8 replies to this topic

[lionsfanusa]

Wait a minute, it was posted on Saturday April 16th, which just happens to be my birthday! What a birthday present! Thanks, Spelly!

Let's ban scrums because the refs can't enforce the rules?? OK, then, let's ban the play the ball, after all they can't enforce the rules there, either. How about adopting the forward pass, after all, from what I saw at the Halifax match, they can't enforce the forward pass rule either. What's next? If we can't enforce the rules on anything, let's have a free for all, last man standing's team wins!

OK, I'm joking but.....

When I was a mere lad of (about) 19, I was the regular scrum half for an amateur team that played home matches right across Swinton Hall Road from the hallowed ground of Station Road. One of the low lights of my career, if you can call it that, was to be removed by the ref from my scrum half position for consistent illegally feeding the second row. The fact we were one our way to losing 104-0 didn't gain me any sympathy. The point is, refs used to have the power to police scrums and even more important, the scrum was the focal point of all the wonderful skilled halfback and threequarter play that the Lions of the early sixties were so famous for and so successful at.

While you may be a gentleman and a scholar, Mr Spellman, in my humble opinion in this case you are totally wrong! Au contraire, bring back the competitive scrum!! The game is a shadow of its former self without scrums!

Just my opinion, mon ami!

[lionsfanusa]

I forgot to say he made these inflamatory and seditious statements on the club site!

[Spelly]

A belated happy birthday mate that goes all the way across the Pond!

Just like every other member of this board, you are 101% entitled to your opinion, but on this occasion my friend we'll beg to differ!

I maintain that in today's game scrums are pointless! They take six men out of the contest for about 10/15 seconds, the loose-forward no longer "binds", coz all he does is lean on the a***s of the second-rowers!

When did a scrum last go against the feed? I've not seen one for a lonnnnnnnng time!

Do you really want to return to the days when contested scrums took forever to complete, with Clay, Lindop, et al waiting until the fifth or sixth attempt before they were happy? I don't! I prefer action to non-action!

Swimmers are now regularly doing times that Mark Spitz could only have dreamed of. In athletics, a miler is today breaking the tape before Roger Bannister had even rounded the final bend. At the oche, Phil Taylor has pushed the three dart average about ten points more than when the Crafty Cockney ruled the game. So why should the sport that you and I love so much not have improved with age?

Not for a minute do I think you'll change your mind mon ami, and I look forward to your next visit to Blighty when we can discuss this face to face!

Spelly.

Edited by Spelly, 22 April 2011 - 01:32 PM.

[lionsfanusa]

A belated happy birthday mate that goes all the way across the Pond!

Just like every other member of this board, you are 101% entitled to your opinion, but on this occasion my friend we'll beg to differ!

I maintain that in today's game scrums are pointless! They take six men out of the contest for about 10/15 seconds, the loose-forward no longer "binds", coz all he does is lean on the a***s of the second-rowers!

When did a scrum last go against the feed? I've not seen one for a lonnnnnnnng time!

Do you really want to return to the days when contested scrums took forever to complete, with Clay, Lindop, et al waiting until the fifth or sixth attempt before they were happy? I don't! I prefer action to non-action!

Swimmers are now regularly doing times that Mark Spitz could only have dreamed of. In athletics, a miler is today breaking the tape before Roger Bannister had even rounded the final bend. At the oche, Phil Taylor has pushed the three dart average about ten points more than when the Crafty Cockney ruled the game. So why should the sport that you and I love so much not have improved with age?

Not for a minute do I think you'll change your mind mon ami, and I look forward to your next visit to Blighty when we can discuss this face to face!

Spelly.

I completely agree, the way scrums are now, they are completely pointless. as is the fake play-the-ball. But where do we stop? Before we know it, it's not Rugby League!

I know you don't like rugby union but they can organize a reasonable version of a scrum, sdo why can't RL?

Over to you!

By the way, my efforts on your behalf to get more exposure for your blog would indicate you need a better pr guy than me!

[Spelly]

I don't need a PR guy mate, I'm infamous enough as it is!

I realise my views won't go down well with a lot of people, but I still maintain that the game would benefit if we got rid of the (apology for)scrums we have at present!

A hooker is a third half-back in today's game, and much as I loved Dickie Evans when he was our No. 9, I'm afraid his style of play would get him nowhere at all in modern RL.

The game is so much faster these days, and the pace of Super League is frightening!

The standard of tactical kicking is so much better as well. Do you want to return to unlimited tackles? I certainly don't!

The Greatest Game on the Planet, has changed huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugley whilst I've been a fan, but there's one more change I'd love to see........................

GET RID OF THOSE BLOODY SCRUMS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Catch you soon mate!

Spelly.

[who cares?]

I know you don't like rugby union but they can organize a reasonable version of a scrum, sdo why can't RL?

can they?

takes usually at least 5 minutes and is constantly fed

and spelly, if scrums were to be got rid of, what would they be replaced with?

[Spelly]

can they?

takes usually at least 5 minutes and is constantly fed

and spelly, if scrums were to be got rid of, what would they be replaced with?

It couldn't be simpler!

Re-commence the game with a "tap" á la as is the second phase of a penalty kick to touch, or a zero tackle play-the-ball as after a "handover" following a sixth tackle.

Over to you mate!

Spelly.

[who cares?]

It couldn't be simpler!

Re-commence the game with a "tap" á la as is the second phase of a penalty kick to touch, or a zero tackle play-the-ball as after a "handover" following a sixth tackle.

Over to you mate!

Spelly.

could work, as i think a penalty would be too harsh for a knock on or forward pass etc could be fun if line outs were brought in as a replacemnt as well

[Barnie]

a scrum is used to take the forwards out of the defensive line to give the smaller faster backs a change of doing something, our game is about speed, look at the NRL, greatest comp in the world, makes SL look like kids RL, and thats because of speed and power. A tap would lead to a big guy driving it in, BORING!