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Touch, or touch football,
comes from two Rugby codes, Rugby League and Rugby
Union. Although the skills of Touch are close to
those of these two sports, there is no body contact
at all. For example, there are no tackles, scrums,
or hard kicking, and there are no goal posts. The
emphasis is on running and agility, with hand
passing and catching as key skills. As such, Touch
is a great mixed sport ideal for both boys and
girls.
Touch is played with the aim of moving the ball
towards the opponents score line by running and
passing the ball backwards to your team mates. The
Rugby tackle has been replaced with a simple
'touch' by the defender, followed by a play the
ball action (a roll- ball).
Touch has grown rapidly in Australia after
starting in the 1960's. Many people play Touch
today.
Definitions you should know when playing touch:
Touchdown: The scoring
action of placing the ball on or over the score
line. A touch down is worth one point.
Tap: The method of starting
and restarting play after a touch down or penalty.
The ball is placed on the ground and tapped
slightly forward with one foot and then picked up.
The forward tap is no more than one metre.
Touch: The action of a
defending player touching either the holder of the
ball, or the ball itself.
Acting Half: The player
behind the player playing the ball. The acting half
may run with the ball, but if touched losses
possession.
Rollball: The action
required after a player has been touched. The
touched player stands at the position of the touch
and rolls or pushes the ball backwards on the
ground between the legs towards the acting half.
The roll should be no more than one metre.
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