The NRL will review the one-on-one strip rule at the end of the NRL season but head of football Graham Annesley says there’s no guarantee it will change.
Brought in at the start of last year, coaches have began using the law which allows defenders to drop off tackles before the last remaining player pinches the ball.
Sydney Roosters coach Trent Robinson claimed on Sunday that referees were finding it hard to judge, echoing similar calls from Warriors mentor Stephen Kearney last month.
Canberra coach Ricky Stuart also complained referees were having to “guess” if the second tackler had dropped off in time, despite his team becoming the best exponent of the law.
And Annesley admitted it would be looked at come the end of the season by the competition committee.
“I’m sure it will be (looked at). I’m not suggesting it will be thrown out. We will look at these things in light of how they evolve,” Annesley said.
“We will get the competition committee together and we’ll look at everything that happened across the season and we will consider all those views.
“Whether it can be continued to refereed to the standard that we expect and whether it adds excitement.
“Or is it something that has now got out of hand and we need to adjust it?”
Robinson also argued it was unfair to ball carriers, who who were unaware they were going to become susceptible to a rake as they fought off being wrestled in a three-man tackle.
However, proponents of the law argue that it places more onus on ball security from the attacking player.
“This is not a new rule. This interpretation ran all through last year, and barely a murmur. But coaching has now adapted to it,” Annesley said.
“It does bring a lot of unpredictability into our play and many people would see it as a great part of the game.”
farkurnell
Roar Rookie
Yes Albo I tend to agree.Sure there's unpredicatability in that possession will change hands,however there gunna be more predictability in players not off loading - attack will be stiffled and less entertaining for the fans.Attackers will go into tackles with total ball security in mind and the offload will be gone with the dodo bird.
Soda
Roar Rookie
I don't mind the strip rule in theory, as it rewards ball security and ads an element of unpredictablity to the back and forth of sets. However in practice it is far from working.
Clint
Guest
Great summation Meggsy. Agree that it will only lead to more wrestling. We're already seeing it this year. Counter tactic will be ball runners tucking the ball up tight, running full speed to get over advantage line then dropping to "find their front" as soon as an opposition player so much as lays a finger on them, thus avoiding the strip and getting a quick play-the-ball so dummy can scoot and catch players offside. Obviously most teams already do this, only now it will get way worse. Yay.
William Dalton Davis
Roar Rookie
It’s not perfect but I personally prefer this. How many have the refs genuinely gotten wrong? Not instances where it was close I’m talking genuinely, flat out, wrong. I reckon I could probably count them on one hand. If anything it needs a slight tweak and that’s it. Having your hands up shouldn’t be good enough and you have to get away from the tackle maybe, but I think that’s it.
jimmmy
Roar Rookie
Excellent summary of why this new rule is total bs.
jimmmy
Roar Rookie
Gang tackles have not existed for most of Rugby Leagues existence. The strip rule was brought in because in a three on one tackle unless you are able to drop to the ground quickly it’s impossible to hold the ball . If you coach a footy team try this experiment with one player holding the ball in one arm one, one defending player engaging the ball and at least one other player locking the opposite arm to the body. See if any player can retain the ball during a choreographed strip. You will change your mind.
Harry
Guest
Full disclosure, I’m a Raiders fan so obviously I love seeing how good my team has become at taking advantage of the new stripping rule. That said, anything that makes rugby league less predictable and takes it a little bit away from the stale old “four hit ups through the middle, spread the ball wide once, kick on the last, repeat for 80 minutes” format that it’s become in the modern era is welcome as far as I’m concerned.
JOHN ALLAN
Guest
"Tongue in cheek " observation. Bloody Pommies. Originally sent here for stealing bread. Breaking the law. Now over 200 years later Ricky's Poms have mastered the art of stealing a football. Within the law.
BA Sports
Roar Guru
Well when there is a lose carry in the Finals and your team get pinged for stripping - because they try to do it in every set so the unsure referee hedges that there was a play at the ball, prepare to be outraged again...
