A game was decided. Prior to the 1883 season, a game was decided by the number of goals scored. The amendment that was successfully passed by the Union declared that games would be decided by number of points scored. A try was awarded 2 points, a conversion was 3 points and a goal kicked from the field of play 4 points. Within a few years of the Gardiner Cup beginning, the Premiership had developed to become
475-456: A governing body had now been formed, there was no centrally controlled competition until many years later. Initially, a competition was loosely arranged by the Union where the clubs were in charge of organising their own matches. This would result in clubs not playing the same teams or the same number of teams. A "Premier Club of the Colony" was declared by the Union at an end of year meeting. It
570-594: A limited number of games, and Cambridge and Oxford continued their annual University Match . The first officially sanctioned international rugby sevens tournament took place in 1973 at Murrayfield, one of Scotland's biggest stadiums, as part of the Scottish Rugby Union centenary celebrations. In 1987, the first Rugby World Cup was held in Australia and New Zealand, and the inaugural winners were New Zealand. The first World Cup Sevens tournament
665-415: A lineout throw is generally awarded to the opposition at the spot on the sideline where they left the field. Exceptions include a kick out "on the full" (i.e. the ball did not land in the field-of-play before going into touch) in which case the lineout would still take place on the sideline but back in line with where the ball was kicked, or when a team takes a free kick from a penalty where they would retain
760-705: A match at Manly Oval . Shute enlisted in April 1917 and served as a gunner in 30th Battery, Field Artillery A.I.F. during World War One. On his return to Australia, Shute took up his engineering studies at the University of Sydney and joined the Sydney University rugby club as a front row forward in the first XV. Of Shute's death from a fractured skull and cerebral haemorrhage, the Sydney Morning Herald , Wednesday 7 June 1922 reported: As
855-582: A more structured competition with a centralised list of fixtures and rounds. An official ladder was produced and maintained with points given for wins, draws and byes. By the 1890s a finals system was introduced to assist in determining the premiership winner. The Sydney Rugby Premiership came under the control of the Metropolitan Rugby Union, a branch of the New South Wales Rugby Football Union (formerly
950-534: A preferred or standard 68 metre width, this is often used unless a ground has been specifically designed to accommodate a 70-metre rugby field. 100 metres is the typical length, with a line (see below) often marked at halfway with "50" on it, representing 50 metres from each goal line. The variations have been allowed in the Laws, possibly to accommodate older grounds (perhaps even pre-metrification when yards and feet were specified) and developing nations. The field of play
1045-542: A private hospital, where it was ascertained that he was suffering from cerebral hemorrhage. Without recovering consciousness he died at 6am. A former pupil of Sydney Grammar School , Shute, who was 23 years of age, was a third year student at Sydney University and he played for the University first fifteen. He served in the AIF for four years. The University club had the shield made following his death and donated it in 1923 to
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#17327977473961140-512: A result of injuries received while playing at Manly in the Rugby football match between the team which toured New Zealand and the Next 15, Robert Elliott Shute, a front row forward in the latter team, died at a private hospital at Manly yesterday morning. The accident occurred during the latter portion of the first spell of the match. Shute secured the ball and when tackled fell heavily. He was removed to
1235-544: A semi-final by the Perth Spirit , who went on to win the NRC title. Two wooden spoon seasons followed in 2017 and 2018 under, respectively, Julian Huxley and Chris Whitaker . The Rays' moniker and logo were dropped in 2019, a year after New South Wales Rugby had taken control of the Sydney team. Whitaker was reappointed head coach and Sydney adopted the traditional masoned crown and anchor insignia of
1330-836: A stylised emerald green and white rugby ball. The Rays' local rivals in the ARC were the Sydney Fleet and the Western Sydney Rams . The three ARC teams from New South Wales were aligned with existing clubs and regions. The clubs aligned with the Central Coast Rays were Gordon , Manly , Northern Suburbs , and Warringah , from the Shute Shield competition, as well as the Central Coast Waves . The Central Coast Rays played their home games at
1425-470: A successful penalty kick or a drop goal each score 3 points. The values of each of these scoring methods have been changed over the years. According to World Rugby's Laws of the Game, a typical rugby ground, formally known as the "playing enclosure", is formed by two major zones: The referee (and their assistants) generally have full authority and responsibility for all players and other officials inside
