I just watched our Under 20’s get demolished by the Baby Blacks in the Junior World Trophy. The thing that annoys the hell out of me is the amount of influence on our rugby union players by rugby league.
This has been slowly building in Australia for years, and is now endemic in union. Most young players follow league closely, have favourite league players, and are great admirers of the ‘big hit’ and the ‘big run’, thus getting isolated and penalised for no arms in the tackle.
These are my main concerns regarding the impact this love of league produces:
* Little support for players taking the ball up, either forwards prepared for a breakdown/pass or backs looking for a pass/breakdown
* Preference to standing in the defensive line rather than contest a breakdown, i.e. the White Flag v All Blacks in Wellington last year
* Strong support for making a big run instead of doing the job needed, i.e. the ‘Dunning’ factor
* Cross field crabbing by backs, which is classic league
* Prefer to take the ball to tackle rather than look for support or a pass
* Throwing 20 percent passes just before they get tackled instead of off loading earlier
* Poor breakdown work with little commitment, and almost no counter rucking
* Scrummaging that is barely competitive
* Forwards have no idea of running in pods, and prefer to play alone
* Players seem to almost ignore the chase after a kick in mid field.
The two points I would like to see us take from league is the offload in the tackle, and the tactical kicking, both of which we don’t do well.
The points I have made above were all on show today against the baby blacks, and they were on show against the English last week.
If we are not prepared to learn our game, and play to the level of New Zealand and South Africa then our position at number four in the world is deserved. The only thing that keeps us competitive is our ability to run with the ball, and our fitness, this will not be enough against the All Blacks or the South Africans in this years Tri-Nations.
sixo_clock
Roar Guru
test ul test em test big test strong test u
Comet
Guest
I did not see any of the under 20s game, but I understand exactly what stillmissit is saying. Unfortunately the situation is not helped by the ARU CEO taking every opportunity to bag the game of rugby in the press when the real problem is that we don't know how to play it properly.
stillmissit
Roar Guru
Gilbank - nice little troll and I will bite. I speak to a few older RL supporters who decry where their game is going with no scrums and any number of head high tackles, 3 in the tackle, grapple tackle etc etc Open our minds!, would be nice if you showed us one we could compare ours to. You must be a youngster who has zero experience, even of your own code?
SA
Guest
im sure rugby players in africa are looking for that privelage and silverspoons now. i've been cheated, i sure as hell did not get that.
Jock M
Guest
Gilbank, Rugby was an entirely different game to League and much more successful with the latter reduced to being played and watched in a very few far flung locations. Rugby has now trashed itself by taking up professionalism lock,stock and barrel and destroying its brand in the process. Coaches,players,admistrators and so on are acting like Rugby League because there is now no difference in the basic tenants of the two games. You can never under estimate what effect the changing of laws will have on anything to do with life in general whether it be in our Parliaments or on our sporting filelds. Rugby has lost its way because no one has stood up and defended its very core values which were encompassed in its laws of the game.
adrien66
Guest
I agree they are ahead of their time
titus
Guest
How do you explain the NZers who are far from a "priviledged" background and still dislike RL?
Gilbank
Guest
These young fellas are only ahead of their time. In a few years time your pathetically boring game will go the whole hog and try and steal all of RL's rules to make yawn XV more entertaining. Of course, your prejuidice and old school tie mentality will justify it somehow. You union guys are born into privelage and die with silverspoons still firmly stuck up your derrieres, blinded by class and keeping up with daddy, stuck in your little bubbles of a contirived world like neo in the Matrix (or something). Open your minds.
Gary Russell-Sharam
Guest
LAS I agree with your asertion of wanting more players like Ioane but spare me the Giteau's. Giteau was on the end of two really brilliant moves in the test against England but that's what it was "on the end of the move". I would suspect that if anyone on the backline had been backing up instead of Giteau they would have scored those tries. I have a sixteen year old son who could have thrown the ball over from where Giteau missed that shot at goal. What a good solid article "stillmissit" some real points of interest that I agree with. I say with my head in dreamland "bring back rucking" I can't help myself whenever I get on this forum to voice that. I too agree that some degree of responsibility lies with coaches, they should be coaching these boys to play rugby not slip into a league style. I have seen this first hand coaching at teenage level especially the crabbing across field, But one thing I do like about league influence it sure teachs them how to tackle one on one.
sixo_clock
Roar Guru
Dear dear Trumpetblower, League is not being BLAMED at all. Only its INFLUENCE stemming probably from its level of TV coverage. You have to admit that the REASON there can never be a free flowing interchange of players between our different codes is the central element of what is being discussed. That the methods, tactics and mindset of a league player has virtually no currency on the Rugby Pitch. We are a team sport which requires every single action to have at its core 'What Is Best For The Team Here', in league you can for an entire career just go for a gallop. The original analysis is absolutely correct in pinpointing the source of this 'bad' influence and it very correctly has been posted for discussion in a Union forum where we may be able to influence some Union coaches to address this Union problem. Ps: CAPITALS for emphasis only, not sms shouting. Apology forthcoming, or can't you admit you made a mistake?
