Touch Rugby: Set Play for the Sixth Touch

In touch rugby, possession changes hands after the sixth touch. Each team designs and rehearses a play for its last two touches and tests it in a game while the referee and scorekeeper count touches out loud.

How to play

1. Review the six-touch rule and the change of possession; set the challenge: what do we do with one or two touches left (2 min).
2. Each team draws a play on a card for the fifth and sixth touches that is not a wraparound: for example, a decoy cross or a long pass that skips two teammates (5 min).
3. Rehearse the play first with no defense and then against passive defense from another team, who gives feedback afterward (5 min).
4. 5 vs. 5 games: a try scored on the fifth or sixth touch is worth two points; the referee and scorekeeper call out each touch (10 min).
5. Each team explains whether its play worked, how many times it tried it and what it would change (3 min).

Rules

• Touches are light and open-handed; the touched player puts the ball on the ground and plays it with a rollball.
• Passes always go backward or sideways; a forward pass changes possession.
• The defense retreats five meters after each touch.
• Groups rehearse with enough space between them to avoid collisions.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: plays half, picking up the ball after the touch and distributing, with no long runs.
• Low vision: uses a brightly colored ball and the nearest teammate calls the pass.
• Autism: gets the card with the play drawn and a specific, stable position in it.

Learning goals

• Plan tactical actions shaped by the rules.
• Coordinate a team in running a set play.
• Evaluate how well a play works using game data.

Equipment for a class of 25

• cones: 20
• pinnies: 20
• rugby balls: 4
• cards: 6
• pencils: 6
• whistles: 2

Teacher tip

Ask that the card show positions, running lines and the starting call. Keep the cards as evidence of planning work.

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