5 + 2
A rugby union try and conversion are worth seven points together
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Photo: Keith Williamson · CC BY-SA 2.0
The short answer
In rugby union a try is worth five points and a successful conversion adds two. A penalty try is worth seven outright, with no conversion attempted.
Why it's true
World Rugby Law 8 assigns five points to a try and two to a successful conversion. A normal converted try therefore totals seven, but an unconverted try remains worth five. The try is not provisionally seven with points deducted for a miss; the conversion is a separate opportunity to add to an already completed score.
A penalty try is different. It awards seven points outright when opposing foul play prevents a probable try, or prevents it being scored in a more advantageous position, under Law 8. No conversion is attempted. The identical seven-point total can therefore arise through two legally different routes.
By the numbers
5
Try points
2
Conversion points
7
Penalty-try points
How we know
The governing code here is rugby union. Rugby league and modified forms should not be assumed to use this same scoring schedule. Within union, Law 8 also gives three points for a penalty goal and three for a dropped goal. Those alternatives help explain why teams sometimes choose a kick rather than pursue another attacking phase.
The scoring law works with the grounding provisions. Crossing the try line while holding the ball is not enough if the player is held up and never grounds it legally. The name try can sound tentative to a newcomer, but in current scoring it is the five-point event itself, not merely a promise of points from a later kick.
Worth remembering
- An ordinary try earns five.
- A successful conversion adds two.
- A penalty try awards seven without a kick.
In context
Three-point kicks create important scoreboard thresholds. Two penalty goals total six, more than an unconverted try but less than a converted one. A seven-point lead can be matched by a converted try, while an eight-point lead requires more than a single ordinary converted try. These arithmetic differences influence late decisions about taking available points.
The team scoring a try may decline the conversion opportunity under the applicable law. That choice does not reduce the try’s five points or turn it into a penalty try. It simply leaves the additional two unattempted, which can matter when a side values time for a further score more than the opportunity to improve the current one.
A closer look
Why the place of grounding affects the next kick
After an ordinary try, the team has the right to attempt a conversion. The kick is taken on a line through the place where the try was scored, parallel to the touchlines. A score near the touchline therefore leaves a more acute angle than one near the middle. The kicker can select distance back along the permitted line, not move sideways to the most convenient angle.
This creates a reason for an attacker already inside in-goal to seek a safer central grounding position when circumstances allow. Improving the angle can make the additional two points more attainable. It also creates risk: the attacker has not banked the try merely by crossing the line, so delaying grounding can give defenders a chance to intervene.
A conversion can be a place-kick or a drop-kick. To succeed it must pass over the crossbar and between the posts without first touching a team-mate or the ground. A drop-kick necessarily involves its defining bounce before the foot strikes; the prohibition concerns the ball’s subsequent journey towards the goal, not that preparatory action.
Seven points is not always a converted try
Suppose a team trails by six. An ordinary try reduces the deficit to one, and a successful conversion then puts it ahead by one. If the conversion misses, the try still counts but the team remains behind. Keeping those events separate makes score calculations clearer than mentally awarding seven as soon as the attacker reaches in-goal.
A penalty try instead produces the seven-point award immediately, with no conversion to miss or charge down. The referee must judge the required connection between foul play and a probable try or better scoring position. It is not a general bonus for every infringement near the try line, nor an automatic outcome whenever an attacking move looks promising.
The player responsible for the qualifying foul play must be cautioned and shown a yellow card or sent off under the law. That disciplinary consequence is separate from the points. A match report should not describe a penalty try as an ordinary try followed by an automatically successful conversion, because no such kick occurs.
Related facts
See how a valid rugby goal survives a later change in the ball’s flight. A rugby goal still counts if the wind blows it back after crossing.
Curling provides a contrasting scoring system built on relative position rather than a goal crossing. Only one team can score in a curling end.
A goal kick shows how a particular restart can carry its own direct-scoring permission. You can score directly from a goal kick against the other team.
Another scoring comparison turns on bat contact and the journey to cricket’s boundary. A boundary six requires the ball to have been struck by the bat.
Key terms
- Try
- A rugby union score worth five points.
- Conversion
- A successful kick following a try that adds two points; a penalty try is seven outright.
People also ask
How much is an unconverted try worth?
Five points. The conversion is a separate attempt to add two, so missing it does not remove any of the five points already awarded for the try.
Does crossing the try line guarantee five points?
No. The attacker must legally ground the ball under the relevant conditions. Being held up after crossing can prevent a try even though the player reached in-goal.
Why is a conversion harder from the touchline?
Its position must be on the permitted line through where the try was scored. A grounding near the touchline creates a sharper angle; the kicker cannot move sideways to the middle.
Is a penalty try followed by a conversion?
No. It is worth seven outright, and no conversion is attempted. It requires the specified foul play preventing a probable try or a more advantageous scoring position.
What are penalty goals and dropped goals worth?
Three points each in rugby union. Neither should be confused with the two-point conversion available after an ordinary try.
