subject: Rugby League Competitions For The Youth Down Under [print this page] Rugby is a full-contact sport that shares many similarities with how American football is played. Players from both sides struggle to gain possession of the ball, which looks very much like the regular American football, and then the offensive team carries the ball and runs towards the goal line or kicks the ball towards a certain distance. Rugby is a predominant sport in Europe. Some would attest that rugby is to Europeans as football is to Americans.
The sport of rugby has two major rugby codes; rugby league and rugby union. Both rugby codes are physical contact sports, but many of the differences between the two can be seen in the rules and the speed of the game. Both codes are played at amateur and professional levels.
Rugby league offers a fast-paced approach to the sport. It is played competitively in many countries around the world. There are plans to establish a fully professional rugby league in the United States, dubbed the National Rugby League USA, with the hope of tapping into the country's already well-established support for American football, which is generally similar to rugby league in principle. Rugby league is currently being played professionally in other parts of the globe like Europe and Australia.
In Australia, rugby leagues popularity has started reaching out to the youth. All across Australia, amateur youth rugby league clubs have begun forming within schools, with many of them playing against each other competitively and regularly. So popular is rugby league among the youth down under that Australia began sponsored youth rugby league tournaments such as the National Youth Competition.
The National Youth Competition began in 2008, with sponsorship provided by automotive industry giant Toyota. It is officially Australias youth rugby league developmental competition that provides talented players for rugby clubs in the Australian National Rugby League.
The competition consists of teams from clubs that presently participate in the National Rugby League competition, fielding in squads that are composed of players between the ages of 17 and 19. The draw and structure of this unique youth rugby league mirrors the National Rugby League, even implementing a salary cap in the same way the National Rugby League does, and puts a heavy focus on life outside of football for the players.