1520-485: Is Chatswood Oval in Sydney, Australia, an elliptically shaped cricket ground which is the home of Gordon rugby club, that has curved dead-ball lines to maximise the available in-goal space. Where multiple sports share a field (e.g. a rugby league and a rugby union club sharing one field), lines may be overlaid on top of each other, sometimes in different colours. However, particularly for television, rugby union line markings are generally painted white. Some exceptions include
1615-457: Is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in England in the first half of the 19th century. Rugby is based on running with the ball in hand. In its most common form, a game is played between two teams of 15 players each, using an oval-shaped ball on a rectangular field called a pitch. The field has H-shaped goalposts at both ends. Rugby union is a popular sport around
1710-451: Is awarded to the winning team from the Sydney premiership grand final held at the end of the club rugby season. Club-based rugby football began some time before 1865. The Sydney University Football Club began in 1863 (although this date is questioned by some historians) and is the oldest existing football club outside the British Isles. The first recorded rugby season in Australia was in 1865 with Sydney University , Sydney Football Club and
1805-408: Is considered "out-of-bounds" for the ball and the players, normally resulting in the non-infringing team receiving possession of the ball at a restart. The perimeter area can be divided into two areas: For the purposes of determining if a ball is "out-of-bounds" (i.e. has left the playing area), the perimeter area extends indefinitely away from the playing area. When a ball or player goes into touch,
1900-445: Is divided by a solid "halfway" line, drawn perpendicular to the sidelines at their midpoint. A 0.5m line is marked perpendicular to the halfway lines at its midpoint, designating the spot where the kickoffs shall be taken. The areas between each goal line and the halfway line are known as "halves" as in other football codes. A pair of solid lines are also drawn perpendicular to the sidelines, 22 metres (formerly 25 yards) from each end of
1995-401: Is followed by a three-week play-off series culminating in a grand final. The playoffs are contested by the top six placed teams following the round-robin. The first week of the play-offs sees 1st play 6th, 2nd play 5th and 3rd play 4th. The lowest two losers are eliminated and the three winners plus the highest ranked loser proceed to week 2 of the play-offs. The two winners from week 2 proceed to
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#17327977473962090-440: Is the third and final row of the forward positions, who are often referred to as the loose forwards. The three positions in the back row are the two flankers and the number 8 . The two flanker positions, known as the blindside flanker and openside flanker, are the final row in the scrum. They are usually the most mobile forwards in the game. Their main role is to win possession through 'turn overs'. The number 8 packs down between
2185-403: The 2014 season, with Scott Fava , Haig Sare and Geoff Townsend as part of the coaching staff, but after Blake accepted a coaching opportunity with Leicester Tigers , Geoff Townsend was promoted to the head coaching position, Damien Cummins replaced Fava as the forwards coach in 2014, and Greg Peterson was named as captain. In 2015, Townsend was reappointed as head coach, and Luke Holmes
2280-742: The Bluetongue Central Coast Stadium at Gosford , on the New South Wales Central Coast . Bluetongue Stadium, with an all-seater capacity of 20,159, had previously hosted numerous rugby union fixtures including Central Coast Waves matches and New South Wales Waratahs matches during the Australian Provincial Championship . John McKee was the head coach of the Central Coast team. He had previously coached
2375-963: The Bunnings NPC in New Zealand, the League One in Japan and the Currie Cup in South Africa. Other transnational club competitions include the United Rugby Championship of club teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa and Wales, European Rugby Champions Cup in Europe, and Super Rugby in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. Primitive forms of football included harpastum , played by
2470-545: The Eastwood club and worked with French club Montferrand and Irish team Connacht . After finishing second on the league table, the Central Coast Rays came from behind against the Perth Spirit in their semi-final, winning 27 to 19. The Rays hosted the Melbourne Rebels in the inaugural ARC Grand Final and won 20 to 12, becoming the inaugural (and only) champions of the ARC. The Australian Rugby Championship
