Why Bounce the Ball Before Kicking It? Because the Laws Say So
By the BrainSnail editorial team. How these articles are written and checked, and how to tell us when one is wrong.
A kick taken from open play scores three points in rugby union, but only if the ball touches the ground first. That requirement makes it one of the hardest skills in the game.
What the law requires
The kick must be made by dropping the ball from the hands and striking it as it rises from the bounce, which is the definition of a drop kick, and it scores if the ball passes over the crossbar and between the posts. Kicking the ball directly from the hands scores nothing. The requirement makes the skill considerably harder than a place kick, since the ball must be released accurately, must bounce predictably on a pointed shape, and must be struck within a fraction of a second, all while opponents are advancing. The kick is available at any moment during open play, which is what makes it tactically valuable.
Why teams use it
The value of the kick comes from the situations it solves:
- •Three points from a position where a try looks unlikely
- •A way through a defence that is holding out near its line
- •A quick score when time is nearly gone
- •Pressure on a defence that must now guard against two threats
- •A reward for territory that has not produced anything else
- •A response to repeated penalties being defended successfully
How it is executed
The technique has a small number of components and each is a common failure point. The ball is held pointing slightly downward and forward and released rather than thrown, since a thrown ball bounces unpredictably. The contact is made just as the ball touches the ground, with the foot striking through the lower part, and being late means the ball has risen too far while being early means striking it before the bounce, which is illegal. The non-kicking foot must be planted and the body kept over the ball, since leaning back sends the kick high and short. Practising against advancing defenders matters, because the skill collapses under time pressure in a way that the isolated version does not.
How defences try to stop it
Defending against the kick is a distinct tactical problem because the threat exists everywhere rather than at a fixed point. Defenders press forward hard to reduce the time available, accepting the risk of being beaten by a pass behind them, which is the central trade-off. A player is frequently assigned to charge the kicker directly. Teams also aim to deny the ball in the areas from which the kick is realistic, roughly within thirty five metres and in front of the posts. And they try to force play to one side, since kickers are much weaker off their other foot. Charging down a kick is legal and dangerous, and mistiming it concedes a penalty in exactly the position a team cannot afford.
Why it has become rarer
The kick was once a routine part of the game and is now comparatively uncommon, and the reasons are structural. The value of a try rose over the twentieth century, from three points to four in 1971 and to five in 1992, which made scoring tries relatively more attractive and three-point kicks relatively less so. Defences became far more organised and advance faster, cutting the time available. Coaching emphasis moved towards retaining possession and building phases. The kick nevertheless still decides matches, with a famous example winning a World Cup final in extra time in 2003, which is precisely the situation the skill exists for. Rugby league retains a version worth one point.
The takeaway
The ball must be dropped and struck as it rises from the bounce, which makes the kick far harder than a place kick and available at any moment in open play. It answers a defence that is holding out, a clock that is running down and territory that has produced nothing else. Raising the value of a try to five points in 1992 and faster organised defences have made it rarer without making it unimportant.