Comparison of rugby league and rugby union


The team sports rugby union and rugby league share origins and thus have many similarities.
Initially, following an 1895 split in rugby football, rugby union and rugby league differed in administration only. Soon, the rules of rugby league were modified, resulting in two distinct forms of rugby.
After 100 years, in 1995 rugby union joined rugby league and most other forms of football as an openly professional sport.
The inherent similarities between rugby union and rugby league have at times led to the speculation about a merger of the two variants and experimental hybrid games have been played that use a mix of the two sports' rules.

History

Rugby union was originally referred to as rugby football. During the early development of rugby football different schools used different rules, on many occasions agreeing upon them shortly before commencement of the game. In 1871, English clubs met to form the Rugby Football Union. Rugby football spread to Australia and New Zealand, with games being played in the early-to-mid-nineteenth century.
In 1892, charges of professionalism were laid against Yorkshire clubs after they compensated players for missing work. A proposal to pay players up to six shillings when they missed work because of match commitments was voted down by the RFU. On 27 August 1895, prominent Lancashire clubs declared that they would support their Yorkshire colleagues in their proposal to form a professional organization and the Northern Rugby Football Union, usually called the Northern Union, was formed. The rugby union authorities issued sanctions against clubs, players and officials involved in the offshoot group, including amateurs who played with or against Northern Union sides. The RFU also banned any player that played rugby league from playing rugby union that lasted until 1995. After the schism the separate codes were named "rugby union" for the RFU code and "rugby league" for the NU code.
In 1906, All Black George William Smith joined with Albert Henry Baskerville to form a team of professional rugby players. George Smith cabled a friend in Sydney and three professional matches were arranged between a New South Wales rugby team before continuing on to the UK. This game was played under the rugby union laws and it was not until the team, nicknamed the All Golds, arrived in Leeds that they learnt the new Northern Union laws. Meanwhile, in Sydney a meeting was organised to look at forming a professional rugby competition in Australia. The meeting resolved that a "New South Wales Rugby Football League" should be formed, to play the Northern Union rules. The first season of the NSWRFL competition was played in 1908, and has continued to be played every year since.
During rugby league's 1921–22 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain, the Northern Rugby Football Union tried to arrange a match in Paris, but opposition from the Rugby Football Union-aligned French Rugby Federation made it impossible. In France rugby league split from rugby union in the 1930s. In 1948 the French instigated the formation of the International Rugby League Board as the world governing body for rugby league. France, New Zealand, Britain and Australia were the founding countries. The International Rugby Football Board had formed prior to the schism in 1886 and remained the international governing body for rugby union, although it originally only consisted of England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland. Australia, New Zealand and South Africa joined the IRFB in 1948, France in 1978 and Argentina, Canada, Italy and Japan in 1991.
On 26 August 1995 the IRFB, now known as World Rugby, declared rugby union an "open" game and thus removed all restrictions on payments or benefits to those connected with the game. This came after rugby league accused rugby union of "shamateurism" to Inland Revenue in the UK and due to Kerry Packer signing top union players to professional contracts in secret for a breakaway union competition. According to The New York Times at the time:

Thirteen-man rugby league has shown itself to be a faster, more open game of better athletes than the other code. Rugby union is trying to negotiate its own escape from amateurism, with some officials admitting that the game is too slow, the laws too convoluted to attract a larger TV following.

Naming

Although both rugby codes are forms of football, in many places, it could cause confusion as "football" is understood to mean association football, gridiron football, Gaelic football or Australian rules football depending on the country. In much of the rugby union-playing world, the sport of rugby league is infrequently played and rugby union is commonly known simply as "rugby"; in countries where both codes are played, there is a need to distinguish between the codes of rugby.
In the United Kingdom, rugby union or rugby league fans rarely refer to their sport as "football" as in most cases this would refer to association football. Across the United Kingdom, rugby union is usually referred to simply as 'rugby' but in the North of England, the word 'rugby' could refer to either sport, but usually means "rugby league".
In Australia and New Zealand, rugby league is usually known as "league" or "football" with the latter term potentially confusing as Australian rules football and association football could also be called football. Rugby union is often simply referred to as "rugby" without the ambiguity that this term carries in the UK.
In France, rugby union is called rugby à quinze or simply "rugby", whilst rugby league is known as rugby à treize or jeu à treize.

Gameplay

Since the 1895 schism, changes have taken place to the laws of both rugby union and rugby league football so that now they are distinct sports. The laws of rugby league football have been gradually changed with the aim of creating a faster, more spectator-friendly sport. Player numbers were reduced to thirteen a side, creating more space for attacking play, and rucks and mauls were replaced with a play-the-ball restart. Changes to the laws of rugby union have been less extreme, although there have been adjustments in scoring as the game became more try-orientated rather than focusing on goals. In 2009, major law changes were implemented with the aim of making union simpler and more open. Rugby league historian Tony Collins has written that since turning professional in the mid-1990s, rugby union has increasingly borrowed techniques and tactics from rugby league.
Rugby union has more laws than rugby league and it has been described as being a more complex game. Rugby league in turn has been described as a simpler game that is easier for spectators to understand. Mat Rogers, an Australian dual-code rugby international player, has said "Rugby is very complicated and rugby league is much more simple in comparison". England's Chris Ashton, also a dual international, has said that union has "more of a tactical side, more that can happen in a game". Ireland's Tom Court has said "Rugby union is a complex game with certain closed skills like scrummaging and line-out lifting and rugby league requires a higher level of fitness to compete at the highest level".