2565-679: The Victorian game ( Aussie rules football ). As a result of these heated discussions, an association was formed under the Victorian rules with two strong clubs formed to play the game. No sooner than the dust had settled and another association was formed under the British Association rules. Despite this new competition, rugby football held sway as the premier code in Sydney. In 1883, the Gardiner Challenge Cup
2660-456: The 1830s, "running in" with the ball in hand was allowed but subject to hacking and "collaring". Former Rugby School student Albert Pell is credited with having formed the first "football" team while a student at Cambridge University . Major private schools each used different rules during this early period, with former pupils from Rugby and Eton attempting to carry their preferred rules through to their universities. A significant event in
2755-559: The Australian Club reported as playing games. On 24 June 1874, a meeting was held between ten prominent football clubs to create a governing body to administer the game within New South Wales. The Southern Rugby Football Union was formed. The first task of the Union was to decide on a set of rules for all clubs to adhere to. Clubs were given "senior" or "junior" status which could change from season to season. Although
2850-495: The Central Coast Rays side that played in the earlier national competition, the Australian Rugby Championship (ARC) in 2007. It had been backed by the same four Sydney clubs, along with the Central Coast Waves . In 2007, an attempt was made to form a third tier of rugby in Australia, similar to New Zealand's ITM Cup and South Africa's Currie Cup . The newly formed competition included eight teams and
2945-593: The Grand Final in week 3. Arthur Roden Cutler (1916-2002) was awarded the Victoria Cross for gallantry in Syria in 1941 during WWII, knighted in 1965 after many diplomatic postings and is the longest-serving governor in the history of NSW. Introduced at the beginning of the 2000 season, this trophy honours a great supporter of the game of rugby. The Shield was initially held by Eastwood (1999 premiers) and
Sydney (NRC team) - Misplaced Pages Continue
3040-513: The Laws: Generally, points where the dashed lines intersect other lines will be marked with a "T" or cross shape, although the extensions of dashed lines are generally not drawn within 5 metres of the goal lines or sidelines, to allow a clear demarcation of the field of play's boundaries. The Laws require the playing area to be rectangular in shape, however variations may be permitted with the approval of relevant unions. A notable example
3135-605: The NSWRFU to be used as a perpetual trophy for the Sydney first grade competition. In 1966, the Sydney Rugby Union was formed to administer the running of Sydney rugby including the Shute Shield. The Shute Shield marked its 100th year in 2022. In late 1986, the Sydney Rugby Union (SRU) approved a new competition structure for the Shute Shield. The SRU were concerned about the falling number of clubs involved in
3230-820: The New Zealand team touring Europe. Traditionally the most prestigious tours were the Southern Hemisphere countries of Australia, New Zealand and South Africa making a tour of a Northern Hemisphere, and the return tours made by a joint British and Irish team. Tours would last for months, due to long traveling times and the number of games undertaken; the 1888 New Zealand team began their tour in Hawkes Bay in June and did not complete their schedule until August 1889, having played 107 rugby matches. Touring international sides would play Test matches against international opponents, including national, club and county sides in
3325-476: The Romans, where two opposing teams competed to throw a large ball into an opposition net, fighting for possession of the ball. Medieval Irishmen played caid , carrying an inflated bladder and using arched trees as goals. The Welsh played an inter-parish game using a wooden ball called cnapan . Frenchmen played soule and Georgians played lelo. "Football" as a game was well established by 1803 at Rugby School and by
3420-691: The SRU was reformed to take control of the competition once again. From 2002 through 2006 the Toohey's New Cup was run to fill the void between Grade Rugby and Super Rugby in Australia. This became the Sydney Premiership competition, with the Shute Shield becoming the First Grade pre-season competition. However, in 2004 the Shute Shield was awarded to the Second Grade competition. In 2007
3515-594: The Southern Rugby Football Union), in 1897. As early as 1893 it had been suggested to change the current structure of the premiership to a district-based formula. In early 1900, a meeting of the Metropolitan Rugby Union was held and a recommendation to establish district football in the coming season was made. Eight clubs competed in the inaugural season: Balmain, Glebe, Newtown, South Sydney, North Sydney , Western Suburbs , Eastern Suburbs and Sydney University . The first district competition
