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Cowboys discover the NRL is no country for old men

The Cowboys celebrate a convincing finals win over the Broncos (AAP Image/Action Photographics, Colin Whelan).
Roar Guru
17th May, 2013
34

Cormac McCarthy’s 2005 thriller, No Country for Old Men, depicts the final days of ageing sheriff Ed Tom Bell as a lawman.

Ed Tom, after years of bravely serving his community, has grown old. He is the last remnant of the old-time sheriffs and can no longer comprehend the increasingly dangerous world around him, namely the psychopathic hitman Anton Chigurh.

Despite the increased presence of law and order in the West compared to when he was a young officer, the modern West has bred a new and more frightening evil (Chigurh) to which has has no knowledge of combating.

Feeling that his former world has passed him by, Ed Tom retires at the novel’s end before Chigurh, the embodiment of evil, can claim his life.

Out of the current Cowboys squad, five players are aged 30 or older.

These players are Glenn Hall (32), Matt Bowen (31), Brent Tate (31), Jonathan Thurston (30) and Dallas Johnson (30). Another, Ashley Graham (29) will be 30 next year. Over a third of the team that can be categorised as ‘old-timers’.

Sadly, most of the aforementioned players look to be a shadow of their former selves. While Thurston and Graham are still playing well, Matt Bowen has been particularly poor this season.

Brent Tate and Dallas Johnson still perform well, yet their diminished playing abilities indicate that they are perhaps struggling to contain the new challenges associated with modern games of rugby league.

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Both men are not particularly large, with Johnson and Tate weighing 92 and 88 kilograms respectively. Yet they are both incredibly fierce competitors that possess true grit.

They debuted in a time where players were smaller but arguably tougher. Hard work and a gritty playing style were applauded.

Respected hardmen such as Glenn Morrison, Shane Webcke, Paul Bowman, Brad Fittler and Andrew Ryan were the living embodiment of such mentality.

Peroxide hairdos and internet tirades were unheard of. Arguments stayed on the field and were settled on the field. If someone physically challenged you, they were accommodated accordingly.

However, since the early 2000’s the NRL has changed in a profound way. Years of professionalism has led to increased efficiency in weights training, spawning true monsters.

Sides have grown much larger and now feature giants such as Sam Kasiano, Martin Kennedy, George Burgess, David Klemmer, Daniel Tupou and Konrad Hurrell. Every game it appears as though the old-timers struggle more and more attempting to contain such beasts.

Also, it seems as though the current interchange limit is set to stay the same for the foreseeable future. This will allow the big men to continue dominating the field, and will make sure that the old-timers will continue to struggle to contain their impact.

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Additionally, in recent times there has been an increased focus on making the game safer. While this has largely been successful, it can be argued new lows in terms of on-field thuggery have been witnessed in this decade.

High shots, spear and cannonball tackles and chicken wings are still prevalent, and acts of ‘stitch pulling’ and ‘wheel squeezing’ have been documented.

Perhaps this new era of the NRL has developed a new breed of subtle yet terrifying individuals. Hitmen like Steve Matai and Jared-Waerea Hargreaves remain an omnipresent threat to the old=timers.

Bowen, Hall, Tate and Johnson are expected to retire at the end of this season. Considering most are playing every game through pain, it seems as though they don’t want to push their chips forward.

Much like Ed Tom, I guess they have reached the conclusion that it’s best to retire on their own terms, rather than be forced to retire through injury.

At the end of No Country, a retired Ed Tom recites a pair of dreams he had the night before to his wife. The first involved his father handing over some money to him.

The second depicted him as sheriff riding on horses with his father through a dark, cold and narrow mountain pass. His father then lights him a torch and before riding ahead through the dark to make camp.

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The dream ends with his father waiting by a campfire for his arrival.

Ed Tom’s dreams can be interpreted to apply to the current situation of the Cowboys’ old-timers. The first dream can be interpreted as the generation of players before them handing down values that have been lost in the current game.

The second can be interpreted as giving hope to the game. Hope that the torch, representative of determination, grit and professionalism, will be passed on from the old-timers to the next generation.

Rugby league has always been a violent, brutal game and not one for the faint of heart. It has for long been swallowing up and spitting out its sons like the Roman God Saturn.

The Cowboy’s old-timers are no exception. The NRL is no country for old men.

Their bodies and willpower are simply deteriorating after years of tremendous exertion and strain.

I hope that we see more players like them in the future, although I don’t think we will. I don’t know if the structure of the current game allows it.

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What I do know is that their exit from the game will mark the beginning of a new era for the club. Rugby league as I know it will never be the same again.

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