One of the beautiful things about rugby is that you need relatively little equipment to get started. There are few costs and barriers to entry making it an easy game to get involved in. So, what is the basic equipment needed?
To play rugby union the basic equipment you need is a rugby ball, jerseys or bibs, a referees whistle, goal posts and post protectors. More formalised training sessions and matches will need corner flags, training cones, medical kit, a variety of sized rugby balls, kicking tees, and players need to be suitably clothed.
Here is a list of all the possible equipment required for a rugby club with approximate pricings based on specialist rugby brand name prices:
How Much Does Rugby Equipment Cost?
| Equipment/Clothing Item | Approximate Cost GBP |
| Shorts | 20 |
| Socks | 6 |
| Boots | 70 |
| Jersey | 25 |
| Gum shield | 35 |
| Protection tops | 30 |
| Headgear | 25 |
| Tape | 2-4/roll |
| Rugby balls | 10-135 |
| Set of jerseys (22) | 550 |
| Team kit bag | 30 |
| Post protectors | 800 |
| Corner flags (10) | 30 |
| Posts | 2,000 |
| Whistles | 3 |
| Drink bottles and carriers (8) | 50 |
| Cones (5) | 15 |
| Pumps and adaptors | 30 |
| First aid kit | 40 |
| Reusable ice packs | 10 |
| Ball carry bags | 20 |
| Bibs (6) | 18 |
| Hurdles (10) | 20 |
| Speed ladder | 20 |
| Speed parachute | 10 |
| Tackle bags | 150 |
| Tackle pads | 60 |
| Scrum machine | 1,500 – 15,000 |
| Stop watches | 5 |
When considering the equipment that you need, there are two angles to look at it from. The perspective of the player, and that of the club. The player naturally needs to ensure they have suitable boots and clothing, and the club needs to ensure they have suitable equipment for training sessions and matchdays, both of which have similar yet different requirements.
So, I am going to detail what equipment is needed in three sections. Equipment players need to provide, equipment clubs need to provide for training sessions and then additional equipment clubs need to provide for match days.
Equipment Rugby Players Need
Individual rugby players wishing to join and be involved with rugby club would generally be expected to provide the following items for use during their training sessions and matches:
Rugby shorts – Anything less than proper ‘made for rugby’ shorts are likely to rip and fall apart within a couple of training sessions.
Whatsmore, rugby players being the breed of animal that they are, it is not out of the realms of possibility for a player to target a player not wearing rugby shorts and to try and break them. Just for a bit of fun you understand.
Rugby socks – Honestly, these could be football socks, there is no real difference between the two like there is in the difference between rugby and football boots which you can read about here. If you did not wear rugby/football socks you are far more likely to get blisters and well, you would look at little stupid.
Rugby boots – Not much turning up to a rugby club without your boots in tow. Ideally, these would be specialist rugby boots but you could get away with football boots, especially in the backs. Be warned though that are different rules between what studs can be worn in football compared to rugby, red more about rugby boot rules here.
These are the current best sellers on Amazon. The feedback is mainly that the fit is really good and the value for money is very good. Plus, you can’t really go wrong with a rugby specialist brand like Canterbury!
Rugby jersey – Whilst jerseys will be provided for matches, for training sessions you will need your own suitable playing jersey. Once more, imagine the forces involved when a 100kg adult tries grabbing hold of your jersey as you are running along at full speed.
Gum shield – Unfortunately, I have had a false front tooth since I was ten years old by virtue of being kicked in the mouth whilst not wearing a gum shield during training. Of course, I wore one ever since but certainly wish I had not had to go through that in order to make me realise the importance of always wearing one.
These days they can easily be picked up at a sports shop and you can mold them yourself using boiling water, or obviously just pick one up from Amazon, just like mine pictured below.
Protection tops – Rugby players are permitted to wear a certain amount and thickness of padding. These are usually worn as part of a tight fitting base layer which features areas where 10mm foam pads are strategically positioned. You are far better off making sure you buy one of these from a manufacturer that specializes in rugby to ensure that the items are legal in the game.
Headgear – A relatively small percentage of players wear headgear. One of the reasons that they are not as popular as they really ought to be is that they can impede your ability to hear other players. As you can imagine this is not ideal when success in rugby is all about communication.
This is the head gear that James Haskell wore though in case you are interested.
Tape – For players that are to be lifted in the lineout they are generally required to wear some form of taping around the thighs so that the players lifting them have something secure to grab on to. For this reason, specialist rugby tape has been developed and is worth its weight in gold.
That’s pretty much the bare essentials as far as equipment goes for rugby players. Of course, you are probably going to want a decent tracksuit to wear in colder weather or when you are on bench duty. You can read more about what rugby players wear here.
Equipment Rugby Clubs Need For Matches
A variety of rugby balls – At the risk of stating the obvious you are going to need rugby balls. Where it gets a tiny bit awkward is the fact that different age groups require different balls to play with and the fact that match day balls as much higher quality and cost more than training balls.
So you need a good mixture of matchday and training day balls in different sizes. Stick with Gilbert rugby balls, anything else is just not the same quality!