3610-558: The Sydney Rays played south of the harbour at Concord , Leichhardt and Woollahra. For the ARC in 2007, the Rays played at Bluetongue Central Coast Stadium . With the reemergence of the competition in the form of the NRC, fans from Manly and Warringah rugby heartland - tragic supporters of the game - formed the 'STRAYS'. In the spirit of rugby and the NRC they came together to make sure
3705-448: The Sydney Rugby Union for the NRC team's logo, although the anchor had been used on the plaquet of the collar and in promotional material the year before. The Sydney Fleet ARC team had a similar crest in 2007. The Sydney team plays in a blue jersey with two yellow hoops on the chest that is based on the traditional design worn by Sydney representative teams for many years. The blue and yellow colours were adopted in 2018, and are
3800-670: The Sydney premiership in the period after 1900: Note: The Sydney premiership became the 1st division when a 2nd division was added for 31 seasons from 1962-1992. From 1957 until 2014, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation had broadcast the Match of the Day from the Shute Shield competition in NSW/ACT every Saturday afternoon and replayed nationally on Tuesday mornings. The ABC ended its 57-year partnership with
3895-457: The Toohey's New Cup was merged into the Shute Shield to become the Toohey's New Shute Shield when an attempt at an Australian wide domestic rugby competition, the Australian Rugby Championship , was started. The Australian Rugby Championship only lasted the one season. Below is a list of some of the clubs that have once competed in the Sydney rugby premiership. The following clubs also played in
Sydney (NRC team) - Misplaced Pages Continue
3990-537: The United States , Canada and Eastern Europe , its growth occurring during the expansion of the British Empire and through French proponents ( Rugby Europe ) in Europe. Countries that have adopted rugby union as their de facto national sport include Fiji , Georgia, Madagascar , New Zealand, Samoa , Tonga , and Wales . International matches have taken place since 1871 when the first game
4085-480: The Wallabies (Australia's national team) who often have yellow markings. Local clubs may use black, yellow, or other colours on grass, with other surfaces possibly requiring different marking techniques. Unlike association football, where on-field advertising is strictly forbidden in the laws, World Rugby allows sponsors logos to be painted on the playing surface. This is another way in which clubs can make money in
4180-431: The backs and the forwards is that the backs are expected to have superior kicking and ball-handling skills, especially the fly-half, scrum-half, and full-back. The half-backs consist of two positions, the scrum-half and the fly-half , also known in the Southern Hemisphere as half-back and first five-eighth respectively. The fly-half is crucial to a team's game plan, orchestrating the team's performance. They are usually
4275-422: The ball is kicked into touch by a player who had at least one foot on or behind their own 22-metre line, the line-out formed at the spot where the ball crossed the touch-line instead of being taken in line with the spot from where it was kicked. Additional broken or dashed lines (of 5 metre dash lengths, according to the Laws ) are drawn in each half or on each side of, the field, each with specific purposes under
4370-417: The ball. Forwards play a vital role in tackling and rucking opposing players. Players in these positions are generally bigger and stronger and take part in the scrum and line-out. The forwards are often collectively referred to as the 'pack', especially when in the scrum formation. The front row consists of three players: two props (the loosehead prop and the tighthead prop) and the hooker . The role of
4465-591: The case of Northern Hemisphere rugby, or provincial/state sides in the case of Southern Hemisphere rugby. Between 1905 and 1908, all three major Southern Hemisphere rugby countries sent their first touring teams to the Northern Hemisphere: New Zealand in 1905, followed by South Africa in 1906 and Australia in 1908. All three teams brought new styles of play, fitness levels and tactics, and were far more successful than critics had expected. The New Zealand 1905 touring team performed
4560-588: The clubs that had favoured the Rugby Rules formed the Rugby Football Union in 1871, and their code became known as " rugby football ". In 1895, there was a major schism within rugby football in England in which numerous clubs from Northern England resigned from the RFU over the issue of reimbursing players for time lost from their workplaces. The split highlighted the social and class divisions in
4655-567: The colours featured on the City of Sydney coat of arms . For the ARC in 2007, the Central Coast Rays played in a predominantly green and blue jersey. From 2014 to 2017, the North Harbour Rays team wore harlequin-style quartered strips in the various colours of its four constituent clubs. As of 2019, Sydney play their home matches at Woollahra Oval No.1. The team has its training base at the University of NSW in Sydney's eastern suburbs,
