0
Rugby's rules will be unified this weekend
Andrew Slack
May 24, 2009 12:00am
AFTER a couple of seasons of the code being divided by the very rules under which it was played, this weekend marks the laws once again being unified.
As soon as any current competition being played anywhere in the world is completed, what the referees and players have to work with will be the same, whether the venue is Invercargill, Canberra or Limerick.
Debate as to whether the IRB has sorted out the wheat from the chaff in relation to the retained or discarded ELVs is futile. What is, is, and the game must prove it is viable in the competitive football market.
There is no more competitive environment than here in Australia, and to that end the SANZAR agreement to extend the Super series to a Super 15 tournament which will ensure a constant supply of high level competition for most of the autumn and winter is welcome news.
More home and away games and an extended finals series definitely produces a more legitimate champion more often. Although no one could argue with the legitimacy of the Crusaders' dominance of Super Rugby over the past decade or more, the element of endurance which will be part of the deal come 2011 adds credibility.
Australia is expected to provide the fifth side and that will necessarily mean a relaxation of the eligibility rules that currently apply to the other four. That there is not a single Australian team in this season's Super 14 finals indicates our depth is hardly likely to ensure a competitive fifth franchise. Overdue inclusion of Pacific Islands representatives in the fifth team would seem a necessity and provide a counter to the number of Tongan, Samoan and Fijian youngsters who now see the NRL as their best footballing meal ticket.
In the expectation the fifth side is to be based in Australia, the posturing, politicking and whatever else is required to win the vote has already begun.
Representatives of Melbourne, the Gold Coast and Sydney will all claim to have the best foundations and future for a new team. They will pitch their pluses as best they can but if this whole adventure is about spreading the gospel of rugby, it's not so much about where it's produced but what is produced.
Rugby needs to retain its identity as a game for all shapes and sizes. The type of athleticism required is different from rugby league, AFL and soccer but in today's world you can't ignore the need to entertain.
None of the codes would survive on the big stage without commercial backing, and commercial backing won't happen if the entertainment value is absent.
Rugby's laws are set in stone for the foreseeable future. What's good for the teams north of the equator must be good for the teams in the south and somewhere there needs to be a common attitude that underlines responsibility to entertain.
As a player and coach, the foremost instinct is to win at all costs. That's OK on grand final day, but winning drudgery all season long, and season-in, season-out, will not cut it with the discerning sports fan. The reality is that rugby now has to appeal to more than just the diehard rugby fans, but perhaps more so to sports fans.
It is a complex game, but the right approach from coaches, players and referees means it can be as free-flowing and attractive as any other code. That does not mean flinging the ball wide willy-nilly, but it does mean involving the skills of all 30 players on the field.
My dear uncle, who was a rugby league devotee, once said of rugby that he was led to believe it was the game they played in heaven but for his part, he couldn't understand why they even bothered playing it on earth.
He was slightly biased, but too often he had a point.
If the game is to flourish, increasing the number of teams and widening the territory isn't the key. Playing the game well is.
http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/s...003411,00.html
Reply With Quote
Laws; not rules......
