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« on: June 18, 2004, 06:51:05 PM »
Rugby is like NFL in some ways, but different in others.
The field is 100 metres long, and it has a half-way line, and lines at 40m and 22m. the lines that run parallel to the sideline don't really matter. the aim of the game is to put the ball on the ground over the "try" line, like a touchdown.
the big difference is that you can't throw the ball forwards, and when people are tackled, the game doesn't stop while everyone works out what's going to happen next - the ball gets passed to the back of the pile of heaped-up players and it gets passed backwards again and run forwards.
you get 5 points for a "try", 2 points in you convert that with a goal, 3 points for a field goal (a drop kick through the goals), and 3 points for a penalty goal.
if the ball goes forward at all, ie dropped or passed forward, they put down a "scrum", where 6 or 7 guys from each team interlock arms and bodies and push against the other team, and the ball is fed in to the middle and ends up at the back of one of the teams' scrum.
if the ball goes over the sideline, then they have a "line-out", where it gets thrown by a player NFL style to players from each time lining up to try and catch it. players are lifted up by other players to get higher than the other team.
so that's rugby for you.
cricket now huh?
well there's a big oval, and a 20 metre long "pitch" in the middle where the batting takes place. 2 batsmen are out there all the time, and they run between the ends of the pitch to score runs. if the ball gets to the edge of the field you get 4 runs, if it goes over the edge on the full, you get 6 runs.
you can get out caught, bowled (there are three bits of wood behind the batter, and if the bowl (pitch) hits those bits of wood, your'e out), run out - where the ball is thrown on to the bits of wood before the batsman gets to the other end of the pitch, or leg before wicket, where the ball hits the batsman's leg and it's deemed that the ball would've hit the bits of wood if his legs weren't there.
you don't have to run if you hit the ball.
when one batsmen gets out, another goes out to replace him, so there are always 2 batsmen out there. there are 11 people on a team, so when 10 people are out, the innings is over, and the fielding team bats.
the "bowlers" (pitchers) have to bowl with a straight arm, and there are a few types of bowlers - fast, swing, and spin. in cricket, the ball bounces once before it gets to the batsmen. spin bowlers put spin on the ball so that it bounces off in a direction.
teams usually get around 300 runs per innings. test matches have 2 innings per team, and can last up to 5 days. one day matches have one innings each of 50 overs (50 lots of 6 bowls or pitches) to get as many runs as possible. these matches last about 8 hours.
so there you have it.
any questions?