In rugby, a jackal is a player who steals the ball at the tackle, also known as poaching. The jackal is the first arriving teammate of the tackler at the tackle, or the first person to get to an isolated ball carrier who is on the ground. The jackler must remain on their feet to contest for the ball directly. However, if they were initially involved in the tackle, they must first clearly release the ball carrier before trying to take the ball off of the attacker on the ground. The jackler must support their body weight throughout their attempt to take the ball – they cannot go to ground and then reset themselves. Once a ruck has formed, no defending player is permitted to handle the ball unless they were able to get their hands on the ball before the ruck was formed.