Will England invoke the mercy rule at Cardiff?
Roar Pro
By Sebacious, 13 Feb 2009 The Crowd is a Roar Pro
- Tagged:
- England rugby, England rugby team, English rugby, Rugby Union
The mercy rule is often used in America in football, soccer and a few other sports. For example, in certain baseball leagues, it’s brought in if a team is ten runs ahead at the end of the seventh, and the game is called.
But as far as I know, there isn’t a mercy rule in international rugby as there is, I believe, in junior rugby.
So if Wales are up by, say, 70 points with 15 minutes to go on Saturday, or if Ireland are up by about the same amount on the 28th at Croke Park, should the game be called? And if so, what happens then?
Recently, a private Christian high school in Texas, Covenant, defeated basketball opponents, Dallas Academy, by 100 points.
Covenant was jubilant, but when the story made headlines, partly because Dallas Academy has only 20 girls enrolled, and some of those are in Special Ed, Covenant was hit by winner’s remorse and forfeited the win.
They sent a humble apology saying that the crushing victory did not reflect a “Christ-like and honorable approach to competition.”
So, if Wales and Ireland lay some major hurt on England with embarrassing lopsided victories, do you think they should apologize and promise to be more Christ-like next time, or just leave England to get over it as best they can?
Enjoy sports? Enjoy a bargain? All Sports Online has your favourite sporting brands at up to 70% off. Online only, premium quality sporting goods and merchandise at discounted prices. Get a deal now.
The Crowd Says (10) | Page 1 of Comments
Have Your Say
Do you have what it takes to become a sports writer? Write for the roar
Rugby Union articles
- Will Super Rugby crowds continue their slide? (201)
- Will South African rugby force a Super 21 by 2018? (173)
- The real story of how John O’Neill turned Manchester City down (70)
- Dan Parks and the unsolved questions of expat rugby (65)
- Australian teams at Super disadvantage (58)
- Pocock set to be named new Force skipper (56)
- Can the ‘Tahs win the battle after losing the Waugh? (51)
- France turns to Parra and Trinh-Duc
- Rebels look to lift for formidable Blues in rugby trial
- Mr Fix-It Lucas wants to nail down No.10
- Force roost loses ‘Mother Hen’ Sharpe
- Victory beat Mariners with Kewell winner
- Waratahs romp to 83-5 trial win over Samoa A
- Quade Cooper’s return to the Reds goes up a gear
- Wales show Southern Hemisphere how to play running rugby (29)
- What opening matches of Six Nations taught us (19)
- Will Super Rugby crowds continue their slide? (202)
- Clinical Chiefs cost rusty Rebels in Corio (9)
- Six Nations shows rugby is a parochial game at heart (5)
- Goose’s Super Rugby up-and-comer XV for 2012 (29)
- What does the future hold for the Six Nations (50)
- Explore:
- England rugby, England rugby team, English rugby, Rugby Union
pothale said | February 13th 2009 @ 3:45am | Report comment
Oh you are mischievous, Sebacious.
Charity begins at home. And it can stay there. I don’t think either Wales or Ireland will give it a moment’s thought.
However, the likelihood of it happening is so minute that I don’t think we need to worry about it. It will be a close game with 8-10 points at most in it is my reckoning,
Andystath said | February 13th 2009 @ 7:57am | Report comment
No mercy,England has never shown any on the sporting field or in the founding of its empire.The Welsh,Scots and Irish pray for the opportunity to humble the pride of St George.
True Tah said | February 13th 2009 @ 8:00am | Report comment
I hope the Welsh are allowed to play their natural game and show the English how rugby can and should be played.
Wales will not show an ounce of mercy, rugby is a battle and give no quarter on the field – England have put the Welsh to the sword too many times for the Welsh to so easily forgive them
mitzter said | February 13th 2009 @ 9:42am | Report comment
I have often thought whether a mercy rule should come in for RWC and some of the lopsided matches. How about 50 points ahead, obviously after this time the losing team is too stuffed to put up resistance and there is little purpose for the winning side to keep playing anyway
Papa Romeo said | February 13th 2009 @ 12:21pm | Report comment
Crush the b*stards.
Jerry said | February 13th 2009 @ 7:06pm | Report comment
Mitzer – If there were a 50 point mercy rule, Portugal would have been robbed of the try they scored v the All Blacks in the 07 WC. I think they’d happily take the thrashing.
Rowdy said | February 13th 2009 @ 9:43pm | Report comment
No prisoners ! No prisoners !
If England get thumped by 70, then so be it – we’ve handed out some to the Celts, so getting it back is fair. I doubt it’ll happen, although I wouldn’t cry for too long, because it might finally see the end of some dead wood in the England setup, coaching, selecting and playing.
Rabbitz said | February 14th 2009 @ 6:26am | Report comment
I assume this is a troll. Frankly if your belief in an invisible friend doesn’t allow you to win a sporting fixture, then you really need to question whether you should be a professional sportsman.
Having mercy on a poor opposition has absolutely no place is professional sports (nor “entertainment” sports for that matter).
Rabz
Sebacious said | February 14th 2009 @ 7:38am | Report comment
Interesting concept, RABBITZ. John Geiger’s recent book, The Third Man Factor, describes many instances where people in jeopardy – astronauts, polar explorers etc – sense a benign physical presence which guides them to safety. Eliot refers to it in The Waste Land, a great poem although The Man from Snowy River is good, too. The presences run from single manifestations to several, as described by Lindbergh who claimed they helped him with navigational problems and too-tight underwear. Do you suppose England’s rugby team will be helped by 15 such beings in Cardiff? And if so, wouldn’t that be cheating?
Dublin Dave said | February 14th 2009 @ 11:24am | Report comment
Jaysus lads, would ye not lose the run of yourselves for feck’s sake.
There is no way on God’s green earth that Wales are going to put 70 points on England. None whatsoever. And at the risk of being paradoxical, remember that the 6N is the most unpredictable tournament around. Look back to the late 90s/early 200s. England went through a period ofbeing red hot favourites for a Grand Slam but ended up losing the last match every year to one of their Celtic cousins. Most unexpectedly too.
Remember Scott Gibbs barelling last minute try at Wembley in the final match of 1999? That was a home game for Wales, despite the fact that it took place in London. Wales were playing at Wembley while the Millennium Stadium was being built.
The following year, even more preposterously, England lost to Scotland on the final day. A rainstorm helped the Scots to graft out a famous win in Murrayfield.
The following season, England lost what should have been a winner take all Grand Slam decider against Ireland at Lansdowne Road. The reason it wasn’t was that Ireland had lost, convincingly and most unexpectedly, to Scotland a few weeks before.
You never can tell with the 6N. No counting of chickens please.
As for the general point about a mercy rule. No. It is totally against the spirit of rugby. One of the beautiful things about this game is that there is often honour in defeat. Even in heavy defeat. It is the nature of the game that one has to show courage and indomitable spirit right to the end. Even if you are being thumped on teh score board, there is always the chance for some fulfillment to be gained by making that desperate tackle or taking the ball on past another tackler.
Case in point was the A International between Ireland and Scotland tonight. Scotland were beaten out of sight but had the satisfaction of scoring the games’ best try in the last minute. Just about everybody on the team handled the ball in a sustained running attack that went the length of the pitch and restored some res[ectability to the scoreline.
A so called mercy rule would deprive them of that honour. Leave it to the yanks.