Also, you might want to read our Buyers Guide To Rugby Balls here.
Sets of rugby jerseys – Each team your club has will need a full set of rugby jerseys which usually means 23 jerseys numbered from one – twenty three. In most amateur clubs players tend to provide their own shorts and socks typically purchased from the club shop.
A team kit bag – You are going to need something to put all of those rugby shorts in and carry them onto the coach for away trips so you definitely need a team kit bag.
In the kit bag you should always have a secret stash of spare socks and shorts because it’s amazing how may times a player will rock up without them, or someone from the touchline will be dragged in to make up the numbers.
Posts – Hopefully, these are already installed on your club’s pitches and lines are marked out to suitable pitch sizes.
Post protectors – No game should ever take place without post protectors on them. In fact even with post protectors on they can be quite painful to run into at full speed, just ask James Haskell, who famously ran into a set of posts during a Six Nations game with thousands of people watching, watch here for a giggle.
Corner flags – These mark where the try line is an it is not uncommon for themto be fallen in and ran in to, for this reason it is important they are made by rugby specialists so that they will not shatter and cause injury on impact.
A Whistle – To be honest, a competent official is probably going to bring their own but the club should have a supply of good quality whistles suitable for refereeing with, or it will be difficult to go ahead with the game.
Equipment Clubs Need For Training Sessions
Obviously, you could get away with a lot less than this but if you were looking to fit out a new club then the list might be as extensive as this.
Drink bottles and carriers – Players need well hydrating for optimal performance so there is no skimping on this item. A gooset will last a number of years and so are worth the relatively trivial investment. Just make sure they are properly disinfected from week to week.
Cones – Multipurpose, functional, lightweight and low cost. A coaches favourite for all sorts, from marking out playing areas to fitness drills, technical areas to recovery areas. A must have item.
Pumps and adaptors – Balls need keeping at the right pressure so that your players are training with balls that will be similar to match day ball pressures. Having a pump and adaptor ensures this requirement is easily maintained.
First Aid – Certainly, on match days trained professionals should be on hand to ensure the medical side of things is running smoothly but during the week having a good first aid kit on standby is a necessity.
Hot/Cold packs – Ensure your players recover from injuries in the shortest possible time period by having cold packs to hand. They reduce swelling, speed up recovery and provide a distraction from the injury itself. A must have item really.
Ball carry bag – My former club had two separate areas. The first team pitch with the main club house and then the junior pitches about a kilometre away. Carrying armfuls of rugby balls all the way over there was never as easy as it should be so ball carry bags would have made all the difference.
Bibs – An essential item for identifying different teams in training or for subs to wear on the sideline during match days. Inexpensive and durable, a no brainer to get a couple of sets of these.
Mini-hurdles – Useful for developing speed, agility and quickness particularly during preseason fitness drills. I always used to chuckle watching big wobbly props trying to do ‘fast feet’ over these mini hurdles. Worth having?
You could do without these but they do make the training session appear more professional which can make some players work harder, so yes worth having but not a priority.
Speed ladder – I always got annoyed by these things. Basically this is a ladder made of material straps which you lay out on the floor then do some footwork drills through and across.
This is all well and good but it only takes one player to misplace a foot and then the entire ladder gets mucked up and everyone has to stop for it to be straightened. Not a favourite of main but they seem to have become a favourite amongst coaches.
Speed parachute – I grew up doing sprint training with a rope tied to a weight training belt and the other end dragging a rubber tyre 20 yards behind me. It worked out ok, but I sense a speed parachute would be a much safer alternative and I definitely believe that these have a place in improving player leg power and drive. A useful addition.
Tackle bags and pads – There are over 10 different types of tackle bags and pads that you could purchase. The only two I would recommend though are the 135 x 45 cm, 18kg cylindrical tackle bags, and the hit shield which is more suitable for a game play simulation.
Between those two you would have most training exercises covered. Not cheap items but they tend to have a decent life span and prevent players from undergoing undue contact during training.
Stopwatches – Good for motivating players and comparing their training scores with other players or with previous training session attempts. Just mention the ‘Bronco’ to any professional player and they will be able to reel off their best times ever. A useful tool and cheap.
Scrum machines – These beasts of a machine are quite a piece of kit. You pay up to $20,000 for a full scrum machine. Fortunately, there are cheaper options which utilise the weight of players standing on the equipment to produce the weight and those types of machines go for 30% of that price.
Non-essential equipment in lower levels of rugby but anywhere approaching the professional game essential for working on technique and safety in the scrum.
Of course, I could probably go on, but in my opinion that covers the vast majority of equipment needed for playing, coaching and training for rugby. Personally, I would always prefer to buy direct from a rugby specialist company as you can guarantee the items will be fit for purpose.
The top brands to look out for are: Rhino, Gilbert, and Canterbury, although a reliable retailer of all of the brands making comparisons easy is Lovell rugby and pro direct rugby where i recommend you go next for full details of products and prices.
You might also need to pay insurance, especially on a rugby tour so why not check out: Rugby Travel Insurance: What You Need To Know
Photo Credits:
Rhino scrum machine X.padulles, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Photo 2, my gum shield!