- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
The National Rugby League has announced its new rules for the 2014 season but for mine, the administrators have only made a half-hearted attempt to correct some of the code’s shortcomings.
I’ve had a good look at the rules and can see lots of problems arising in games – especially for the poor old referees.
Let us analyse some of the main changes.
Time off in last five minutes following a conversion or penalty goal
To me, this is a lot of hooey. I understand time will be whistled off from the moment the ball passes over the crossbar (or goes dead) until the players are ready to restart play.
This might save 15-20 seconds max. Why don’t they call time off from the time the kicker gets the ball and begins placing it on the tee?
Personally, I don’t care how long the kicker takes providing that the clock is not ticking.
Cannonball and crusher tackles are outlawed
No big deal here, no new ground really. I thought they were illegal last season.
Captains’ communication
The new rules say that team captains are only allowed to discuss/dispute penalties or any other issues with the referees during half-time, when a caution is being issued, or when there is a stoppage in play caused by a try or injury break.
This will not work as the easy way to ‘beat the system’ is for a player to go down in a screaming heap and trainers are summoned to attend. We do not need players feigning injuries so that their skipper can chew the ref’s ear for whatever reason.
And what about this bit about captains being able to approach the referees at half-time?
I can picture Michael Ennis and Jamie Lyon, for example, jostling for a word with the whistle-blower as they enter the tunnel at Brookie Oval at the interval.
Who gets first crack? Will it be like the RTA office when you have to wait in turn until your number is called? Will shouting and screaming matches outside dressing rooms now become a feature of Channel 9 and Fox Sports broadcasts?
In any case, I believe that captains should be given regular opportunities to respectfully speak with the match official but have no longer than 10-15 seconds to make their point.
I think this rule is doomed to fail.
Successful 40/20 kicks will be followed by a tap re-start and not a scrum
I think this rule change is counter-productive. In essence, it means there will be 13 attackers versus 13 defenders when a ‘quick’ tap is taken as opposed to the seven on seven that a scrum (token or not) provided.
Who is going to like that? Not me.
The NRL says these rule changes were five months in the making and involved all 16 clubs, the coaches and some 11,000 fans.
The Wizard applauds any effort to speed up the game but I say the amendments are not practical and simply won’t achieve the desired effect.
Reckon you can pick the winning team? Build your own dream team with Draftstars daily fantasy and compete on any match. For great odds on the NRL head on over to PlayUp. Imagine what you could be buying instead. Set a deposit limit.