LeftArmSpinner
Roar Guru
and then you see a try like Giteau's first one, with Ioane going through so beautifully and with complete surprise to the defender, and you realise the difference between league and rugby. Rugby needs more of Ioane and Giteau. and the players will enjoy it more too.............
stillmissit
Roar Guru
Jock M - The officials should just enforce the bloody laws and stop this constant fiddling with interpretations. If the rules are wrong then go through an intensive review and testing process and then implement them not the farting around that goes on by a bunch of guys in the IRB who could not make a decision if the house was on fire. No wonder the Stellenbosch changes were destroyed.
stillmissit
Roar Guru
PeterK - how pathetic is this. How can we build a world beating rugby nation with boofheads like these guys influencing every promising young prop to give rugby away and try weight lifting (maybe). We seem to be all about flash moments and lets skip the hard work. During my time I would hear how fast and big someone was etc and I would ask what do they know about rugby and the general answer was they played League but would make huge meters in Union. They usually failed after the first few weeks with numerous turnovers and many yellow and the occasional red card.
stillmissit
Roar Guru
MattyP - your argument should hold some water but the reality is that the games are fundamentally different. The need to maintain or win possession as opposed to being given possession changes everything. Sure as Jock says above there is a closing gap between rugby union and league but that is really only in Australia. We barely hold our own against forwards who are drilled in the breakdown from 1-8 ie AB, SA and some of Nth hemi teams. In my time there was a clear distinction between League and Union with little cross fertilisation apart from the occasional defection to League and almost zero interest from either side in playing the other game. These days with everything professional, Rugby League is as valid as Union as is AFL or any other professional sport where you might get a start and a good salary. I don't think this helps any of the codes to keep their game unique.
MattyP
Guest
SMI, I agree with your argument that Australian rugby players are influenced by league. But that's hardly news, right? If anything, if you subscribe to the view that the two codes are slowly become more alike, shouldn't that be to our advantage, if handled correctly? I coach high school rugby in the US. Most of my kids have a gridiron background. When they start, we make a point of emphasising the differences in the games, their strategies, the roles of players. And we turn try to use the strengths that they have from gridiron to our advantage as a rugby team. Eliminate the differences, emphasise the strengths. Should be easier for professional coaches working with professional players who grew up with rugby, who are merely "influenced" by league, I think. League influence should be viewed as a strength, not a weakness. It just needs to be handled the right way.
Jock M
Guest
Some of us but too few unfortuneately have repeatedly stated that there is now very little difference between Rugby and Rugby League. This is entirely due to law changes in the breakdown area. The corporate moguls who run the game have made it virtually impossible for the defence to compete for the ball and have given the attacking side every advantage in maintaining pssession.(eg-being able to play the ball on the ground,hands in ruck,tackler must roll away). Now we have kids who know nothing of the game pre professionalism and who for all and intents and purposes differ very little from League players. The language used by the current generation of Rugby players is offensive-they talk of hit ups,hits etc. Rugby as we knew it and how it is meant to be is dead. Let us begin to organise a breakaway game that restablishes the basic tenants of Rugby.
ThelmaWrites
Guest
Stillmissit Reading your aticle was like a Eureka moment - you know, bright light bulb. I'm stunned. It seems like more mountains to climb.
Peter K
Guest
I noticed all the rep teams picked forwards for attacking prowess i.e running the ball, and 1or 2 for big hit tackling. Players who were technically correct at forward skills, even those with very high work rate doing the in tight stuff were totally ignored. So this is the feedback they get from an early age, need to play flash to get picked for higher honours.
stillmissit
Roar Guru
Timmy - I agree about Eddie and the damage he did to Australian rugby. He also idolised League players and was somewhat disparaging about union players, therefore the scrum wasn't necessary, players weight and gym work was more important. Possession was king regardless of how slow it came out, it was more important NOT TO MAKE A MISTAKE than play to win the bloody game. He was a constipated, stats obsessed, little man with a no balls and a big brain. Can't get worse than that in my book.
stillmissit
Roar Guru
It is all very well to identify this issue but what can be done about it? I guess we should start with coaches and selections. Then we should invite every RU commentator/reporter into a meeting and explain the game of rugby to them over a 2 day intensive course. Believe me there are very few in Australia who know how the game should be played and one of them is the National coach. Then we should explain game plans and what's a captains responsibilities and then who are the key players and what is their basic role on a rugby pitch, this would be a good start. I am sure some of you smarties can add to this as it is getting a little late for me - still I guess you get the drift.