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According to rugby purists, the key difference between league and union is the battle for possession. However, according to statistics released by Rod Macqueen, 95 percent of breakdown ball is won by the attacking team.
Given this statistic, it’s no wonder that less and less defending forwards commit to the breakdown.
This, is turn, means backs have less space, less time, and less opportunity to move the ball.
Such is the status quo.
One of the key reasons this has occurred is that the ruck in rugby union is ruck in name alone. As we all know, once the ball hits the ground, hands cannot be used, but neither can boots.
This gives a huge advantage to the attacking team.
If the player in possession correctly places the ball, they can legally seal off the ball. Possession is only turned over when the attacking player is isolated, or more rarely when the tackler is able to step over the ball and pick it up, George Smith style.
Of course, in a real match, the moment that a maul becomes a ruck is almost impossible to adjudicate.
Yet, if a player gets it wrong, they will be penalised. This, of course, limits the willingness of players to compete.
Which brings us to the ELVs and the sanctions law.
Under the ELVs, all infringements at the breakdown (except for offside) became free kick offences, not penalties. This lead to a lot more competition at the breakdown, and in some cases, a number of free kicks.
The British, who didn’t even trial the law, seemed to be terrified by the concept of players actually competing for the ball. Given the huge league influence, particularly in the UK’s coaching ranks, this is not surprising.
It was an ex-league player, Welsh coach Sean Edwards, who coined the phrase ‘cheats charter’. For a rugby league man not used to the battle for possession, it must have come as quite a shock to see images of players battling away at the breakdown.
Many British pundits, who had become used to the attacking team winning 95 percent of breakdown ball, were similarly dismayed.
In their ignorance, these pundits saw players competing for the ball and called them cheats. They yearned for ‘real’ rugby, ‘structured’ rugby, where one team could dominate possession completely.
Ironically, given that the battle for possession is part of rugby’s charter, it was they who were in fact promoting a cheats charter, a game of possession, which flew in the face of rugby’s traditions and moved the sport closer to six tackle rugby league.
In essence, they were asking the IRB to legislate the battle for possession out of the breakdown. And in a great travesty for the sport, it would appear that the fear mongers may have won the day.
However, all hope is not lost.
While ‘boots and all’ rucking has been lost forever, the battle for possession may not be.
According to Rod Macqueen, when hands are allowed in the ruck, the attacking team only wins 85 percent of the ball.
Furthermore, there is more incentive for the defending team to compete for the ball, and hence commit more forwards to the breakdown. As a result, although the breakdown is at times messy, it is ferociously fought and a genuine battle for possession.
The beauty of this is that less forwards are left in the backline, and the backs have more space and time. The result, as many of us who enjoyed the ARC will recall, is breathtaking rugby.
With the sanctions law currently under review, one can only hope that sanity will prevail.
The current ruck is a ‘claytons’ ruck, no more a battle for possession than the league scrum, or the rolling maul.
By allowing hands in the ruck, we will therefore kill two birds with one stone. We will remove a plethora of unnecessary penalties and infringements from the law book, and more importantly, we will restore the rugby union possession charter.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.