Ben Hunt has warned the NRL’s new rules around line dropouts risk making the game more predictable, labelling the changes from head office unnecessary.
The NRL announced new rules regarding kick-offs and line dropouts on Wednesday, which remove the penalty if it doesn’t go 10 metres or goes out on the full.
The receiving team will now be handed a play-the-ball 10 metres out from where the kick was taken and 10 metres in from touch.
The NRL said in a statement it wanted to pursue a “more free-flowing and unpredictable game.”
But St George Illawarra captain Hunt and his coach Shane Flanagan warned it would likely have the opposite impact.
Hunt said it would now prompt teams to almost always take short dropouts, particularly given it is often easier to defend from a set start on their own line.
“Obviously they’re trying to get teams to go for short dropouts nearly every time. You’d be silly if you don’t,” Hunt said. “Teams will just go for short dropouts every single time.
“I don’t know (if it’s a good thing), I’m a bit undecided on that. I like the fact that teams go for short dropouts, but I don’t think we needed to change the rule. There needs to be a penalty if you get your kick wrong.
“I feel like it’s unnecessary, but we get plenty of unnecessary rule changes so we just roll with it.”
Hunt also said there would be a push away from attempting to force repeat sets, a trend he had noted in recent years with the rise in attempted short dropouts.
Ben Hunt. (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)
Flanagan added he would prefer to be given the penalty than a structured restart against the corner of the sideline.
“Sides are just going to have a crack at it now because there’s no penalty for not getting it right,” Flanagan said as the Dragons announced Squadron Energy as their new major sponsor.
“There’ll be a lot of shorter, along the ground, powerful kicks trying to find the touchline because the refs aren’t going to march over and give you a penalty. I like a bit of tradition in the game, and that’s an art to do a short dropout.
“But in the back of your mind, you know that if you don’t get it to go 10 metres then you’re going to give the opposition two points.”
The NRL also announced a spectator code of conduct on Thursday in a bid to stamp out abuse and misbehaviour of fans. The league was required to ban a fan last year when Latrell Mitchell was racially abused at Penrith in round two.
Tim Buck 3
Roar Rookie
And your team-mates are not very happy with a kicker who can't find touch.
Dionysus
Roar Rookie
In my view, the game is going well at the moment and I do question the need for yet more rule changes. I recognise that to find new ways of improving the game that one has to give it a go and that to stand still is often to go backwards but every single year we tinker with the rules that seemingly do little to improve things. So whilst generally supportive of rule changes, lets just take a breather and recognise that we have a darn good sport as it is that doesn’t need constant tinkering. Perhaps what we need is say a review / revision of the rules every 3 to 5 years with stability inbetween.
Robbo
Roar Rookie
Yes, well....that's probably part of the agenda too - don't want anyone to get hurt trying to tackle them - especially getting head on the wrong spot. NRL will be getting more and more conscious (pardon the pun) of minimisng the risk of potential head injury every year. There will be more rule changes that will take collision out of the game
Robbo
Roar Rookie
They weren't much already - should have gone the other way and penalised more if you don't get it right, not go easy. If you have to kick it 15 to make sure it goes the 10 then so be it. If you have stone that trains hard enough to regularly kick it 11 then that should be to your advantage. That player should have been allowed to be marketable on that skill
aerial lizard
Roar Rookie
They should have kept wheeling Bennie to the northern border.
aerial lizard
Roar Rookie
Short kickoffs all the time too Ken, great occasional tactic, but will negatively impact on the game if it becomes the norm.
aerial lizard
Roar Rookie
Thanks, short kickoffs annoy the crap out of me exactly for the reason you said, and more than one short dropout a half is painful too.
Dutski
Roar Guru
And kickoffs
aerial lizard
Roar Rookie
Doesn't this new rule apply to line dropouts?
the outsider
Roar Rookie
Well said. We are getting a mix now. Getting some uncertainty, getting some 'excitement'. No change needed. Stop it
Bernie
Roar Rookie
those cwafty dwagons, distracting us from the clubs twials & twibulations by wheeling out Benny for some high brow thoughts.
criag
Roar Rookie
Those in charge don't realize that by tweaking the technical rules of the game (not necessarily foul play rules...although that is another kettle of fish) as often as they do, they a) create unintended consequences (which end up requiring MORE rule changes) and b) eventually turn the game into something almost unrecognisable. I may not be in the majority, but for me there have been very few rule changes in the last decade or so (the handover rule at the end of a set being one exception) that were at all necessary....all for this mysterious desire to 'speed up' an already fast game for the unfortunate players, or somehow force teams to play a certain way. The 2-point field goal was unnecessary and arbitrary, so was the seven-tackle set, so was moving scrums from 10 to 20 metres in and from where a knock-on occurs, so was the 40/20, the 20/40, quick taps (this ain't rugby!, and the players don't seem to know the rules, anyway!), the scrum feed time clock (just a farce!), and the lottery that is Golden Point, (and a draw helps separate the teams in the table, anyway!)
Bill
Roar Rookie
Do we know how many times or what % the 2 was taken from dropouts that went wrong? I don't feel this as consequential as it seems. I see this as a more deserving punishment than previously when the kickoff goes out on the full. Ending up back in your own 20 after a penalty kick from a bad kick-off was a huge punishment.
KenW
Roar Rookie
What a weird move. 5-10 years back I would say this was unnecessary but not a terrible idea. Nobody was ever kicking short so reducing the penalty and opening up that diversity of play could be argued to be a good cause. Now though? The short kick is already being used often, do we really want all dropouts to be short?
Dutski
Roar Guru
Who loves seeing a prop coming back from the deadball line on a big charge after the kickoff, smashing into the onrushing defence? Wave goodbye to that. Nobody will kick long.
Cugel
Roar Rookie
Pointless, but compared to their usual dreck, genius
ScottWoodward.me
Roar Guru
Congratulation NRL. This rule change is a wonderful initiative.