May 18th, 2003 was a historic day in rugby league. On that day at Brookvale Oval, the Manly Sea Eagles won the first ever game under golden point rules, beating Parramatta 36-34.
Ben Walker piloted a penalty goal between the posts at the Pittwater Road end to usher in a new era for the game.
The date is also significant for the fact that it represents Manly’s only golden point victory, and that it came via a penalty goal – the rarest of golden point winning methods.
As of last Saturday, Manly played in the 80th golden point game, with a familiar conclusion for them – a loss. This time it was a loss to the Canterbury Bulldogs in one of the games of the season.
The Penrith Panthers have won more golden pointers than any other side, with 8 wins in 14 sudden death matches. St George Illawarra and Newcastle Knights have the worst percentage records, both with 2 wins out of 10 while the Melbourne Storm possess the best conversion rate, with 4 wins, 2 draws and 1 loss out of their 7 drawn games.
But for this league watcher, golden point has had its day. It’s time to consign it to the same closet as contested scrums, barber shop corner posts and kicking duels. It is completely unnecessary during the regular season.
A draw was a valid result for the first 90 odd years of the game’s history, and so it can be again. For finals or representative games that do need a winner on the day, let’s get back to the practice of extra time – ten minutes each way.
If the result is still level after that, then I grant you, there may be a need for the sudden death option, but only in finals games after both teams have had the chance to win it in those extra minutes.
Two things are fundamentally flawed in golden point. The first is the notion that a game played to a time limit becomes something else entirely. A team can win without the other side even touching the ball, with no chance for a defending side to even attempt a score.
The second is that the field goal becomes priority and so the option of spreading the ball and going for a try becomes obsolete. Since 2010, only one game that went to golden point has been decided by a try.
With this emphasis on the field goal comes the ignoring of the ten metres. Referees bosses can deny it all they want, but they are ultimately reluctant to whistle up a penalty in front of the posts and virtually hand a team a victory.
Last Saturday’s Eagles-Bulldogs epic saw the ten metres flagrantly ignored by both sides and either could have been penalised for trying too hard to smother the attempted field goal.
This all goes back to the desperation the impost of sudden death puts on both players and referees. It might well be thrilling but it is ultimately unfair.
Rugby league adopted the golden point idea from football, who introduced golden goal to their competitions in 1993. The very first golden goal was scored in Brisbane by the Australian Under-20 side in the World Youth Cup quarter final against Uruguay.
The method was tinkered with and eventually abandoned. League has a history of borrowing ideas from other codes who then themselves abandon it. The finals McIntyre System was copied from the AFL, who then ironically switched to the same top eight system the NRL had originally used and which have now switched back to.
Golden point is an idea rugby league can give up on too.
mpc
Guest
Regular Season: draw after 80 minutes (no golden point). Also have 3 points for winning by 19 or more points, 2 points for winning by less than 19, 1 for a draw, 0 for losing by less than 19 and -1 for losing by less than 19. Punish teams who quit. Playoffs: 20 minutes of extra time (10 each way), then 10 minutes of golden point, then a drop goal shootout
The Barry
Guest
So there's no point making them play 40 minutes first....
Professor Rosseforp
Guest
"we" didn't feel the need to get rid of draws -- but the football officials and the bookmaking fraternity probably did.
Albatross
Guest
We hear you Brett! Point made.
The Barry
Guest
That kind of thinking causes more problems than it solves. Refs aren't doing their job properly so let's change the rules. It's like having someone working for you who can't do their job properly. You train them up, give them a different job or you manage them out you don't change the job description.
The Barry
Guest
I haven't read anything you've written that demonstrates the slightest knowledge or understanding of the game. Just angry incoherent rants. Read before you rant. 100% origin SERIES wins. Bahaha.
Glenn Innes
Guest
Hugo - NOT VIRTUALLY HANDING THEM THE GAME- THEY WOULD BE HANDING THE GAME FULLSTOP!In a regular season game that is not such a big deal but in say a grand final?No ref is going to hand a team a grand final with a golden point penalty and who can blame them.So what you get is a load of crap where the first team to get some field position usually wins. Not the quickest way to decide the game, the fairest way, which is what we had for ninety years until some buffoon with nothing else to do elected to change it, two ten minute periods of extra time. It is not like we regularly get games that are level at the end of eighty minutes. I am sure the players are up to playing an extra twenty minutes every now and then.
soapit
Guest
because there is a right of reply in those ten minutes brett. maybe it should be like touch where after a score the other team gets 1 set to level (or win)
soapit
Guest
definitely for finals there should be extra time first. home and away not fussed either
hugo
Guest
"Referees bosses can deny it all they want, but they are ultimately reluctant to whistle up a penalty in front of the posts and virtually hand a team a victory." And that there is the reason golden point has to go. Whats the point of the games rules being ignored by the clueless, unconfident excuse we have for the current crop of referees. If they cant control a game properly, then best to take the responsibility out of there hands. Their not up to it.
The Barry
Guest
If teams are good enough to be level at full time (or not good enough to put the other team away) why shouldn't there be a bit of luck to sort them out. It seems fairer than making them play 20-40 extra mins of footy. If the problem is refs not blowing penalties then the solution is to make them blow penalties not find a convoluted way around it. It comes back to accountability. If refs were accountable for not blowing a penalty when a defender was 5 metres offside then they'd start blowing penalties. If players cost their team games by giving away penalties they would stop doing it.
Gus Paella
Guest
What if nobody scores?
Statler and Waldorf
Roar Guru
so can we extend the logic to: If two teams are equal at the 70th minute and that is OK then why is it no OK if they are equal at the 80th minute? (except for finals for obvious reasons)
The Barry
Guest
You might grind a few players into the dirt.
Statler and Waldorf
Roar Guru
golden point could in theory go on forever......
The Barry
Guest
That makes it more of a lucky dip than golden point.
The Barry
Guest
Did nothing? - series winning SOLO try. that's something. 100% origin series win rate - better than any other half in the comp. as good as any half in history!
Gazzatron
Guest
Eve if a field goal is scored in extra time they should play out the remaining minutes.
turbodewd
Guest
Im not paying to watch a draw! no thanks.
Adam
Guest
Were those articles also written after Manly losses? The best team doesn't always win, life isn't always fair, the race doesn't always go the swift nor the battle to the strong, etc, etc. If Games were officiated well, ie offside was policed, I don't see the problem. Some one has to win and scoring tries isn't the only skill involved in rugby league. So is drop kicking and so is field position and so is defending.