Law discussion: When kick-off goes dead, but....
SPOTLIGHT: @rugby365com law guru Paul Dobson looks at a weird incident which saw the wind blow the ball back over the player’s head.
Playing into a strong wind, Gold kicks off. They kick high. The wind catches the ball and blows it back over the kicker’s head. It land just outside Gold’s 22, bounces high and keeps on bouncing over the dead-ball line.
The referee orders a scrum on the half-way line, because the ball had not travelled the required minimum to the opponents’ 10-metre line.
(See video below …)
Right?
No.
Law 12 KICK-OFFS AND RESTART KICKS FOLLOWING A SCORE
6. The ball must reach the 10-metre line.
Sanction: The non-kicking team has the option of the kick being retaken or a scrum.
7. If the ball reaches the 10-metre line but is then blown back or if an opponent plays the ball before it reaches the 10-metre line, play continues.
9. If the ball is kicked into the kicking team’s own in-goal and is made dead by a defending player or it goes dead through in-goal, the non-kicking team is awarded a five-metre scrum.
The scrum should have been five metres from Gold’s goal-line. It is a far, far greater advantage.