4750-680: The competition at the completion of the 2014 season, following the Australian Government's decision to cut funding to the national broadcaster. On 17 March 2015, Sydney Rugby formally announced that the Seven Network would become the new free-to-air Match of the Day broadcasters of the Shute Shield in NSW, commencing on 21 March on 7TWO showing a match between Eastern Suburbs and Gordon. The Prime Network broadcasts to regional areas of NSW. This agreement has since been renewed, with
4845-455: The current contract running through the 2024 season. On November 9, 2020, Nine Network confirmed their broadcast deal with Rugby Australia , giving them the rights to the Shute Shield. Beginning in 2021, 4 games a season will be televised live on one of Nine's free-to-air channels. The remainder of the games will be broadcast live on streaming service Stan . The competition format currently involves an 18-week round-robin competition which
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#17327977473964940-496: The early development of rugby football was the production of a written set of rules at Rugby School in 1845, followed by the Cambridge Rules that were drawn up in 1848. Formed in 1863, the national governing body The Football Association (FA) began codifying a set of universal football rules. These new rules specifically banned players from running with the ball in hand and also disallowed hacking (kicking players in
5035-486: The field are divided into eight forwards (two more than in rugby league ) and seven backs . There are typically significantly more forwards on the bench than backs with, for example, South Africa having a 7-1 split in favour of forwards in their August 2023 match against New Zealand in Twickenham. A 6-2 or 5-3 split is more common. The main responsibilities of the forward players are to gain and retain possession of
5130-401: The field of play and called the 22-metre lines, or "22"s. An area at each end, also known as the "22", is bounded by, but does not include, the sidelines, goal line and 22-metre line. In this area, a defensive player who cleanly catches a ball kicked by the other team, without the ball having already touched the ground after the kick, is entitled to claim a free kick, or " mark ". Additionally, if
5225-626: The field to accommodate fitter and faster (or heavier) players. Fixed cameras on tripods and advertising hoardings are often the main culprits for injuring players in the perimeter area. Shute Shield The Shute Shield , currently known as the Charter Hall Shute Shield , is a semi-professional rugby union competition in Sydney , Australia. It is the premier club competition in New South Wales . The Shute Shield
5320-420: The first laws were written by pupils at Rugby School; other significant events in the early development of rugby include the decision by Blackheath F.C. to leave The Football Association in 1863 and, in 1895, the split between rugby union and rugby league . Historically rugby union was an amateur sport, but in 1995 formal restrictions on payments to players were removed, making the game openly professional at
5415-425: The first to receive the ball from the scrum-half following a breakdown, lineout, or scrum, and need to be decisive with what actions to take and be effective at communicating with the outside backs. Many fly-halves are also their team's goal kickers. The scrum-half is the link between the forwards and the backs. They receive the ball from the lineout and remove the ball from the back of the scrum, usually passing it to
5510-537: The fly-half. They also feed the scrum and sometimes have to act as a fourth loose forward. There are four three quarter positions: two centres (inside and outside) and two wings (left and right). In the Southern Hemisphere, the inside centre is commonly referred to as the second five-eighth, while the outside centre is simply known as the centre. The centres will attempt to tackle attacking players; whilst in attack, they should employ speed and strength to breach opposition defences. The wings are generally positioned on
5605-601: The formation of a 10 club competition called the NSW Championship, while the remaining lower division clubs remained with the SRU Championship. Both competitions ran during the 1987 and 1988 seasons. For the 1989 season, the NSW Championship clubs returned to the SRU and the Shute Shield. In 1992, the NSW Rugby Union again took over the administration of the Shute Shield competition. In 2011,
5700-505: The four constituent clubs. The sleeves were gold and black, collar and shorts were white and all four clubs’ colours were featured on the socks. The Rays secured Macquarie University as their principal partner on a two-year deal, to be officially be known as the Macquarie University North Harbour Rays for the 2014 and 2015 NRC seasons. Phil Blake was initially appointed as the Rays head coach for
5795-414: The goal lines, equivalent to American football's "end zones". The in-goal areas must be between 6 and 22 metres (6.6 and 24.1 yards) deep and cover the full width of the field. A ball grounded in this area by an attacking player will generally result in a try being awarded, unless there has been a previous infringement, or the player has gone out-of-bounds whilst in possession of the ball. The perimeter area
