Game's gone

[AB90]

12 minutes ago, RP London said:

or, and i know this is controversial, but the players could just learn and not hit people in the head, go in with swinging arms etc.. There'll always be the odd dodgy call but seriously the players just need to lower their tackle height.

 

It will happen and we will get on with it its just the first few weeks of serious crackdowns always start like this.

It’s just not that simple as saying ‘learn to not hit people in the head’. That’s like saying ‘maybe footballers should learn when they tackle to get the ball not the man’ to avoid seriously injuring people. 

Players run the ball with the intention of making it as hard as possible for the defender to tackle them by making split second decisions right at the point of contact like side steps, dropping their body weight, bracing for contact, raising their arms to protect themselves, lowering their head etc. 

If players lower their tackle height that will naturally increase the concussion rate for the defenders.

[sweaty craiq]

5 hours ago, Coggo said:

Seems to be a lot of folk unhappy with not only the ‘soft’ red cards but also the unintended consequences this is having vis a vis gamesmanship.

The fake ‘head injury’ incident in the Catalans vs Warrington game was particularly egregious.

Maybe these people should not be instantly dismissed as flatcappers and the like?

Fake head at Leigh also got someone a yellow - the inconsistency was shocking this weekend gone, rules tweaked to speed up a game being applied and ignored in equal measure. What is apparent is that the spear tackle is now legal.

[RP London]

10 minutes ago, AB90 said:

It’s just not that simple as saying ‘learn to not hit people in the head’. That’s like saying ‘maybe footballers should learn when they tackle to get the ball not the man’ to avoid seriously injuring people. 

Players run the ball with the intention of making it as hard as possible for the defender to tackle them by making split second decisions right at the point of contact like side steps, dropping their body weight, bracing for contact, raising their arms to protect themselves, lowering their head etc. 

If players lower their tackle height that will naturally increase the concussion rate for the defenders.

yes... I'm fully aware after playing the game for 20 years of what players try to do.. I am also fully aware that "accidents will happen" and they will then get punished accordingly, I am not expecting everything to work out perfectly, in the same way as in football when they change laws it doesnt stop every incidence becuase of "accidents" but it drastically reduces them which is good (same with a general law, its illegal to for example, speed but people still do it some by accident some more deliberately, but the limits change people's behaviour over time).. but there are far too may tackles happening that increase the possibility of said accident (ie they start far too high).. and they can be eliminated. 

The last point is just not true.. there has been studies done about the ideal tackle height (for a defender) which is around the midriff and waist.. these became heavily quoted when RU thought to lower the height to below the waist last year and they had to backtrack as their own research was telling them they were dropping the height too low. You can say "hit lower" without meaning ankles/knees..

"High tackles" arent just about swinging arms either, they are about contact where its the "bear hug" style where the defender is at as much risk of concussion injuries as the attacker with head on head contact.. 

It really is as simple as stop aiming high. people will get used to it but it will take time, it has happened before when we have outlawed different styles of contact and people change.. 

[RP London]

16 minutes ago, sweaty craiq said:

Fake head at Leigh also got someone a yellow - the inconsistency was shocking this weekend gone, rules tweaked to speed up a game being applied and ignored in equal measure. What is apparent is that the spear tackle is now legal.

it will be interesting to see next week as the refs will have had a week to review this type of thing. Hopefully we will see this much better in a few weeks when good reviews hopefully iron some issues out. 

I do agree they need to sort out the "lying on the floor so the video ref can look at the incident" style "injuries" that we see but not sure how we do that without crossing the line on player welfare/safety.. I'm sure its possible though

[LeeF]

1 hour ago, Sports Prophet said:

I like the idea of reducing the team by one player for the remainder of the match in the case of a red card yet only reducing the players on the pitch for ten minutes.

Did I see two yellow’s make a red on the weekend? Is that actually a thing in RL?

Nope. Never has been. 

[EggFace]

3 hours ago, Sports Prophet said:

I don’t think so

I thought AFL keeps it 18 a side ?

[Chrispmartha]

We have the same thread every year and especially when there are rule changes. It always settles down.

We have to remember it’s new for the refs aswell.

The PTB rule is working a treat and so is the new six again rule.

The one thing that is worse than the new rules or the refs is players play acting and waving their arms around after every tackle, that needs sorting out, but as I say it will naturally sort itself out when everyone gets used to it.

I think refs should use the green card a lot quicker personally, it might cut down the play acting 

[Sports Prophet]

1 hour ago, EggFace said:

I thought AFL keeps it 18 a side ?

You can’t get sent off in AFL.