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20/20 Rugby Union
- Thread starter morgieb
- Start date
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Somerset
Cricketer Of The Year
Yup I dare say you've been beaten to the idea, morgieb.
Perm
Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
You are the biggest waste of space this forum has seen. Atleast we could laugh at Rodgie and bond21, but you're so incredibly dire that it actually isn't funny.
silentstriker
The Wheel is Forever
Completely inappropriate. Watch what you say.
Smudge
Hall of Fame Member
Julian87
State Captain
Smudge
Hall of Fame Member
Berrick Barnes was a junior with the Broncos who played plenty of schoolboy rugby. So he wasn't a regular first grade starter at age 18? What a surprise...
And I have never seen him anywhere near the Wallabies, or even mentioned in potential dispatches as a candidate for the national side. Hardly backs up your point, does he?
According to Elsom's Wikipedia page he was part of the Bulldogs Jersey Flegg championship winning team of 2001. Again, he was 18 - not much of an example either...
And Sheehan? I don't see him in this week's side either.
Palu spent one season in league after already having debuted for the Tahs in 2003.
Julian87
State Captain
Berrick Barnes was a woeful league player who couldn't make the transition to first grade.
I may be wrong on Elsom, hence IIRC should have been IIRI.
Sheehan is in the squad and has played for Australia before, pretty good for a bloke who couldn't play first grade for the worst club in league.
The Palu point sums it all up really, went from rep footy in union to a third rate rugby league comp.
IMO Harris is the perfect example. He was playing state level union was he not? Which is the equivalent to Origin in league, goes to league and can't hold down a spot in level below that to the one he played in union.
Whereas look at the state players that have just recently gone to union from league. Tahu, Tahs and Australia A. Schifcofske, Reds and Aus A, Cross never played rep league yet waltzes into the Wallabies squad after his second season. Tuqiri, Sailor et al.
I may be wrong on Elsom, hence IIRC should have been IIRI.
Sheehan is in the squad and has played for Australia before, pretty good for a bloke who couldn't play first grade for the worst club in league.
The Palu point sums it all up really, went from rep footy in union to a third rate rugby league comp.
IMO Harris is the perfect example. He was playing state level union was he not? Which is the equivalent to Origin in league, goes to league and can't hold down a spot in level below that to the one he played in union.
Whereas look at the state players that have just recently gone to union from league. Tahu, Tahs and Australia A. Schifcofske, Reds and Aus A, Cross never played rep league yet waltzes into the Wallabies squad after his second season. Tuqiri, Sailor et al.
Smudge
Hall of Fame Member
Yes, because woeful players play for Queensland under-19 and the Junior Kangaroos.
Good for you.
He's not in the 22 this week, and he's clearly the third string halfback.
If you even followed rugby union and rugby league transitions at all, you'd realise that it always takes a couple of seasons for forwards from either game to succeed - if at all - Brad Thorn being an obvious exception.
What you are struggling to grasp is the fact that the game requires different skill-sets and just because one person is successful in one code, that doesn't mean he's going to be successful for another. Regardless, he isn't rated by many Waratahs supporters.
They're all backs....
Smudge
Hall of Fame Member
Look, I have nothing against rugby league. Put it this way – I’d rather watch a mediocre game of rugby league than a mediocre game of rugby union, simply because of the way the respective games flow.
But the reason why I “prefer” union is because, no matter what league officials do, union has it beaten hands down when it comes to a battle for possession. Sure, the one-on-one strip rule has been introduced in the last ten years or so, but even that becomes a lottery when a second defender may have laid a hand on the ballcarrier and the referee takes a stab at it.
When a player takes the ball into a rugby union breakdown, he must be aware of several things – rolling the right way, good body position to protect the ball upon presentation, ensuring he’s not isolated from his support players who will drive in and clean out defenders and last, but not least, holding onto the ball.
Even now, while the ELVs are getting a workout and the ruck continues to be a work in progress in the rule book, I enjoy the fact – believe it or not - that my side’s inaccuracy when it comes to protecting the ball can be punished and the direction of the game can change in the matter of a second.
Because of the battle for possession, the ballcarrier hitting it up cannot just hoof it up while his team mates sit back waiting for the next play-the-ball, as often happens in the early tackles in league. If a union forward makes one pick-and-go too many, he could undo all the good work his side has made over the last 17 phases.
Also, because of this battle for possession, union defensive lines are often looser. And that’s understandable, as the likelihood of a switch in possession in union is much higher when you add the ruck or maul turnover, the contested scrums and contested lineouts to the generic knock-on seen in rugby league. Players have less time to adjust to their team’s chosen defensive pattern and because of the organic nature of the union code, players who were ideally suited to their particular spot of the moment when their side was on offence, are now out of position on defence.
As I said at the start of this post, I have nothing against league – I’ll most likely watch the NRL playoffs and will usually catch half a game a week if I happen to be sitting down watching television. What I do get tired of is the cheerleaders on the likes of the Footy Show taking a potshot at union at every opportunity – they are two different sports and will never be one again. Sadly, this inferiority complex appears to extend to many supporters as well.
But the reason why I “prefer” union is because, no matter what league officials do, union has it beaten hands down when it comes to a battle for possession. Sure, the one-on-one strip rule has been introduced in the last ten years or so, but even that becomes a lottery when a second defender may have laid a hand on the ballcarrier and the referee takes a stab at it.
When a player takes the ball into a rugby union breakdown, he must be aware of several things – rolling the right way, good body position to protect the ball upon presentation, ensuring he’s not isolated from his support players who will drive in and clean out defenders and last, but not least, holding onto the ball.
Even now, while the ELVs are getting a workout and the ruck continues to be a work in progress in the rule book, I enjoy the fact – believe it or not - that my side’s inaccuracy when it comes to protecting the ball can be punished and the direction of the game can change in the matter of a second.
Because of the battle for possession, the ballcarrier hitting it up cannot just hoof it up while his team mates sit back waiting for the next play-the-ball, as often happens in the early tackles in league. If a union forward makes one pick-and-go too many, he could undo all the good work his side has made over the last 17 phases.
Also, because of this battle for possession, union defensive lines are often looser. And that’s understandable, as the likelihood of a switch in possession in union is much higher when you add the ruck or maul turnover, the contested scrums and contested lineouts to the generic knock-on seen in rugby league. Players have less time to adjust to their team’s chosen defensive pattern and because of the organic nature of the union code, players who were ideally suited to their particular spot of the moment when their side was on offence, are now out of position on defence.
As I said at the start of this post, I have nothing against league – I’ll most likely watch the NRL playoffs and will usually catch half a game a week if I happen to be sitting down watching television. What I do get tired of is the cheerleaders on the likes of the Footy Show taking a potshot at union at every opportunity – they are two different sports and will never be one again. Sadly, this inferiority complex appears to extend to many supporters as well.
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