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Advantage: The situation when a referee decides to allow play to continue and not blow for an obvious transgression immediately, due to a mistaken impression that it somehow benefits a team. Blindside: The term used to describe the referee's inability to see a foul committed. Following a technique refined by former All Black hooker and captain Sean Fitzpatrick that allowed him to commit a foul usually in a ruck or maul at the very moment that the referee turned his back to check on the offside line. Cap: Compulsory headgear bearing sponsor's logo worn at post-match interviews. Conversion: The situation when a Welshmen remembers that he's Welsh after he has been ignored by the All Black/Australian/South African/English selectors. Free kick: The punishment for lying on the wrong side of a ruck of maul. Foul Play: What the other side do. If your side do it, it's called "using your initiative". Grubber: Mistimed drop kick from anywhere on the field. Goose step: Change in running style from a sprint to high kicking in order to slow down a defender only to sprint once defender has slowed down. First used by David Campese when, sprinting down the touchline, he saw dogsh*t lying in his path and tried to avoid getting his new boots dirty. Laws: Rugby has laws, not rules; therefore it is that which you have to disobey in full view of the referee in order to be punished. Maul: Free-for-all brawl where the ball is kept in the air. See ruck (1). Mark: If you can cleanly catch a ball kicked several hundred feet in the air within your own 22 metre line and call "mark" while the entire other side is pounding towards you intent on doing you damage, you can have a free kick. You deserve it. Offside: A natural break in the play called by the referee every 35 seconds to let everyone get their breath back. Offside (as in offside line): an imaginary line passing through a ball without puncturing it. Ruck (1): Free-for-all brawl where the ball is placed on the ground. See maul. Ruck (2): Accidental stepping on an opponent lying in an offside position. Ruck (3): Informal, impromptu get-together for forwards and a few close friends. Sevens: An abreviated version of the 15 man game. This shorter version is preferred by front row players as they invariably spend the whole game in the bar and not on the pitch. Sidestep: A manoeuvre perfected by South African rugby administrators to avoid choosing black players. Sinbin: A tactic used by some referees to increase their impact on the outcome of a game. Try: The verb used to describe what the Wales do every year in the Six Nations, often with little or no success. Up-and-under: (An integral calculus term in rugby competitions) the inversion of global geographics - the southern hemisphere teams are usually "up", while the northern hemisphere teams are usually "under". Wing (1): Northern hemisphere - extra defender. Wing (2): Southern hemisphere - top try scorer. |