Ginger Meggs
Guest
The current ruling on one on one strips as the conclusion of a three man tackle is an added incentive for exponents of the wrestle to ramp up their expertise in this dark art. League fans who enjoy the introduction these TV wrestling tactics, citing the excitement of the unpredictability it brings to the game switch to the game that features the ultimate in unpredictability, the rugby union ruck. Now there is a real smo-mo break in the flow of the game. A great pile of players scrabbling for the ball and a refereeing nightmare of “off your feet” and “come in from the side” and other inscrutable rulings. This is where the rugby league play the ball is heading. If you want unpredictability bring back the marker being allowed to strike for the ball. The wrestle is with us forever I am afraid, because it is so effective in allowing the defending side to get reset, and with we have its inevitable and ugly side effect tactics that it has facilitated. The chicken wing, the crusher, the three man spear tackle, all capable of causing injury. Or the time-wasting pile-on, slow peel-off, step-over and the limb tangle, all ably demonstrated ad nauseam by the Maestro, Cameron Smith, in every game he plays. The Storm football and wrestling coach have led the way in this devolution of the game and are still way ahead of the rest in its execution. Watching a Storm game fluctuates between the excitement of their brilliant attack and game management and the stultifying effect of the choreographed bear waltzing their defence brings to bear on the opposition. I hope that the League restores the previously unwritten prevailing interpretation of the strip, being that once two men are in the tackle no deliberate stripping of the ball is permitted. The referee then to determine whether a lost ball is caused by a loose carry, a defenders legitimate effort to prevent an offload, or an illegal deliberate strip.
Noosa Duck
Roar Rookie
Great rule , three players get to belt the bloke with the ball in a tackle, 2 drop off when the third bloke lets them know he has a secure grip on the ball, then gets to rip it clear. It is not a great rule and it has nothing to do with ball security because the ball is being forcibly ripped out of your grasp pretty much when the tackle is completed. I have no problem with a one on one strip, but this rule is like belting a bloke with a cosh then taking his wallet out of his pocket.
DNZ
Guest
I'm a Raiders fan so there's obvious bias but I love the rule. I was sick to death of whinging players pretending their loose carry was a strip and I think this brings a bit more accountability to the ball carrier without stopping them from wanting an offload if it's there.
Edward Kelly
Roar Guru
As pointed out on NRL 360 it is only a problem to the teams that haven't been up to speed (looking at you Roosters). Why players are surprised when they are stripped of the ball suggests some of them were really playing for the penalty. So in the end players will have to hold onto the ball better. I think that is a good result for the game.
steve b
Roar Guru
Have to agree with Albo i hate the stripping rule the refs just cant get it right it cheapens the game . I agree with Robo from the chooks the players are worried about self preservation when running at the opposition trying to hang on to the ball while being ripped in three directions is a major feat in itself . Just get rid off the worst rule in rugby league i am sure the refs would like to see it gone .
Albo
Roar Rookie
I'm with you jimmy. I hate the stripping rule completely. Not sure who decided we needed more "unpredictability" in the game ? We have plenty of that already with officials decisions, and the current stripping rule only adds more controversy for referees to deal with judging the legality or not of a ball strip . I would outlaw the strip altogether, and I'm sure you would suddenly see a massive increase in "ball security" from the players, and those pommies in Canberra will just need to do some more tackling.
Boz
Guest
And yet, for most of Rugby League's existence, you have been allowed to strip the ball - no matter how many in the tackle. The whole argument that it's impossible to hold onto the ball when three guys are tackling you is rubbish too. People need to understand that Rugby League isn't a tackle version of touch football. It's bad enough with just about every dropped ball called a knock-on. Having more unpredictability in the game is a good thing. The only thing I would change about the rule is let them strip no matter how many in the tackle. Make it easier for the refs.
jimmmy
Roar Rookie
The ‘ Swan Lake’ rule has to go . That choreography of dropping off a tackle on the command of ‘Swan Dive’ is a blight on the game. As for the ‘ yeah but you should hold onto the ball’ argument’ . Seriously? There are three players in a tackle . One holding one arm, the other burrowing into the ball carrying arm and the third around your shoulders. Somehow the tackled player must hold the ball when two drop off and the third one simultaneously strips it. Atlas himself would lose the ball in that tackle. It’s impossible to keep it. Perfect example of unintended consequences of a rule change.