Junior rugby matchdays have a character of their own. Festivals with several teams, games played across different formats, contact rules that change with each age group, and a lot of parents who may not know the laws as well as they think. This guide covers the practical side of running a junior team on matchday, from the rules to the report.
Know the age-grade rules for your group
Junior rugby union in England is played under age-grade regulations that set out, for each age group, the number of players, pitch size, match duration, and which parts of the game are introduced when. Younger groups typically start with tag or modified contact, and elements such as tackling, scrums, lineouts and kicking are brought in gradually as players get older.
The detail matters and it is updated from time to time, so don't rely on memory or on what last season's coach did. Before the season:
- Check the RFU's age grade regulations for your age group.
- Check with your constituent body (county) and your club for any local variations, festival formats or competition rules.
- If you coach outside England, check the rules of your own union.
Share the key points with your coaches and your referee or match organiser on the day, especially if you are playing a team from another area.
Before kick-off
The general matchday checklist applies, with a few rugby-specific additions:
- Kit check. Mouthguards for every player, boots with legal studs, no jewellery. Some clubs ask for protective headguards to be checked for fit.
- Pitch check. Posts padded where required, no hazards on the playing surface, touchlines and dead-ball lines marked.
- Agree the format with the other coach. Numbers per side, period length, how replacements will work, and any local variations. In festivals, the organiser usually sets this.
- Confirm the referee. In junior rugby this is often a coach or a club volunteer. Make sure they know the age-grade laws being applied.
- Identify your first aider and make sure the opposition knows who they are.
Rolling replacements
Many junior rugby formats allow rolling replacements, where players can come off and go back on during the match. Whether your game allows them, and how many players can be interchanged, depends on your age group and competition, so check the regulations.
Where rolling replacements are allowed, they are the easiest way to share playing time fairly. A few practical tips:
- Plan your rotation before kick-off. Decide who starts and roughly when each player comes on.
- Change at natural breaks. Stoppages, after a score, or at half-time, rather than mid-phase.
- Keep front-row safety in mind. In age groups with contested scrums, make sure you always have players who are suitably trained for the front row. Check the regulations on what happens if you can't field a safe front row.
- Keep a note of time on the pitch. It is very easy to leave the same two players on the bench for too long.
- Tell players what's happening. A player who knows they are going on in five minutes stays warm and switched on.
Recording the score
Rugby scoring has more moving parts than most sports, and it's easy to lose track while you're coaching. In full 15-a-side union, a try is worth five points, a conversion two, and a penalty goal or drop goal three. Younger age groups may play without conversions or kicks at goal, and some festivals don't record scores formally at all. Again, check the age-grade rules.
When you do record, note:
- Who scored the try, and roughly when.
- Whether the conversion was successful, and who kicked it.
- Any penalty goals or drop goals.
- The half-time score.
It's also worth noting good moments that don't appear on the scoresheet: a try-saving tackle, a turnover at the breakdown, a line break that led to a score. These make the report.
If a parent or assistant can take on scoring, let them. Coaching and keeping an accurate record at the same time is hard.
Writing the rugby match report
Rugby reports follow the same structure as any other: headline, standfirst with the final score, key moments in order, wider credit, player of the match, and what's next. See how to write a grassroots match report for the full approach.
Rugby-specific points:
- Credit the forwards. Try scorers tend to be backs; the forwards who won the ball often go unmentioned. Name the scrummager, the lineout jumper, the player who hit every ruck.
- Credit defence. A try-saving tackle can be the moment of the match.
- Keep scoring terms right. "Try" rather than "goal", and say whether conversions were successful.
- Don't name a junior player for a missed kick, a penalty conceded, a yellow card or an injury.
- First names only for juniors.
Oakfield U12 beat Brookside 35–20 at the Rec on Sunday. Ava scored two tries, and Leo, Sam and Isla added one each. Special mention to Jake and Noah, who tackled all morning, and to Zara for her work at the breakdown. Player of the match: Noah.
Welfare on matchday
Player welfare in rugby deserves particular attention.
- Concussion. Know your governing body's concussion guidance before the season starts. The widely used principle is "if in doubt, sit them out": any player with a suspected concussion is removed from play and does not return that day. Follow the return-to-play guidance your union sets out.
- Mismatches in size and experience. Talk to the other coach and the referee if a game is becoming unsafe. Age-grade regulations may include provisions for this; check them.
- Hydration and weather. Have water available, and plan for cold and wet days, particularly at long festivals.
- Collection. Make sure every junior player leaves with a parent or agreed adult.
- Recording injuries. Follow your club's procedure for recording injuries and tell parents about any knock, however minor.
Your club welfare officer is the person to go to with any concerns, and the RFU and constituent bodies publish safeguarding and welfare guidance.
Using Match Report GO for rugby
Match Report GO supports rugby union in 15s, 10s and 7s, with scoring for tries, conversions, penalty goals and drop goals, so live scoring on the touchline matches how rugby is actually scored. It works without signal and catches up later, and the app never ends a half by itself: the scorer taps. With rolling substitutions on, fair playing time tracking shows who needs to go on soon.
The report is written from what you logged, with scores checked against the match before anyone sees it. In junior mode, players are named by first name only and never for a missed kick, a card or an injury. More on the rugby page.