Rugby Union "Forward Pass" video

Video that covers the Law and physics behind the notion of a "forward pass" in rugby. It features some cheesy 80s music and animation, and a couple of the video examples are a bit dodgy, but the point is well made.

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  Sports

[Kirbz678]

As an RFU Referee in England the modern interpretation certainly does not agree with the content of this video. For example if a player is attacking the oppositin 22 and makes a pass before the 22m line and his support player receives the ball beyond the 22m line the pass is forward. Any referee who deemed that not to be forward, especially in an attacking situation like that would be down graded on assessment!! Leave the momentum law to Rugby League!!!

[MKuwashima]

Sorry, but if you were right, you would be calling forward passes all day, since a very large percentage of passes actually go forward (the whole point of this video). The fact that you are only going to call it up when the pass happens to be over the 22m just makes you a bad referee, not right! The issue in Law is the direction the player passes the ball, not the direction the ball travels in.

[Kirbz678]

A bad referee who can pass assessments! It is logical to use pitch markings to your advantage as an official and given that many local pitches are striped from being cut that highlights the issue further. I think that the video is outdated, I understand the concept entirely however in the modern game officials are up for so much criticism anyway, especially with the advent of video replays etc that the to police the law as illustrated here would be silly.

[MKuwashima]

Fine - but can you see how this is an illogical approach. As per the video - if you are consistent in your rulings that the ball can't travel forward, you will be calling up passes left right and centre and make a joke of the game - because so many passes actually go forward due to momentum.

[Hidaka1223]

From the 2010 rulebook:

"Definition: Throw Forward

A throw forward occurs when a player throws or passes the ball forward. 'Forward' means towards the opposing team's dead ball line."

Thus a forward pass is dependent on the field of play not the passer or receiver. Which directly contradicts this video.

[MKuwashima]

No, incorrect. The definition actually validates the video. Regardless of where the ball travels, this issue is the direction the player passes the ball. And as the video demonstrates, you can pass the ball backwards and have it travel forward due to momentum.

[Bedbreaker1980]

Kirbz678,

As an avid sporting fan and student of physics I can say that you do not understand the concept entirely. You're pretty much wrong. MKuwashima is correct. We can continue this discussion later on. I gotta go right now.

[VinsUplifting]

Can you imagine the number of scrums in a game! as if the game wasn't enough of a mess because of scrums!

[VinsUplifting]

Yes, it's all about the initial trajectory of the ball, initial being the key word.

[thisisstupidtoo]

okay so someone else wrote this first... bah.

[thisisstupidtoo]

Key is the words "throws or passes" the ball forward. In the video, the ball is "thrown or passed" backwards, even though it travels forward.

The law is worded like that because the important element is the throw or pass, not the travel of the ball. The rulemaker could have written the law differently if he'd intended the decisive factor to be the travel of the ball relative to the ground. Yet he didn't - which is why we start with examining the throw or pass when applying the law.

[tommyhall12]

the laws of physics are outdated? good to know