Here’s a random thought. Something out of the ordinary.
I noticed that football – the round-ball game – is proposing some changes when they resume their comp, such as more replacements.
That may just be a COVID-19 thing, but it occurred to me that with a shortened season that’s already been disrupted, now might be the time to trial some experimental laws in the game of rugby union as well.
Some ideas worth considering are the 50/20, the goal-line dropout and any others that might be seen as worthy.
(Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)
Maybe rugby should try some initiatives to speed up the feeding of scrums, or making the breakdown a bit easier for all to understand?
Maybe we could take a leaf out of the Global Rapid Rugby playbook: shorten the halves by fives minutes, but allow the ref to stop the clock for scrum breakdowns or cynical play.
Trial a blue card, which means not a send-off but a warning, so that either a number of blues means an automatic suspension next week, or something like it, so that the game flows always with 15 versus 15.
Red cards should only be handed out for blatant foul play, and reduce the punishment for yellow cards to five minutes
As I have written here before, this could be a great time to lay everything on the table and try new ideas, especially since it’s not just a COVID-19 year but also the first year in a World Cup cycle.
Who knows?
gatesy
Roar Guru
My first reaction was incredulosity, then I noticed it was you, Sheek, taking the piss! I doubt the editors would allow me to publish a poem as a post, so I thought I might take the opportunity to hijack your post and use the mechanism of a reply to publish it - I challenge them to edit it. Anyway, I had a little chat with Rupert McCall the other day about poetry and he suggested it might be a nice thing to do to write a poem about the re-start of our club season, and I just happened to have opened a nice bottle of red at the time, so I thought, why not and wrote this little piece - hope you don't mind that I have hijacked your post, but, hey, isnt that what most Roarers do with other people's posts anyway? Thanks for putting up with me - we will eventually have that beer, Sheek: - ......... The Resumption I refuse to believe that's it's not going to happen, This season of 2020, Rumours abound, there are plenty? Or will it be a fizzle No more sausage sizzle?? Life as we know it has changed I refuse to believe it - am I deranged? There is hope abounding, The curve is flattening We need to get a sounding No way, Hose Stay strong, boys and we will find a way There never will not be a Rugby Season There never will not be the Bretheren, What's the go? Give us the rub! The tribe will stand behind this great club This hardy band of men When will it get going again? Whenever it is, you can bet we are set and ready, steady go A fair bit of testosterone will be on show. Why not? Young blokes need to be hot That is the way we are wired. All those Rugby skills hard won and acquired Need to be on show and be admired The Bretheren is pumped, the dander is up, We are ready to sup from the cup of success, We are bursting at the seams, every single one of our teams, Isolated with just their season's dreams Training hard on their own, keeping up with their mates, bursting at the seams Too early to tell but we all want to play, we all want to have our Rugby foray, each and every Saturday It's a rite of passage that cant be denied, We''ll need to get back to the right side, Coaches on the money from the first 'sesh' Boys switched on and ready to impress When we get back what then? The anticipation is mind blowing, Just can't wait for lads to run out and ready to give a great showing That first kick off, that first ref's whistle blow will be sublime we will reflect on the months that have passed and say "what a crazy time" But no time for that now, the game's the thing, and how! We are back in the moment, lost in time - the ebb and flow, the heroics, it seems like no time had passed then suddenly, full time, I was having so much fun, Glad the boys won! Comes too soon! Well done the victors, a great Rugby day for the other team - oh, well, there's always next Saturday. That is just the way it is in our magic game, No two games ever the same, Tales to tell, heroic stories Past, present and future glories. My shout - must be a prop, couldn't possibly be a back, they never have any dough, at least not in their pockets, maybe in their jocks, though, The ladies seem to like it, Forwards will never know. More stories to tell from the front row and, what is it that backs do? We'll never know. Backs in a huddle across the bar what do those piggies do, anyway? Something about dark arts Magic and blokey foreplay?? You could catch a cold while they play the "dark art" I'll just polish my boots and work on my part! Yes, we could go on, and so could the season, Let's have a dream, every team, Be right there at the end. Lifting a cup Holding your hard won trophy up Plenty of room to sup A satisfying brew, the strong bonds of team - me and you, fashioned over a great season and only one reason It's why we play the great game make great mates and great friends No two seasons ever the same, Mateship that never ends. Bring it on, the Bretheren!!