Similarities between the two codes

The two forms of rugby share the same basic rules of the game and use a similar-shaped ovoid ball. The aim is to score more points through tries, conversions, penalty goals and drop goals than the opposition within the 80 minutes of play.
Goals are scored when the ball is kicked between the two posts and over the cross-bar, either during open play or as the result of a penalty. A try is scored when the ball is touched down on or beyond the defending team's goal-line. The try-scoring side is given the chance to score two additional points by kicking a conversion similar to a penalty goal attempt from a point along a line which is parallel to the sideline at the same distance from the sideline as the place where the try had been scored.
The ball can be taken forward in three ways—by kicking, by a player running with it, or as the result of a set-piece. The ball can be passed from hand to hand between teammates in a backward or sideways direction; it may not be passed forwards although it can be kicked forwards. Dropping the ball in a forwards direction results in a scrum, a set-piece that restarts the game, except on the sixth tackle in league where the game restarts with a handover to the opposition.
Only the player holding the ball may be tackled. A rugby tackle is an attempt to bring the ball carrier to the ground or to stop his forward progress. Play restarts with the ball being transferred to another player.
The playing positions are divided into "backs"—generally faster and more mobile who score most of the points, and the larger, stronger "forwards" who are involved in the more physical aspects of rugby and generally do more tackling.

Possession

A big difference in gameplay between the two games is that rugby league has shed from its laws several opportunities for possession to be contested that rugby union has retained: contesting the ball after the tackle, on the ground in rucks and through mauls. When the ball goes into touch, possession in rugby union is contested through a line-out, while in rugby league a scrum restarts play. The lesser focus on contesting possession means there are fewer stoppages of play in rugby league, with the ball typically in play for 50 out of the 80 minutes compared to around 35 for professional rugby union. As the ball is in play more and there are fewer players to cover the field it has been implied that rugby league is the more physically demanding sport.
In union the attacking team can hold onto and use the ball for as long as they are able, while the opposition's aim is to take possession of the ball from them. In league each team can be tackled six times before handing over possession; moreover, the action stops after each successful tackle. After being tackled five times, the attacking team will usually kick the ball either in an attacking kick or for territory. As the ball can only be contested during a one on one tackle in league there is less scope for a turnover to occur than in rugby union. A study commissioned by the IRB found that between the years 2002 and 2004 possession was retained by the attacking team in 13 out of 14 tackles in rugby union. Collins has argued that the six tackle rule in rugby league offers a more even distribution of possession despite fewer opportunities to contest it. In both games the attacking team loses possession if they drop or pass the ball forward, which results in a scrum being awarded to the defending team.
In union possession can also be contested at line-outs and scrums. In the same study it was found that the team with the ball at a scrum regained possession 90 per cent of the time, while the team with the ball at a lineout regained possession 80 per cent of the time. League does not have a lineout, but does utilise a scrum to restart play. It is uncommon for modern rugby league scrums to be contested, with the side awarded the scrum almost always gaining possession. Possession can also be contested following kicks to restart play from the halfway, 22 metre in both games. Generally league restarts are likely to go for distance unless possession is needed quickly. Union restarts are more likely to be short to allow players to contest possession in the air.
Possession may change the same ways in both games:
  1. When the ball is kicked to the opposing team, this can be done at any time but it is normal to punt on the last tackle in rugby league.
  2. Following an unsuccessful kick at goal. If the kick at goal misses and goes dead, play is restarted with a drop out.
  3. When an opposing player intercepts a pass.
  4. When the player in possession drops the ball and it is recovered by an opposition player.
  5. If a player knocks the ball forward or throws a forward pass the other team is awarded a scrum. In some cases, the referee may allow play to continue by the team picking up a dropped ball under the advantage rule.
  6. If a player commits an illegal play the opposing team is awarded a penalty and will receive the ball.
Possession may change in rugby league in a number of unique ways:
  1. In rugby league if the ball goes out of play, the opposition are awarded a scrum. If this is from a kick going into touch on the full this is called ball back and the scrum is formed where contact with the ball was made. Otherwise, under recent rule changes, the scrum is formed 20 metres from the point of touch. Penalties and 40/20 kicks are exceptions to this rule.
  2. If a one-on-one tackle is attempted, the tackler can legally strip the ball from the attacking player as long as the referee has not called "held" or the attacking player has fallen to the ground to indicate a completed tackle.
  3. an automatic handover takes place when the team in possession runs out of tackles, or a knock on happens on the sixth tackle.
Possession may change in rugby union in a number of unique ways
  1. In rugby union if the ball goes out of play the opposition may be awarded a line-out. The opposition are awarded a line out if the team in possession kicks the ball out of play and they have not been awarded a penalty before the kick.
  2. In rugby union the attacking team may lose possession in a scrum, line out, maul, ruck or tackle.