Ankle-tap

An ankle-tap or tap-tackle is a form of tackle that is now practised and executed in sports like Rugby Union, Rugby League and American Football. The ball-carrying player’s ankle is tapped by the tackler’s flailing hand in such a way that one ankle strikes the other, thus tripping the ball carrier. It may have first occurred as a fortuitous accident but it is now a practised skill in these contact sports. The ankle-tap or tap-tackle was first cited in sports commentaries during the late 1980s/early 1990s.