Championship Eligibility
Player Eligibility
To be eligible to compete in the Championship, all players MUST be:
(a) under 16 years of age, and no younger than 14 years of age on 1 January in the year of the championship. That is, Player must be turning 15 or 16 years in the year of the championship (DOB 1996 or 1997 only); and
(b) currently registered for thejunior club/school association and/or the Participating Union they represent; and
(c) registered for the Participating Team on the Team Registration Form (Appendix 4).
Championship Rules
IRB Laws of the Game
All matches shall be played in accordance with IRB Laws of the Game of Rugby Union; including Australian U19 Law Variations (refer to Appendix 2 of Tournament Manual).
Duration of Matches
The duration of all matches will be 30-minutes each half with a 5-minute half time. A maximum 5 minutes injury time will be added per match (in the 2nd half only). The match referee shall be solely responsible for keeping time.
Extra Time
During the Championship, in the event of a match being drawn at the end of normal time, no extra time will be played. The result will be determined as outlined below.
Pool Points Calculation
Points will be awarded in the Pool matches (both Division 1 & 2) on the following basis:
Win 4 points
Draw 2 points
Loss 1 point for loss by 7 points or less
Loss 0 points for loss of more than 7 points
Bonus 1 point for 4 tries or more
Determining Pool Positions - Division 1
In the event that two (2) teams are equal in their pool at the end of the pool match series, their positions will be determined using the following ordered protocol: -
(i) The winner of their head to head match in that pool;
(ii) The team that scored the greater number of tries in that match;
(iii) The team with the greater differential of “for” points compared to “against” points in all their pool matches;
(iv) The team scoring the greater number of tries in the pool matches;
(v) If the above cannot distinguish between teams, the Tournament Director or Nominee will conduct a “draw from a hat” to determine the Finalist.
In the event that three (3) teams are equal in their pool at the end of the pool match series, their positions will be determined using the following ordered protocol:-
(i) The team with the greater differential of “for” points compared to “against” points in all their pool matches;
(ii) The team scoring the greater number of tries in the pool matches;
(iii) If the above cannot distinguish between teams, the Tournament Director or Nominee will conduct a “draw from a hat” to determine the Finalist/s.
Determining Final Winner - Division 1
In the event of drawn matches on the Final Day of the Championship, teams will be declared equal winners. No extra time will be played.
Determining Positions - Division 2
If two or more teams are equal on points for any position on the table following the pool matches, such position will be determined by:-
(i) The team with the greater number of wins against losses;
(ii) The team with the greater differential of “for” points compared to “against” points in all their pool matches;
(iii) The team scoring the greater number of tries in the pool matches;
(iv) If the above cannot distinguish between teams, they shall be declared of equal position.
Championship Format and Draw
The following proposed format is based on 12 competing teams, with 8 in Division 1 and 4 in Division 2.
Championship - Division 1
Eight (8) teams will compete in two pools (Pool A and Pool B), as determined by the ARU, and play round robin competition.
Cross pool matches will be played on final day:
1st Pool A v 1st Pool B (Final: Winner - Rod Macqueen Shield)
2nd Pool A v 2nd Pool B
3rd Pool A v 3rd Pool B (Plate Final: Winner - Nick Farr-Jones Shield)
4th Pool A v 4th Pool B
Championship - Division 2
Four (4) teams will compete in one pool, as determined by the ARU, and play round robin competition.
Division 2 will decided on results after round robin competition. No final series will be played. The winning team is awarded the John Eales Shield.
The match official of the tournament is awarded the Tony Lacaze memorial Shield.
The latest Championship match results can be found here during the tournament.
2012 National U16's Championship Live Results and Ladders