sheek
Roar Guru
A suggestion or 3 I have to speed up the game, would be as follows: 1. Reduce the number of players from 15 to 13, by removing the flankers.Opens up attacking space. 2. When the player is tackled, instead of a scrum, ruck or maul, have a stand-up play-the-ball. 3. When the ball goes out, instead of having a line out, have a tap restart. Oh sorry, that's already been done? Apologies Gatesy, just being mischievous!
stillmissit
Roar Guru
Gatesy: I would like to see some changes around the scrum engagement. There is no reason for so many resets. I propose that after one reset, if it goes down again and the ref cannot see an issue then short-arm penalty to attacking team. As we all know there are rarely collapsed scrums without someone doing something and often it is obvious on the TV often boring in on opposite side to ref. The exception is very wet weather when scrums should be set higher anyway.
Mel R
Roar Rookie
How about a grid iron type fullback that can block tackles for the running back/wing who is attacking??Now that would be an interesting defensive strategy!
Iain
Guest
Nice! What I don't like about the current red card scenario for 'high' tackles is that it doesn't allow for the speed of the encounter and what the person being tackled was doing that may well have contributed significantly to the situation. Remember when Hodge got absolutely flattened by the opposing winger and yet was still penalized 3 weeks. In the same competition an English player gets nothing after leading with his forearm/elbow to his opponents shoulder/neck/head area [well that's what it looked like to me on the slow-mo replays]. So lack of consistency is another issue. They [umpires & adjudicators] don't seem to be able [or willing] to discriminate between deliberately dodgy play, poor - but not deliberate - execution of technique by either party, and a genuine accident. This is not fair to both players and spectators.
mick
Guest
Nice idea! I like the reciprocity of it.
Glider
Guest
give the game some room - defence should be made to stand back in all attack - equivalent to the same distance mandated for a lineout. the whole line of scrimmage bash n barge has become a boring war of attrition and just chokes up play in general.
Wayne
Roar Guru
Field Hockey has Green/Yellow/Red. With flexibility of Yellow being (5mins (Default), 10mins (Significant) or as long as the Umpire wants). Rare we use longer than 10mins, normally its for having a dummy spit at the officials after already being sent off, we just add a couple minutes to calm down.
Harry Jones
Expert
Red cards only for non-rugby plays. Yellow for rugby plays gone wrong. Ping all NH flyhalves (except Finn and the wee Frog) for being tossers. Refs be quieter, firmer, and march back 10 a lot!!
In brief
Guest
Here’s a couple: Remove scrum penalties (aside from dangerous play and foul play). This will remove the incentive to collapse. Make the 22 the ‘penalty box’ as per soccer. You can only take a shot at goal when penalty occurs in 22. Allow more competition at the breakdown ie no need for tackler to retreat. Increase game to 90 minutes to allow fatigue to open up play
PeterK
Roar Guru
On red cards Since yc's and rc's are easy to get when the ball carrier slips and then you make contact to the head and there was no possible way to avoid it then I believe a new orange card is needed. The red card as it works now would be for foul play like eye gouging, kicking or kneeing a player , for hitting with a closed fist and so on. A clothesline tackle , or a shoulder charge to the head would still get a red card. After all why are they going with a shoulder charge to start off with. The yc stays as it is now also. The orange card replaces the red card for other instances where you get it now. The orange card means the player is sent off and can't come back and will face the judiciary. A replacement player can be sent on BUT the time varies. It is the maximum of either 15 minutes OR the amount of time an opposition player who was hurt by the action is out of play. So if you take out a start player and they can't come back on due to injury guess what then it is like the old rc. The basis of this is the offending team cannot benefit by gaming the laws to take advantage. Of course the non offending team may game the system and not return a hurt player back to the field but so be it.
The 50/20 or 20/50 or 40/40 whatever I disagree, I eo think the red card impact needs to be addressed though.