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The All Blacks
doing the Haka
ALL BEGINNERS NEED
TO KNOW ABOUT
Rugby is a sport that was
invented in England in the
1800’s. In the old days the ball
was made out of a pig’s bladder
but today the balls are plastic.
The first international game was
between England and Scotland
and the first tournament was
hosted by New Zealand and
Australia in 1987.
The aim of the game is to use the
ball to score more points than the
other team. You can run with the
ball, kick it and pass it, but aren’t
allowed to pass it to a player
standing in front of you. You can
only pass the ball backwards.
There are 3 ways teams can score
points in Rugby Union:
• A try – awarded when the player
crosses the touchline and taps the
ball onto the ground. This scores
the team 5 points.
• A conversion – after a try has
been scored the team has the
chance to get an extra 2 points
by kicking the ball through the
posts.
• A drop kick – when a player kicks
the ball between the posts for 3
points This can also be a penalty
kick.
The game is played in two halves
that are 40 minutes each with 10
minutes for halftime.
Rugby is very important in
Wales. Rugby Union is the
national sport and the Welsh
team play in the Six Nations
every year.
Rugby is really big in New
Zealand too. Their national
team is called the All Black’s
and they are one of the best
teams in the whole world.
Before playing every match, the
New Zealand team do the
Haka. This is a traditional war
dance that involves chanting
and it is meant to scare the
team they are about to play
against.
By Charlie
IF YOU WANT TO PLAY CHECK OUT YOUR LOCAL TEAMS :
Rhydfelin
Pontypridd
Aberdare
Abercybol
Llanishen
Llantwi Fadrae