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#17327977473965890-484: The highest level for the first time. Rugby union spread from the Home Nations of the United Kingdom and Ireland , with other early exponents of the sport including Australia , New Zealand , South Africa and France . The sport is followed primarily in the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, New Zealand, Australia, Pacific Islands - Fiji , Tonga , Samoa , Georgia , Oceania , Southern Africa , Argentina , and in recent times also, Italy , Japan , South America ,
5985-404: The lower divisions. The new structure involved distributing all teams in the three competitions evenly across three new divisions with some teams earning the right to play for the premiership in the first division. The clubs that made up first division were opposed to the new structure and sought the opportunity to form a breakaway competition affiliated directly with the NSWRFU . This resulted in
6080-585: The metropolitan sides that have represented the city for more than a century. In 2019 the NRC side adopted as its logo the anchor insignia of the Sydney Rugby Union, which dates back to at least 1970. The team was known as the North Harbour Rays before 2016. It was renamed Sydney during a consolidation which reduced the number of NRC teams in the city from three in 2014 to eventually just one by 2018. The North Harbour Rays had been formed as consortium of four Sydney clubs; Gordon , Manly , Northern Suburbs , and Warringah in 2014. North Harbour took its identity from
6175-414: The most important attributes of a good full-back are dependable catching skills and a good kicking game. Rugby union is played between two teams – the one that scores more points wins the game. Points can be scored in several ways: a try , scored by grounding the ball in the in-goal area (between the goal line and the dead-ball line), is worth 5 points and a subsequent conversion kick scores 2 points;
6270-550: The new club had support in the local community and to 'enrich the sideline experience'. Its members were drawn to the common cause by the founder, Michael Gordon. The squad for the 2019 NRC season: The initial squad was named in late August. Players joining in subsequent rounds were: National Rugby Championship Australian Rugby Championship Props Hookers Locks Loose forwards Scrum-halves Fly-halves Centres Wingers Fullbacks (c) Team captain Bold denotes internationally capped players at
6365-414: The outside of the backline. Their primary function is to finish off moves and score tries. Wings are usually the fastest players in the team and are elusive runners who use their speed to avoid tackles. The full-back is normally positioned several metres behind the back line. They often field opposition kicks and are usually the last line of defence should an opponent break through the back line. Two of
6460-440: The playing area and perimeter area, although depending on how large the perimeter is, other surfaces such as dirt, artificial turf, etc. may be used outside of a "sliding" perimeter from the bounds of the playing area. For the most part, the "playing area" is where the majority of play occurs. The ball is generally considered live whilst in this area, so long as players do not infringe, with special rules applied to specific zones of
6555-442: The playing area. The playing area consists of: A typical "field of play" is generally 100 metres long by 68–70 metres wide for senior rugby, depending on the specific requirements of each ground. The Laws require the field of play to be between 94 and 100 metres (103 and 109 yards) long, with a width of between 68 and 70 metres (74 and 77 yards). As other football codes, such as association football and rugby league, have specified
6650-432: The playing enclosure. Fences or ropes (particularly at amateur clubs) are generally used to mark the extent of this area, although in modern stadia this may include the entire arena floor or other designated space. The Laws, above all, require that the playing enclosure's surface be safe, whilst also permitting grass, sand, clay, snow or conforming artificial turf to be used; the surface would generally be uniform across both
6745-533: The pre-1995 period of rugby union was marked by frequent accusations of " shamateurism ", including an investigation in Britain by a House of Commons Select committee in early 1995. Following the introduction of professionalism trans-national club competitions were started, with the Heineken Cup in the Northern Hemisphere and Super Rugby in the Southern Hemisphere. The Tri Nations , an annual international tournament involving Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, kicked off in 1996. In 2012 , this competition
