Section 1: Introduction
Rugby League is a full-contact team sport played between two teams of not more than thirteen players on the field (Section 4). The sport is governed internationally by International Rugby League, which publishes the International Rugby League Laws of the Game. That document is organised into seventeen numbered Sections, and this rulebook cites them as such.
The objective is to score more points than the opponent within the allotted match time, principally by grounding the ball in the opponent’s in-goal for a try (Section 6). Method and value of scoring are dealt with together (Section 6), and timekeeping separately (Section 7).
A defining structural feature of Rugby League, distinguishing it from Rugby Union, is the tackle count governed by the tackle and play-the-ball provisions (Section 11). Related restarts and stoppages are dealt with under kick-off and drop out (Section 8) and touch and touch in-goal (Section 9).
Section 2: Equipment
The ball is governed by Section 3. It shall be oval in shape and inflated with an approved bladder, to the specification set out in that Section (Section 3).
The player and players’ equipment are dealt with together (Section 4), covering the jersey, shorts, socks and boots a player wears, and the standards those items must meet.
Items likely to cause injury are not permitted, and the referee has authority over what a player may wear on the field (Section 4). Enforcement during a match falls to the referee and touch judges (Section 16).
- Oval, air-inflated, with an outer casing of leather or other material approved by the IRL Board (Section 3).
- Nothing may be used in its construction which might prove dangerous to players (Section 3).
- The dimensions of the ball are not fixed in the Laws themselves — they are those approved by the IRL Board (Section 3). Published match-ball figures come from the approved supplier specification rather than from the Laws, and are not reproduced here as if they were.
- In senior competitions the ball shall be light in colour so that it can more easily be seen by spectators (Section 3, Notes).
- If the size or shape of the ball ceases to comply, the referee blows the whistle immediately (Section 3).
Section 3: Playing Area
The playing field is governed by Section 1, which fixes the dimensions of the field and its in-goal areas. The field is 68 metres wide, with the in-goal areas at each end forming part of the field of play (Section 1).
Field markings, including the halfway line and the lines set at intervals across the field, are specified in Section 1. Touch and touch in-goal — what happens when the ball or ball-carrier crosses those lines — are dealt with separately (Section 9).
Goalposts stand on each goal line and are specified in Section 1. Their use in scoring, for conversion, penalty and drop goals, is governed by Section 6 (Section 1).
Section 4: Players & Officials
A team consists of not more than thirteen players on the field at any time (Section 4). Terms used throughout the Laws, including the roles referred to in play, are defined in the Glossary (Section 2).
Interchange is limited: a maximum of eight interchanges is allowed from the bench during a match (Section 4).
A match is controlled by a referee, assisted by touch judges, whose appointment, powers and duties are set out in Section 16. The signals a referee uses to indicate a decision are illustrated in Section 17 (Section 16).
Section 5: Rules of Play
The mode of play — how the ball may be carried, passed and kicked, and how play proceeds — is governed by Section 5. Match duration and stoppages are governed by timekeeping (Section 7).
The tackle and the play-the-ball are governed by Section 11, which sets out when a tackle is complete and how the ball is returned to play afterwards (Section 11).
Offside is governed by Section 14, which fixes where defending players must be at a play-the-ball and at other restarts, and the consequences of being in front of the ball (Section 14).
The scrum is governed by Section 12, covering its formation and how the ball is fed and won (Section 12).
A knock-on and a forward pass are dealt with together (Section 10), which defines each and prescribes the restart that follows.
When the ball or ball-carrier crosses the touchline, touch and touch in-goal provisions apply (Section 9). Kick-off and drop out restarts are governed by Section 8.
Section 6: Scoring
Scoring is governed by Section 6, which fixes both the method and the value of each score: a try counts four points, a conversion goal or penalty goal counts two points, and a drop goal counts one point (Section 6).
The team scoring the greater number of points at the conclusion of the match is the winner; equal points is a draw. The duration within which those points must be scored is governed by timekeeping (Section 7).
- Try: 4 points — awarded when an attacking player grounds the ball with downward pressure in the opposing team's in-goal area, or on/behind the goal line, in accordance with the Laws' definition of "touching down." (Section 6)
- Conversion (goal kick): 2 points — awarded when, following a try, a place kick or drop kick taken in line with the point the try was scored passes over the crossbar and between the goalposts (Section 6).
- Penalty goal: 2 points — awarded when a team elects to kick at goal from a penalty award and the kick passes over the crossbar and between the goalposts (Section 6).
- Drop goal (field goal): 1 point — awarded when a player, during open play, drop-kicks the ball over the crossbar and between the goalposts (Section 6).
Section 7: Violations & Penalties
The penalty kick is governed by Section 13, which sets out the offences for which a penalty is awarded and how the kick is taken (Section 13).
Player misconduct is governed by Section 15. It provides for temporary dismissal and for a player to be permanently dismissed from the field for serious offences (Section 15).
Offside (Section 14) and knock-on or forward pass (Section 10) are the infringements most often penalised in open play, restarting with a penalty kick or a scrum (Section 12) as those Sections prescribe.
The referee and touch judges apply and enforce these provisions, with their authority set out in Section 16 and their decisions signalled as shown in Section 17 (Section 16).
Section 8: Safety Considerations
Player misconduct provisions carry the Laws’ primary safety function (Section 15), covering dangerous and foul play and the sanctions available to the referee, up to permanent dismissal.
The tackle and play-the-ball provisions (Section 11) define what constitutes a legal tackle, and are the provisions under which dangerous tackling is judged.
Players’ equipment requirements (Section 4) exist partly to protect players, and the referee has authority to act on items likely to cause injury.
Head Injury Assessment and concussion-management protocols are applied by competitions operating under IRL jurisdiction rather than being numbered provisions of the Laws of the Game, and are not cited here as Sections.
