What U7 rugby actually is
Most of them have never held a rugby ball. U7 is tag, four a side, on a pitch 20 metres by 12. No tackling, no kicking, no scrum. Here is the whole of it in plain English before your first Sunday.
Free to read with no account. It works at a pitch with no signal too.
The short version
U7 is the first grade there is, so nothing arrives and nothing goes. What matters is knowing where the edges are, because almost everything a parent on the touchline expects to see is out.
- Four a side. On a pitch about a quarter the size of the one at U9.
- No contact of any kind beyond taking a tag off a belt.
- Tagged means pass. Three seconds, about three strides.
- A knock on is not an offence at U7. Play carries on. This is the one that surprises people.
- Nobody dives. Not to score, not to pick the ball up off the floor.
The numbers
| Row | U7 |
|---|---|
| Players a side | 4 |
| Pitch | 20m x 12m, plus 5m of in-goal each end |
| Ball | Size 3 |
| Each half | 10 minutes |
| Free pass | Opposition 3 metres back |
| Tackle | None |
| Scrum, lineout, kicking | None |
Adjacent pitches should be no closer than 5 metres apart, which is worth knowing if your club runs four games side by side on one set of pitches.
The tag
Every player wears a belt with two tags on it, one over each hip, Velcroed on. Belts go outside the shirt and any spare belt gets tucked away so it cannot be grabbed. Tags sit on the hips rather than the front or the back. They have to stand out against the kit as well, so no red tags on a red shirt.
A tag is the removal of one or both tags from the carrier's belt. Only the carrier can be tagged. They may run and dodge but they cannot fend anybody off with a hand or the ball, nor guard or shield their tags. Nobody may pull the ball out of their hands at any point.
If a player has lost a tag and carries on without both of them, they give away a free pass the moment they carry the ball or tag somebody.
What the carrier does
- Pass within three seconds of being tagged
- Stop as soon as they can, within about three strides. The ball can go while they are stopping
- Go to the tagger, take the tag back, put it on the belt, then rejoin
- One step only to score once they have been tagged
What the tagger does
- Stop running, hold the tag above their head and shout "Tag". The referee then calls "Tag, pass"
- If the carrier stopped within a metre, retire a metre towards their own line to make room for the pass
- Hand the tag back before rejoining. Playing on with somebody else's tag in your fist is a free pass against you
That last one is the bit seven-year-olds find hardest. Half your first month is spent on giving the tag back rather than sprinting off with it like a trophy.
Scoring
Ground the ball on or over the line. Nobody may dive over: a dive is disallowed and the defending side gets a free pass 3 metres out. Grounding it on their knees does count, though you remind them afterwards to stay on their feet. Nobody may stop a try by physical contact, including sticking a hand between the ball and the grass.
If a player is tagged while standing in the in-goal area they have to ground it straight away to score. A good referee will say so out loud.
Free passes
A free pass restarts everything at U7: the start of each half, after a try, the ball going into touch, any infringement, the ball being pulled out of somebody's hands. The opposition stand 3 metres back and cannot move until the ball leaves the passer's hands.
The passer starts with the ball in both hands, waits for the referee to call "Play", then passes backwards through the air. Nobody on either team runs until the pass is made. A free pass is never marked within 3 metres of a goal line, so both teams have room.
What is not allowed
- Tackling or any contact beyond taking a tag. Shirt pulling, barging, running in front of the carrier or shepherding them into touch are all a free pass
- Kicking of any kind
- A hand off or a fend
- Pulling the ball out of the carrier's hands
- Handing the ball to a teammate. It goes through the air or not at all
- Diving on a loose ball
Offside only happens at the tag. The line runs through the middle of the ball, or a metre further back if you are the tagger. Everybody on the tagging side heads back towards their own line until they are behind the ball.
Two things that reach past this grade
- The Half Game Rule. Every player in the squad gets at least half of the playing time. Across a festival that means half of the morning rather than half of each game. It is the one clubs get wrong most often
- Boys and girls play together. Mixed rugby runs all the way through U11. The game splits into separate bands at U12
What to get in before the season starts
- Catching a size 3 ball. Most of them cannot yet. Everything else waits on this
- Passing backwards through the air. Handing it over is a free pass and it is the instinct every one of them arrives with
- Looking up while running. Twenty metres is not far, so a head-down runner meets a tagger immediately
- Giving the tag back. Put it in a game rather than explaining it. They learn it in a fortnight and never lose it
- Stopping. Three strides is a real skill at this age and it is what keeps the three second count honest
Common questions
How many players are in a U7 rugby team?
Four a side on the pitch at once. Both teams have to field the same number. Rolling substitutions are unlimited, so long as the ball is dead and the referee has said yes. A substituted player can come back on later.
Is there any contact in U7 rugby?
None beyond taking a tag off a belt. Shirt pulling, barging, running in front of the carrier or forcing them into touch are all a free pass against you. So is a hand off or a fend. The ball may not even be pulled out of the carrier's hands.
What happens when a U7 player is tagged?
They have three seconds to pass and about three strides to stop in. The ball can go while they are stopping. Then they collect their tag from the tagger, put it back on the belt and rejoin play. Carrying on without it is a free pass against them.
Can U7s score by diving over the line?
No. A dive is disallowed and the defending team gets a free pass 3 metres out. Grounding it on their knees does count, though you remind them afterwards that they are meant to stay on their feet.
How big is a U7 rugby pitch?
20 metres by 12, plus 5 metres of in-goal at each end. That is the maximum rather than a fixed size, so the referee and both coaches can agree something smaller if they think it is safer.
Equal Play is not affiliated with the RFU. Regulation 15 is theirs. This page puts it in our own words, so it is a summary rather than the thing itself. It is reissued every summer as well, so read this season's there rather than trusting a copy on somebody else's website. Ours included. If a referee on Sunday says something different to this page, they are right.
Read against the RFU's 2026/27 appendices in August 2026.
The other age grades
- What U8 rugby looks like
- What U9 rugby looks like
- What U10 rugby looks like
- What U11 rugby looks like
- What U12 rugby looks like
Every grade side by side is the whole progression on one page. U7 rugby drills are the ones written for an U7 grade.