Saving JRL. Otherwise The 'knock on' effect will ruin the NRL.

[Covertackle]

Last night, I listened to the Grahame Hughes Footy program on the radio. A junior RL coach rang up and said he was quitting Coaching as he couldn't in all conscience keep encouraging kids onto the footy field when they were getting smashed by huge players. He said he had started the season with 24 kids in his team. Yesterday he had only 10 kids left on the list as most of them were out with broken bones. His young son currently has broken ribs...

This is going to kill RL if something isn't done. My belief is that the interchange keeps big players in the game, as there is less natural aerobic attrition. Smaller players once came into their own when big blokes got tired.

Ultimately JRL will spell the end of the NRL as a elite national sporting code. In city areas all over the country, huge kids are injuring smaller players. Kids who once were not considered small, are. In country areas its not as bad. But these country areas ultimately have rep sides. When the country boys rep teams play the HUGE city kids, the country boys get smashed. It wont take country parents long to realise, just as their city counterparts have that there is no future in RL for their talented kids. AFL and Soccer will benefit.

I totally agree that players should now be graded by weight instead of age. It may not be perfect, but it will keep JRL kids in the game. No one wants to see kids get hurt.

THEY are the Darren Lockyers, Greg Inglises, Roy Asotasis and Daniel Mortimers of the future - the short, the tall, the heavy and the light.
But with soccer and the AFL wolf-clawing at the door and real concern that small players are being driven from rugby league by the heavy frames of early developers and kids with Polynesian backgrounds, officials, parents and coaches are grappling with the issue of whether children of different builds should all play together.

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...832755626?nk=c1e78e813cd2fc41478345cafbfb9dfd

 

[papabear]

imo the biggest issue is in 10s-15s when at stages u have 40kg kids verse 80kg men.


At this point instead of grading I would go into weight divisions but set a limit on age as well, ie you cant have 15 yr olds playing 10 yr olds.

 

[Aucklander]

Again?

You don't even like or support Rugby league anymore.

A couple of posts from the Suns v Titans crowd thread.

Cheap and nasty. Like the game.

I loved RL. Worshipped RL players in the 70s and 80s. I played RL for 20 years and was a rep player.

I'm now a GCS supporter. My kids play AFL footy in QLD.

Don't tell me I don't know which way the wind is blowing.

This just seems like another anti-RL post which you've become well known for and I doubt the subject will get much debate here.

papabear absolutely agree. I'll admit that, even watching my 17 year old son going up against far bigger blokes in senior footy is quite scary.

 

[Covertackle]

Do you ever stop loving something you loved?

I will post tomorrow...

 

[Aucklander]

Do you ever stop loving something you loved?

I will post tomorrow...

If you're serious it's an issue which is worthy of debate and most definitely needs action.

 

[robbieando]

If you're serious it's an issue which is worthy of debate and most definitely needs action.

This.

Make it code vs code and we'll be putting lock on it. Issue of size is worth a debate but will it ruin Rugby League? Nah

 

[Covertackle]

Ok.

Firstly Mel, I respect your love for RL and your investment in it with your extremely talented boy. I still love RL. Im more like a jilted lover I guess.

AT THE TOP

*Players are 20% bigger than they once were. Yet the size of the field remains the same.

*Rule changes have restricted skill and allowed a prototype player to exist.

*Scrums were once an important area in the game, as every scrum was a contest to win the ball. Players with skill were selected over players with size..

*Get rid of the interchange. It keeps the tired prototype drones in the game instead of wearing out from attrition.

*Getting rid of the interchange will once again allow the importance of skilful smaller players to take advantage of tired big players.

*Tired players tackle desperately, not punishingly. Again allowing small skilful players to light the game up with flair!

*Every play the ball was once a ruck. Either side could come away with it. Winning the ball at the play the ball was once an important part of some players skill set.

*The rules of the game have constricted the games potential for flair and imagination.

*Skill should be more important than size. ATM it is not.

*There are smaller players with the skills of Benji Marshall, Shawn Johnson, Kevin Locke, but we will never see them because of their smaller size. We watch Manu Vatuvei drop the ball instead.

*So hard is it to break defence, now the kick is the preferred attacking weapon used by teams instead of talent.

*Defence is now punishing instead of desperate. Again penalising smaller players with flair.

SOLUTION

*Increase field size by 20m in length and 10m in width.

*GET RID OF THE INTERCHANGE!

*Bring back the scrum with traditional rules to give attacking teams another option than to kick. It will also demand that forwards with ball winning skill are selected instead of the prototype drone.

*Re-introduce the ruck at the play the ball. It gives teams another chance of winning the ball, and players will have to learn the forgotten skill of playing the ball correctly.







JUNIORS

*The sudden influx of huge Junior players into Junior competitions has seen no action by the NRL to address size concern issues.

*These kids are mostly in City areas with large Polynesian communities.

*Country areas have so far avoided the size problem.

*When Representative sides from the Country play their City rep sides, the disparity becomes evident to the Country kids and families.

SOLUTION

Bring back weight for age in City areas. Maximum 1 year differential. Bring back the above mentioned rules.

 

[Aucklander]

Ok.

Firstly Mel, I respect your love for RL and your investment in it with your extremely talented boy. I still love RL. Im more like a jilted lover I guess.

The investment I've put in put in over the last 12 years has been into Australian Football, I've just never lost my passion for Rugby league, although I tend to think of myself as more of a sports lover overall who has two great passions.

The Rugby league I love and I believe we still see involves greats like, Slater, Johnson, Thurston, etc.

You do make some good points and I do hope we see open and restricted weight divisions in junior footy.

 

[Big Red Machine]

SOLUTION

Bring back weight for age in City areas. Maximum 1 year differential. Bring back the above mentioned rules.

It's not like it hasn't been done elsewhere either.

http://www.popwarner.com/football/footballstructure.htm

I can't imagine playing in today's League competition's, It's stunning how much the demographic has changed in the last 12-14 years since I left League to go to Union/Cricket and then Gridiron. Looking back through the paper clippings and photo's and seeing the ratio of white kids to islanders.

 

[Covertackle]

It's not like it hasn't been done elsewhere either.

http://www.popwarner.com/football/footballstructure.htm

I can't imagine playing in today's League competition's, It's stunning how much the demographic has changed in the last 12-14 years since I left League to go to Union/Cricket and then Gridiron. Looking back through the paper clippings and photo's and seeing the ratio of white kids to islanders.

And Asian, Indigenous, Greek, Itallian, smaller Polynesian ....don't just single one group out, all kids are effected by size.


Anyway, seems like im not the only one who thinks scrums should be contested. It just took everyone else a few extra days do decide so...


NRL fans, Steve Mortimer demand return to contested scrums after Warriors success against Eels

http://www.news.com.au/sport/nrl/nr...ess-against-eels/story-fndujljl-1226989540292

 

[Aucklander]

Last time I checked you could still use that tactic and the hooker could still strike for the ball, they just don't. Really the only thing you need to do is, ensure the halfback puts the ball in straight.

 

[Covertackle]

Last time I checked you could still use that tactic and the hooker could still strike for the ball, they just don't. Really the only thing you need to do is, ensure the halfback puts the ball in straight.

you aren't serious? How old are you? Don't you remember real scrums?

 

[Aucklander]

you aren't serious? How old are you? Don't you remember real scrums?

Real scrums only exist in Rugby Union, Rugby league scrums have always been a shambles.