When is a tackler not a tackler?

Hi,

At 72:45 did George North not contravene law 15.6(c) and thus a penalty should have been given against Wales before Mike Brown was pinged for holding on? North was clearly part of the tackle but did not go to ground himself and so should have had to re-enter through the tackle gate to attempt to play the ball. Instead, he stops Brown from being able to place the ball while also blocking the England players from clearing out.
"Players in opposition to the ball carrier who remain on their feet who bring the ball carrier to ground so that the player is tackled must release the ball and the ball carrier. Those players may then play the ball providing they are on their feet and do so from behind the ball and from directly behind the tackled player or a tackler closest to those players’ goal line."

Thanks,

Grant

Hi Grant

I haven't been able to find the incident you are referring to, so I am going on your description only, with the caveat that the referee at the time may have seen it differently.

If a player is holding a ball carrier who is then tackled (held and brought to ground), but that player does not go to ground himself (a quick knee to the floor is enough to have him deemed as gone to ground), then that player is not a tackler under law.  So we could conceivably have a tackle without a tackler.  This person is normally known as a tackle assist.

Whereas a tackler can release, get to his feet, and then play the ball from any direction; you are correct that a tackle assist cannot play the ball from any direction.  The tackle assist must play the ball from his own side (see below).

This is however a very dynamic area of the game, that changes and evolves very quickly.  How you saw it and how the referee saw it may not be the same.  But as you describe it, you are correct in your thinking.

Law 15.6 (c)

Players in opposition to the ball carrier who remain on their feet who bring the ball carrier to ground so that the player is tackled must release the ball and the ball carrier. Those players may then play the ball providing they are on their feet and do so from behind the ball and from directly behind the tackled player or a tackler closest to those players’ goal line.

Regards
The Rugby Ref