The Rugby Football Union have confirmed the Government has approved its submission to a return to 15-a-side contact rugby, with some adaptations.
This follows the Government’s announcement last week that outdoor team sport can resume from Wednesday 2 December.
The RFU will be publishing further detail on the adaptations to the 15-a-side game and associated laws in due course. However, they are briefly summarised below:
- No scrums or mauls
- Where the game would restart with a scrum, this will be replaced with a free kick
- A minimum of five and a maximum of seven players from each team are required to form a lineout
WHAT CAN WE DO NOW?
RFU guidance is:
- Clubs can resume adapted training for 15-a-side contact rugby again from Wednesday 2 December.
- Clubs can resume friendly fixtures from Friday 18 December - this is to allow players to prepare properly and safely, having not been training over the past month.
- Clubs can still play Ready4Rugby if they have matches coming up from 2 December to 18 December and beyond. There is no obligation to play adapted 15-a-side contact fixtures.