In-goal and grounding
World Rugby · 2026Scoring, making the ball dead and choosing the correct restart.
Grounding the ball
Grounding means touching the ground with a held ball, or pressing a loose ball down with hand, arm or the front of the body between waist and neck. Picking it up is not grounding it. Attackers ground for a try; defenders make a touchdown. Touching a corner post alone does not normally make play dead. If the referee cannot tell which team grounded first, the attackers receive a 5-metre scrum.
Held up and kicked dead
A held-up ball in in-goal produces a try-line drop-out or 5-metre scrum according to which team took it there. If a kick from the field travels through the opponents’ in-goal and becomes dead beyond it, defenders normally choose a 22-metre drop-out or scrum where it was kicked. A failed penalty goal or dropped-goal attempt instead gives a 22-metre drop-out. Touchdown restarts depend on how the ball entered in-goal.
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