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It’s time for rugby league to act professional. The introduction of a ‘shot clock’ for scrums and drops out is further example of a professional sport in name, but not action.
Teams will have 35 seconds to pack a scrum and 30 seconds for a drop out.
If administrators are serious about time wasting and maximising the actual league that is played, they need to stop the clock at breaks in the game.
On average, when a try is scored until the restart of play, 90 seconds disappear.
For scrums and drop outs its around 30 seconds.
Throw in penalties, captains talking to referees and a few tactical time wasting plays and the result is too much time wasting in league.
The simple solution would be – when the ball is not in play or a try is scored or penalty goal being taken – to stop the clock.
However if you stop the clock and keep halves at 40 minutes, matches will go too long. So here is more simplicity, reduce the minutes halves go for.
If tries take 90 seconds, and there are four tries in a half, thats 6 minutes. Scrums, drop outs, penalty shots for goal and you have about 4 minutes of nothingness. So 30 minute halves is the obvious number.
At least this way, you will get about the same amount of league in a match without the time-wasting tactics.
Fans would also get more for their money, with a plenty of action. It would also re-introduce fatigue as a factor and allow some of league’s more crafty, smaller players to shine like they did in the past.
What do you think, Roarers? Time to stop the clock?
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