* Update - New Rules for the 2013 Early Summer Season *

* Update - New Regulations for the 2013 Early Summer Season*

Mixed teams are no longer able to play with extra male players on the pitch

In 7 a side mixed matches, under no circumstances will you be able to play with more than 4 males on the pitch. In 6 a side leagues (excluding Reading), under no circumstances will you be able to play with more than 3 males on the pitch. This rule change brings Try Tag Rugby into line with other major Tag Rugby organisations outside of the UK such as Oztag Australia and the Irish Tag Rugby Association (ITRA). If you have a male heavy mixed squad, you could consider switching to a men's league. Female players are welcome to play in men's teams.

Ringer & Forfeit Rules

• Teams can use no more than 3 ringers in any given match.
• The number of ringers used should never exceed 2 substitutes. Ie in a mixed match, you can never use ringers to have more than one substitute of either gender.
• In a 7 a side match, teams must have 6 of their own players present to avoid a forfeit. However, teams with as little as 4 players can avoid a forfeit by electing to play short. For example, a team which shows up with 4 players, could borrow 3 ringers. However, to make the game a competition fixture, they must always have 2 players on the bench. Hence they would need to play with only 5 players on the pitch.
• Players can only fill in for their own registered division on that particular night (registered in that league) or in a higher division! Players in a higher division can not fill on for teams in a lower division on that night.

Rules

Try Tag Rugby use the Oztag rules of Tag Rugby. The only major differences other than those outlined above are as follows:

1. Matches are played in the 7 a side format, rather than 8 a side. Try Tag Rugby mixed competitions are played with four males and three females on the pitch at any time. Some leagues are played in the 6 a side (3 males & 3 females) and 5 a side (3 males and 2 females) formats.

2. Kick offs are taken by the team which scored the try, not the team which conceded the try.

3. Diving - Players can dive to score a try provided no defending player is within tagging distance (1m). If a defender is within tagging distance, the try will be disallowed.

Below are the Oztag rules at a glance. Please download the full Oztag rule book for a more detailed explanation of the rules.

Regulations

Players are allowed to be dual registered in two divisions in the same competition Eg. Regular team in A grade & work team in intermediate grade. Fixture clashes can be avoided if a player is an organiser of one of the teams. If a player is registered in two different teams (in different divisions) on the same night, then we can't guaranteed there will be no fixture clashes. Whole teams such as a men's team & a mixed team using the majority of the same players will be guaranteed to have no fixture clashes. In all circumstances if you plan to play in two teams (in different divisions) on the same night and you wish to avoid fixture clashes, this needs to be pre-arranged by emailing info@trytagrugby.com at least 7 days prior to the league start date.

At a glance

a) The Basics

• Tag Rugby is a minimal contact version of rugby.
• A try is awarded to the attacking team when they ground the ball on or over the try line.
• A try is worth one point. In a mixed game, female tries are worth two points. There are no conversions in Tag Rugby.
• Defenders must remove a tag to stop the ball carrier’s progress. The defender then holds up the tag and drops it to the ground marking where the play the ball should occur.
• After a tag is made, play resumes by the attacker placing the ball on the ground and rolling it backwards with his foot. This is called a play the ball.
• The defensive side is allowed one marker at the play the ball. That being, one defender who is allowed to stand opposite the attacker within a metre during the play the ball.
• The remainder of the defending team must be back seven metres with the referee from the attacking player during the play the ball.
• A dummy half is the attacking player who picks the ball up and distributes it after the play the ball. The only person able to promote the ball with one tag on is the dummy half or an equivalent player taking a tap restart (as long as they do not take more than one step with the ball).
• The defensive line can only move forward when the dummy half touches the ball. The dummy half can run and be tagged with the ball.
• The dummy half has three seconds to pick up the ball after the play the ball. If after three seconds the ball has not been picked up, a turnover shall be awarded to the defending team. In NO instance is the marker allowed to dive on or pick up the ball during the play the ball process. If this occurs, a penalty will be awarded to the attacking team. The referee may opt to start the 3 second count before the play the ball if the player who is playing the ball doesn't play the ball immediately when returning to the mark.
• Each team has six tags / plays to promote the ball before a changeover occurs.
• An attacker must stop and play the ball if he is caught in possession with only one tag on.
• The ball is allowed to touch the ground as long as it is not propelled in a forward motion.
• The game is minimal contact; an attacker cannot deliberately bump into a defender. A defender cannot change direction and move into an attacker’s path. Whoever initiates contact will be penalised. The onus is on the attacking player to avoid the defender.
• The ball carrier is not allowed to protect his tag or fend off defenders.
• If an attacker is tagged simultaneously to releasing the ball, the referee will call play on. (If the referee is unable to decide, the pass is allowed - play on. The advantage goes to attacking team.)
• If a player trips/falls and lands on their knees, it will be play on if a defender is not within tagging distance. If a player trips/falls and lands on their knees and a defender is within tagging distance, it will be deemed a tag
• A player can go down on their knees to score a try over the try line.

