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Rugby union positions, scoring and squad building

Rugby union asks more of a squad than most sports. Fifteen players a side cover very different jobs — scrummaging and lineouts in the forwards, kicking, handling and speed in the backs — and the scoring system rewards several routes to points: tries, conversions, penalty goals and drop goals. These guides explain the positions, the scoring and the ways union differs from rugby league.

They sit alongside our two rugby games. 24-0 Rugby Draft Pro League has you draft from a rotating pool of more than 1,000 players and run a club through a 24-match season under an in-game salary cap; Pro Rugby Career Sport Sim follows one player you create through a season of matches. The guides are about the sport first: what each number on the back means, how scoring works and why depth decides a season.

Our rugby apps

24-0 Rugby Draft Pro League covers the general manager’s side of rugby: drafting forwards, backs, specialists and goal kickers, then handling trades, contracts, payroll, rotation and morale across a 24-match campaign. Its match model follows rugby union scoring — tries, conversions, penalty goals, drop goals and draws. Pro Rugby Career Sport Sim is the player’s side: you create an athlete, choose a position, train the skills that suit your role and follow your team through a season, tracking carries, metres and tackles.

Where to start

  • Start with the scoring

    How rugby scoring works covers tries, conversions, penalty goals and drop goals, and the goal-kicker guide explains why a reliable kicker changes a squad’s arithmetic.

  • Then the numbers on the backs

    Rugby positions by number and the guide to forwards and backs explain who does what, from the front row to the full-back.

  • Plan for a season, not a match

    The squad rotation guide and the rugby draft guide explain why depth, morale and injuries decide a 24-match campaign.

Start here

Rules and how the sport works

Strategy, tactics and team-building

Getting more from the simulators

Guides for any sport

These use our rugby apps as the example, but the ideas apply to every sport. More are collected on the sports index.

Calculators

Good to know

Rugby union: common questions

What is 24-0 Rugby Draft Pro League?
A rugby union draft and GM game. You draft a squad from a rotating pool of more than 1,000 players — forwards, backs, specialists and goal kickers — then run the club through a 24-match season under a $200M in-game salary cap, handling trades, contracts, free agents and rotation.
How does rugby union scoring work?
A try is worth five points and the conversion that follows it two; a penalty goal and a drop goal are worth three each. The scoring guide explains when each is attempted and why the choice between kicking for goal and going for the try changes with the score.
How is rugby union different from rugby league?
They are separate codes with different laws. Union is played fifteen a side with contested rucks, mauls, scrums and lineouts; league is played thirteen a side with a limited number of tackles before possession changes. The comparison guide goes through the differences that matter most.
What is the difference between 24-0 Rugby Draft Pro League and Pro Rugby Career Sport Sim?
24-0 Rugby Draft Pro League is a draft and GM game: you build a squad and run a club through a 24-match season. Pro Rugby Career Sport Sim is a career game about one player: you create an athlete, choose a position, train the skills that suit your role and follow your team through a season of matches.
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