From pig's bladder to synthetic
The rugby ball - the tool without which the sport is simply unimaginable. Let’s talk about what the first balls were like and what they are made of today.
Rugby balls are a funny old shape, aren’t they? And it all started with pig bladders made by William Gilbert and Richard Lindon for Rugby school.
As early as 1835 rugby was played with the “melon” which is what the sports tool was called because it resembled the eponymous fruit. In those times balls were more round than oval, but this changed as new techniques were used such as the use of rubber bladders.
It is recorded that early, more rounded, rugby balls were easier to kick and that handling of the ball was needed more and more as the shape became more oval. It can therefore be concluded that the evolution of the ball has had its impact on the evolution of the game.
The method of inflating the pigs’ bladders for rugby balls was not a pleasant one. To inflate the bladders, the stem of a clay pipe was inserted into them. The bladders were particularly foul-smelling, and the process could even be fatal if the bladder turned out to be diseased. It’s thought that Richard Lindon’s wife’s death was linked to frequent inflation of rugby balls.
Richard Lindon was desperate to replace the pig's bladder with a different material, especially after his wife fell ill. In 1862, he decided to use India's rubber bladder instead. However, inflating the material by mouth was simply too tough. Therefore, he created a brass version of an air syringe in order to inflate his rugby balls.
In 1870, Richard Lindon started to use rubber inner tubes rather than pigs’ bladders. The new material also caused the shape to change to an egg-shape from a sphere. The compulsory shape became oval in 1892 due to rules introduced by the RFU.
Initially, balls had to have an end-on circumference of 30-31 inches, a width circumference of 25.5-6 inches and a length of 11-11.25 inches. The weight had to be between 12-13 inches and the ball needed to be handsewn. It also needed at least eight stitches to the inch.
Lindon had claimed that he had invented the rugby ball and the distinctive oval shape of it. However, he did not patent the ball, or the pump or bladder. By the 1880s, there were a number of different manufacturers using the same process as him across England.
Australia and New Zealand preferred a narrower torpedo shape which produced less drag, leading to faster passing. The Springboks had their own 8 panel design for better grip and the 5 Nations had settled for a 4 panel design which is used today.
The shape and size of the ball continued to change, mostly based on player feedback. But it wasn’t until the 1980’s when the next major change occurred: Leather panels began to be replaced by synthetic ones.
The new materials allowed the balls to be made more cheaply, with better wear and water resistance. Grip pits were added to the surface of the ball to improve handling and aerodynamics, leading to the balls used today.
The ball would continue to become flatter as the decades went by. Leather was eventually replaced by synthetic material. One of the reasons for this was to stop weather affecting games. Synthetic material was regarded as a better option due to the way it didn’t absorb water and therefore become heavy. This was a problem frequently experienced when leather balls were used in wet conditions. Leather was replaced in the early 1980s. The first supplier of synthetic rubber bladders for the game was Charles Macintosh, the famous raincoat manufacturer.
A typical rugby ball today consists of four panels that have been stitched together to form an oval shape. The length of a rugby ball is usually about 30 cm and the weight must not be more than 460 grams. Moreover, when the game starts the ball must have an air pressure of approximately 0.70 kg/cm2.