Touch rugby is a mixed sport involving minimal contact.
It is fast paced, played in teams of 6 a side on a pitch roughly half the size of a football pitch. It is a great way to get or stay fit, improve hand-eye coordination and meet new people in a fun environment.
In terms of how it is structured, it is quite similar in many ways to Rugby League, with each team having 6 touches to score before the ball is turned over but without kicking.
It is often referred to as simply “touch” or “touch football” in Australia where the game originated. A “touch” is a touch with the hand on any part of the body and that replaces the tackle from other rugby-type games. There are no scrums, lineouts, kicks or giant pileups except during team photos!
For more details you can find the official rules here:
Federation of International Touch (FIT) Rules
Useful Links:
Scottish Touch Association (STA) – a list of Scottish clubs can be found on here.
Please note: we play the FIT version of Touch, if you are interested in “Tartan Touch” you should check out Highland RFC who run the local hub for that game.