6840-415: The professional era and is also often used by host nations, professional leagues and tournaments as additional revenue streams, particularly when games are broadcast. In recent years, augmented reality technology has been used to replace painting to protect the surface or save costs on painting fields, producing a similar effect for broadcast albeit sometimes with poorer results. The in-goal areas sit behind
6935-425: The right to throw-in. The perimeter area should be clear and free of obstructions and heavy, solid objects which could pose a danger to players for at least 5 metres from the playing area, according to the Laws. Players often leave the playing area whether accidentally or due to being forced off of the field, sometimes sliding or needing to slow down from a sprint. Many venues at elite levels leave larger spaces around
7030-512: The same facility used by the Waratahs . From 2014 to 2017, the team played at several venues north of the harbour including Macquarie University and Brookvale Oval , as well as the home grounds of three of the four clubs from the Ray's ownership consortium at the time: Northern Suburbs , Manly and Warringah (i.e. at North Sydney Oval , Manly Oval and Pittwater Park , respectively). In 2018,
7125-590: The shins), both of which were legal and common tactics under the Rugby School's rules of the sport. In protest at the imposition of the new rules, the Blackheath Club left the FA followed by several other clubs that also favoured the "Rugby Rules". Although these clubs decided to ban hacking soon afterwards, the split was permanent, and the FA's codified rules became known as " association football " whilst
7220-427: The sport in England. Although the rules of the game were not a factor in the split, the breakaway teams subsequently adopted some rule changes and this became the separate code of " rugby league ". The RFU's code thereafter took on the name "rugby union" to differentiate it from rugby league, but both versions of the sport are known simply as "rugby" throughout most of the world. The first rugby football international
7315-432: The tallest players in the team and specialise as line-out jumpers. The main role of the lock in line-outs is to make a standing jump, often supported by the other forwards, to either collect the thrown ball or ensure the ball comes down on their side. Locks also have an important role in the scrum, binding directly behind the three front row players and providing forward drive. The back row, not to be confused with 'Backs',
7410-492: The time Allocated national player additional to contracted squad. Props Hookers Locks Loose forwards Scrum-halves Fly-halves Centres Wingers Fullbacks (c) Team captain Bold denotes internationally capped players at the time Allocated national player additional to contracted squad. Rugby union Rugby union football , commonly known simply as rugby union or often just rugby ,
7505-424: The two locks at the back of the scrum. The role of the number 8 in the scrum is to control the ball after it has been heeled back from the front of the pack, and the position provides a link between the forwards and backs during attacking phases. The role of the backs is to create and convert point-scoring opportunities. They are generally smaller, faster and more agile than the forwards. Another distinction between
7600-453: The two props is to support the hooker during scrums, to provide support for the jumpers during line-outs and to provide strength and power in rucks and mauls. The third position in the front row is the hooker. The hooker is a key position in attacking and defensive play and is responsible for winning the ball in the scrum. Hookers normally throw the ball in at line-outs. The second row consists of two locks or lock forwards. Locks are usually
7695-616: The world, played by people regardless of gender, age or size. In 2023, there were more than 10 million people playing worldwide, of whom 8.4 million were registered players. World Rugby , previously called the International Rugby Football Board (IRFB) and the International Rugby Board (IRB), has been the governing body for rugby union since 1886, and currently has 116 countries as full members and 18 associate members. In 1845,
7790-411: Was announced that the Rays would be revived as the North Harbour Rays to compete in the new National Rugby Championship. The new Rays team was backed by a consortium of the same four Shute Shield clubs involved in earlier Central Coast Rays team: Manly , Warringah , Northern Suburbs and Gordon . The team played in a quartered harlequin-style strip composed of blue, red, and two shades of green from
7885-543: Was called the Australian Rugby Championship . Three of those teams were based in New South Wales , including a Central Coast team. The Central Coast Rays team was officially launched in March 2007 by the New South Wales Rugby Union (NSWRU). The Rays' emerald and navy colours represented the ocean and bush landscape of the region. The team logo featured a manta ray in navy blue, outlined in white, on