b) Kicking

• Kicking on any tag is allowed.
• Kicks in general play cannot be above the shoulder height of the referee. The attacking team cannot dive on a kicked ball in any situation
• A kick off is taken as a place kick from the centre of the halfway line. If the ball lands in the field of play and then rolls across the try line whether touched or not, a line drop out occurs.
• A line drop out is a drop kick taken from the centre of the defending team’s try line.

c) Misconduct

• Abuse of referees or officials will not be tolerated. Referees have the full power to sin bin, send off and suspend players from Try Tag Rugby competitions.
• Try Tag Rugby will hand out lengthy penalties for violent or unsporting behaviour.

d) Forfeits & Match Results

In the case where a match needs to be abandoned due to factors other than what have occurred on the pitch (e.g weather, flood light failure etc) a result stands if half-time has been reached in a regular 40 minute match. In a shortened or twenty minute match, at least 75% of match time needs to have been played for a result to stand. The team leading at this point in time will be declared the winner.

A team needs 6 registered players on the pitch at kick-off time for a result to stand in an official 7-a-side match (as pf Early Summer 2013). At 6-a-side venues, you require 5 registered squad members present. Even if your team is struggling to raise a full squad, you should always make an effort to get all available players to show up. If less than the required number of players show up, a social match can still be run. If your team must forfeit, please notify Try Tag Rugby at least 24 hours prior to kick-off so that your opposition can be informed. Teams that forfeit on late notice will be heavily penalised.

• greater than 24 hours notice, 10-0 loss awarded

• less than 24 hours, 10-0 loss awarded and 1 competition point deducted

• After 4pm on match day or complete no show, 10-0 loss awarded and 2 competition points deducted

• Any of the above but 2, 3 or 4 players show up to help organise a social match, 10-0 loss awarded but no points deducted

If your team is struggling to raise a squad, please notify us and we will spread the word to find you fill in players for the night. Many players are happy to play two games in one night, so there is no excuse for not showing up! Please see below for further details on recruiting fill in players.

If a team forfeits 2 matches in one season "After 4pm on match day or complete no show", Try Tag Rugby reserves the right to remove the team from the league.

e) Players Filling in For Other Teams - Ringer Etiquette

Try Tag Rugby is striving to create even standard leagues where players can take part against teams or similar standard players. Super League or A grade standard leagues are ideal for more experienced players, whilst beginner or intermediate standard leagues are aimed at players still learning the game. Try Tag Rugby is fairly flexible regarding borrowing players from other teams within your own league if you’re team is short. Our main aim is to make sure every game goes ahead (see forfeit rules above). However quite often there is a vast difference in standard between grades.

Players can only fill in for their own registered division on that particular night (registered in that league) or in a higher division only. Players in a higher division can not fill on for teams in a lower division on that night.

Try Tag Rugby recommends the following if your team is short of registered players:

• Team captains should use the “find ringers” option whilst logged into the Try Tag Rugby dashboard. However, when contact is made please check that the player is not registered in a higher grade team at your venue.

• If your team is generally struggling for players try placing a free advert on the Gumtree website or signing up for a sports partners website such as Totally Sporty. You could also put a message on the wall of our Facebook group.

• If you’re still struggling on match day, contact your venue supervisor who with notice can quickly send an email to teams from your grade playing in a different time slot. If you are generally struggling week to week for players, contact your venue supervisor who may be able to add individually registered players to your squad.

• If it’s nearly kick-off and you are still short, try and find players from other teams in your grade or a lower grade who may be hanging around.

• As a last resort, ask the competition supervisor whether you can borrow players from a higher grade team.

Players can never sub on for a team in a lower grade. In a case where a team has illegally used players from a higher grade, then two competition points will be deducted and awarded to your opposition with a 10-0 loss allocated to your team. If a higher grade player has subbed on uninvited in a lower grade match, then action will be taken against that player. The team should report this to the venue supervisor asap!

If you do obtain ringers, you can never exceed more than 2 subs (one male & one female sub in mixed games). Teams that have excess registered players available will have the luxury of additional subs for their team but not teams who bring in ringers!

All rules regarding ringers cover all rounds including finals.

f) International Rules (Including Super League)

The normal Try Tag Rugby Rules will apply with the following differences:

1. Kicking in general play is permitted on any tackle
2. 50 - 10 Rule - If a player kicks the ball from within their own half and it bounces in the field of play before going into touch between the oppositions try line and 10 metre line, then the kicking team will receive a roll ball 10 metres in from touch where the ball crossed the touch line.
3. The non scoring team will kick off following a try.
   

g) Tag Rugby Shorts

Tag Rugby shorts are compulsory for taking part in all Try Tag Rugby competitions. The only brands of shorts we allow are Try Tag Rugby, ITRA, IRFU, Oztag & New Zealand Tag Football shorts.