Leave rugby rules alone: Eddie Jones
Geez!! Eddies at it again.:S:S
Will we ever be rid of him?????
Leave rugby rules alone: Eddie Jones
| Thursday, 25 October 2007
http://www.stuff.co.nz/4249304a1823.html
Rugby World Cup-winning assistant coach Eddie Jones says there's nothing wrong with the game's rules.
Former Wallabies mentor Jones, who helped South Africa to win the title in France, said calls for an overhaul of rugby after a dour World Cup finals series were Australia-centric and reminiscent of cricket's Twenty20 snowball.
"There's nothing wrong with the game," Jones said today.
"We've had some fantastic games at the World Cup and we've had some arm wrestles at the World Cup but when you're playing for a big prize you're going to ... play quite simple rugby.
"I don't think there's anything wrong with that.
"In Europe, they don't care about the way rugby's played. If it's fast and it's free, that's good. If it's tight and grinding, that's good, and the crowds at the World Cup were enormous."
Jones also hit out at Australian rugby boss John O'Neill's suggestion that union could learn something from its 13-a-side cousin, rugby league.
"The game's not perfect but I think that we'd be very, very foolish to look at changing the game to make it like league," he said.
"I love league, I love watching league but I love watching union and I like watching all sorts of union.
"That's what we've got to be careful with, just talking about Australia.
"As much as I love the way we approach our sport, we've got to be careful we don't change the game just because we want entertainment.
"We first of all had 50-over cricket, that wasn't exciting enough, so now we've got 20-over cricket.
"So go and watch seven-a-side (rugby) or go and watch rugby league."
New South Wales coach Ewen McKenzie said he expected the International Rugby Board's (IRB) "Stellenbosch" rules, which have been warmly embraced by O'Neill, to be adopted for next year's Super 14 competition.
"I'm pretty confident that's what's going to happen," he said.
The Wallabies coaching hopeful, who tendered his submission for the job yesterday, said southern hemisphere nations might need to revert to the current laws once next year's test matches get underway.
"There's some good parts about the laws, the only problem is at the other end is what the IRB does in June next year," he said.
"Theoretically, you could go back to a test series played under the old laws.
"That would be difficult theoretically but if you're used to playing a faster, open game it's definitely easier to drop it down a gear and play the other way than the reverse."
