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Rugby

Where can I find information and statistics about rugby?

Senior Primary (Years 5-8)

Image: Rugby_17Oct_0107 by Kyle Mooney and Jess Debski on Flickr.

Contents

History of rugby Rugby in New Zealand Rugby World Cup Books

Entry last updated: 29/10/19

Introduction

Rugby is a team sport that is played on a field, using an oval ball. The ball can be kicked or thrown between players, and teams score points by kicking the ball over a goalpost, or by carrying it over the line at the end of the field. There are usually 15 players in a rugby team, but there are some versions of the game that have 13 or 7 players.

History of rugby

There are some great websites that you can use to find out about the history and rules of rugby.

New Zealand Rugby

This site comes from the official organisation for rugby in New Zealand, which was founded in 1892. It has lots of information about rugby's history here in New Zealand and in other countries around the world.

  • Look under About us to find their History section.
  • This includes a link to their timeline New Zealand Rugby 125 years.
  • Choose the years you want to know about, then select the little gold plus signs to read more about particular events.
  • You can learn about famous players, competitions, and important events in rugby history.
Tips: Many web pages have links to further information or to other recommended sites. Following these links is a great way to find out more.

Britannica School

Britannia School is an EPIC resource. It is a great place for learning about the history and basic rules of rugby, including the difference between rugby union and rugby league.

  • Search for 'rugby' to bring up their article about it.
  • On the purple Article Reading Level tags at the top of the page to make the article easier or more difficult.
  • Find links to other articles that might be useful for you.
Tips: To get to the EPIC resources you will need a password from your school librarian first. Or you can chat with one of our AnyQuestions librarians between 1 and 6pm Monday to Friday and they will help you online. Some EPIC databases may also be available through your public library.

World Rugby Laws of Rugby Union

On this website you can learn the rules of rugby, as well as the signals that referees use. This page also has the rules for different versions of rugby, like seven-a-side and other touch rugby.

Rugby in New Zealand

Rugby is a very popular sport in New Zealand. You can find out about rugby in New Zealand on these websites.

Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand

Te Ara is an excellent starting point for all questions about New Zealand Aotearoa.

  • Search for 'rugby' to find page about Rugby Union.
  • There's information about past and present New Zealand rugby teams, players, and competitions.
Tips: If we scroll down to the bottom of the page we can see that the website belongs to the Ministry for Culture & Heritage, so the information is well-researched and reliable.

AllBlacks.com

This is the official website of New Zealand's national rugby team, the All Blacks. Here you can find out about players and their competitions, and keep up-to-date with news about them.

  • Go to Teams to find All Black Stats.
  • Look under Stats and Lists to find fun facts about the All Blacks, like records for the tallest and heaviest players.

This is also a good place to find out about other New Zealand rugby teams, and how you can get involved playing rugby wherever you are in New Zealand.

NZHistory

Sometimes politics and sport get caught up in each other. When the South African rugby team, the Springboks, visited New Zealand in 1981 there were a lot of people who were upset.

  • Check out the page on the 1981 Springbok tour to find out more about apartheid and why this tour was so controversial.
Tips: We like sites like this because they’re reliable. You can tell because of their web address – they have either .govt or .ac, meaning they are from government or educational organisations. They’re also New Zealand sites, so relevant for us.

Rugby World Cup

Every four years, the top international rugby teams compete in the Rugby World Cup. The winning team gets to take home the Webb Ellis Cup. The next World Cup will be held in 2019.

Rugby World Cup

This website has everything you need to know about the Rugby World Cup, including which teams are competing, and where games will be played.

  • Go to RWC2019 to find out more about the next Rugby World Cup competition.
  • Look under Info to find the World Rugby Stats Hub, with facts on players and teams.

Books

There are lots of books about rugby that might be helpful for you. Check out your local public or school library to see what they have available.

Some recommended books about famous rugby players are:

SCIS no: 1845848

Topics covered

movement concepts and motor skills personal health and physical development sport rugby union All Blacks rugby history of rugby rugby in New Zealand Rugby World Cup health and physical education social sciences identity, culture and organisation rugby 7s

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