Wikipedia

Drop goal

Adrop goal,field goal,[1]ordropped goalis a method of scoring points inrugby unionandrugby leagueand also, rarely, inAmerican footballandCanadian football. A drop goal is scored bydrop kickingthe ball (dropping the ball and then kicking it as it rises from the first bounce) over the crossbar and between the posts of thegoal posts.After the kick, the ball must not touch the ground before it goes over and through, although it may touch the crossbar, the uprights or an opponent. A drop goal in rugby union is worth three points, and inrugby leaguea drop goal is usually worth one point (see below).

A rugby player pictured after kicking a ball, with one leg extended in the air and the other placed on the ground
Nick Evans(10) kicking a drop goal in a rugby union match forHarlequin F.C.

If the drop goal attempt is successful, play stops and the non-scoring team (the scoring team inrugby union sevens) restarts play with a kick from halfway. If the kick is unsuccessful, play continues and the offside rules for a kick apply. Defenders may tackle the kicker while he is in possession of the ball, or attempt to charge down or block the kick.

Rugby union

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World Rugby,the international governing body of rugby union, refers to this method of scoring in its publications as a "dropped goal",[2]but this is commonly abbreviated to "drop goal".

Points value

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A drop goal is worth three points, and before 1948 it was worth four points.[3]From time to time suggestions have been made by some rugby commentators to reduce the value of drop goals, or to limit or discourage them in other ways.[4]

Field goal

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Further information:Field goal (rugby)

It is sometimes also referred to as a field goal in modern usage. A field goal was an older form of scoring where the goal was kicked from a ball that was in play but on the ground, not drop kicked. It was outlawed in 1906.[5]

Rugby league

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Inrugby leaguethe drop goal is worth one point.[6]Because of this the drop goal's use is largely in the late stages of a match in order to break adeadlock,or to extend a lead to more than a converted try.[citation needed]

With the introduction of thegolden pointrule in the AustralasianNational Rugby League(where the term field goal is usually used[7]), it is often the first choice option when looking to secure a win.[citation needed]

In theNSWRLprior to 1970, field goals were worth two points, but with the introduction of limited tackle football in 1967,[8]their usage greatly increased as a scoring method. In 1968, 194 field goals were kicked, and by the end of 1970 it was decided to reduce their value to one point. This, and the increase to six tackle sets, saw just 17 kicked in 1971.[9]

On 11 December 2020, the NRL announced the introduction of a two-point field goal for kicks taken from more than 40 metres out.[10]Adam Reynoldskicked the first such field goal on 8 April 2021.[11]

In other football codes

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Main article:Field goal

The drop-kick field goal is a rare but still legal part ofAmerican footballandCanadian football,other football codes descended fromrugby football.In both sports, it can be used to score a field goal (three points) or a conversion (one point). While both rugby balls and the American and Canadian football shape areprolate spheroids,the American and Canadian footballs gradually changed to become more elongated and pointed, a shape much more difficult to drop kick. As of 2019, the last successful drop kick in a professional American football game was whenDoug Flutiedrop kicked for an extra point in theNew England Patriots' regular-season finale against theMiami Dolphinson 1 January 2006; prior to that, the last successful drop kick in a regular-season game was in 1941. Flutie's kick was in the last game of his career, and he did not usually kick the ball at all (dropped or otherwise) as he played quarterback.

InAustralian rules football,a drop kick is a legal way of scoring a goal or a behind, but is rarely executed these days, aspuntinga goal is also legal and much easier to execute.

See also

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References

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  1. ^"Pat Richards field goal stuns Titans as Wests Tigers take NRL win".Stuff.7 March 2015.Retrieved26 September2015.
  2. ^"Law 9: Method of Scoring"(PDF).Laws of the Game.International Rugby Board. 2007. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 22 October 2007.Retrieved12 September2007.
  3. ^McCarthy 1968,p. 51.
  4. ^Spiro Zavos: "Time to dock points from drop goals".Archived22 June 2007 at theWayback MachineRugby Heaven,Tuesday, 19 June 2007.
  5. ^McCarthy 1968,p. 51: "In referring to a dropped goal or 'pot' as a 'field goal', as so many people do today, error is committed. The field goal was scored by a player kicking a goal from a ball that was in play but on the ground—a 'speculator' as it would be called today."
  6. ^"Section 6: Scoring".The International Laws of the Game and Notes on the Laws(PDF).Rugby League International Federation.11 March 2004. p. 14. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 3 March 2016.Retrieved12 September2007.
  7. ^"Cowboys down courageous Sharks".NRL - The official site of the National Rugby League - NRL.September 2014.Retrieved26 September2015.
  8. ^"Some interesting rule changes over the years. - NRL Game Development - South East Queensland - SportsTG".websites.sportstg.Archived fromthe originalon 15 March 2017.
  9. ^"Rugby League Tables / Season Summary / All Teams".
  10. ^"NRL announces rule changes to make game more entertaining".11 December 2020.
  11. ^"Double or nothing: Reynolds kicks first two-point field goal after week of distraction".8 April 2021.

Sources

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  • The dictionary definition ofdrop goalat Wiktionary
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