7980-463: Was extended to include Argentina , a country whose impressive performances in international games (especially finishing in third place in the 2007 Rugby World Cup) was deemed to merit inclusion in the competition. As a result of the expansion to four teams, the tournament was renamed The Rugby Championship. Each team starts the match with 15 players on the field and typically seven or eight substitutes but this varies at amateur level. The 15 players on
8075-420: Was formed. During the following season, a professional league competition was begun. Over the next few years, players switched across to the professional competition resulting in crowd numbers falling at Union matches. Despite this, the district competition continued to run, rebuilding its supporter base, until the outbreak of World War 1 with the last season held during 1914. With the outbreak of war, competition
8170-704: Was held at Murrayfield in 1993. Rugby Sevens was introduced into the Commonwealth Games in 1998 and was added to the Olympic Games of 2016. Both men and women's Sevens took place at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. Rugby union was an amateur sport until the IRB declared the game "open" in August 1995 (shortly after the completion of the 1995 World Cup), removing restrictions on payments to players. However,
8265-599: Was included as an event in the Olympic Games four times during the early 20th century. No international rugby games and union-sponsored club matches were played during the First World War, but competitions continued through service teams such as the New Zealand Army team . During the Second World War no international matches were played by most countries, though Italy, Germany and Romania played
8360-474: Was introduced with a mixture of "senior" and "junior" clubs competing. Foundation clubs included Redfern, Sydney University , Wallaroo, Newtown, Burwood, Oriental, Glebe, Balmain , St. Leonards, Parramatta, Arfoma and Paddington. The first Cup was won by Redfern who were undefeated. At the beginning of the season, a proposal was put to the Southern Rugby Union to change the rules determining how
8455-503: Was named as captain. The team was renamed the Sydney Rays for the 2016 season. Southern Districts considered switching allegiance to the Rays in 2016, but remained with the Rams. Damien Cummins was initially named as head coach in 2016 but he stepped down and Simon Cron was appointed to the job. The Rays performed well that year and lost only once in the regular season – to eventual minor premiers NSW Country – before being knocked out in
8550-530: Was not necessarily given to the team that had the best results on the field. Results mattered, but other criteria may have also been used. What these were are not known. The year 1880 saw the Southern Rugby Football Union endure the first splintering of the football code in Australia. It was during this season that a newspaper "war" began. Discussions centred around the merits of rugby football, British association football (soccer) and
8645-632: Was played between Scotland and England at Raeburn Place in Edinburgh. The Rugby World Cup , first held in 1987, is held every four years. The Six Nations Championship in Europe and The Rugby Championship in the Southern Hemisphere are other important international competitions that are held annually. National club and provincial competitions include the Premiership in England, the Top 14 in France,
8740-652: Was played on 27 March 1871 between Scotland and England in Edinburgh . Scotland won the game by one goal and one try to one goal. By 1881 both Ireland and Wales had representative teams and in 1883 the first international competition, the Home Nations Championship had begun. 1883 is also the year of the first rugby sevens tournament, the Melrose Sevens , which is still held annually. Two important overseas tours took place in 1888:
8835-576: Was suspended. At the conclusion of the war, the Sydney Rugby Premiership was recommenced. With the competition returning under the control of the NSW Rugby Football Union , only six clubs competed: Cambridge, Eastern Suburbs , Glebe-Balmain , Manly , Sydney University and YMCA. The Shute Memorial Shield was struck in honour of the late Robert Elliott Stewart Shute, who died on 6 June 1922, aged 23, following
8930-584: Was terminated at the end of 2007 after only one season of competition, with the Australian Rugby Union citing higher costs than budgeted and further projected financial losses. The Central Coast Rays team was disbanded at the end of the ARC. The National Rugby Championship was announced in December 2013 to commence in 2014 with expressions of interest open to any interested parties and the accepted bids decided early in 2014. In March 2014 it
9025-497: Was won by Glebe who were successful in all three grade competitions. It was during this period, in 1907, that the supremacy of the Sydney Rugby Premiership was threatened. The imminent arrival of a professional football team from New Zealand sparked heated discussion about professionalism and compensation pay for lost time at work. In August of that year, the New South Wales Rugby Football League
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