Idea for USA competition

[SeattleForce]

Take out the lock and fullback perhaps? Having no defender roaming around the back of the pack, or running insane lines on offence would make it a little interesting. A chip over the defensive line would not immediately be gathered by the FB and would put more pressure on the D to react.

And locks; well, they're outdated. They were used to 'lock' the scrum. Since scrums have been taken out of the equation, I guess there is no real use for them.

 

[roopy]

In the games of 11s I saw they took out the lock and techically they took out the 5/8, but that really meant that the centres took turns at being second reciever, so they kind of took over the role of the 5/8 and needed to show some playmaking skills and take a few kicks if the halfback went missing or got swamped.
Basically, if you were a coach naming a side you would probably drop the two centres and move the 5/8 and lock into the number 3 and 4 jerseys. There would be no place for a traditional centre - those positions need to step up to alternate playmaker and lift their workrate.

 

[pennpool]

Biggest issue will be that the AMNRL/David Niu would not give up his baby for someone else to run and control.

Though and NFL field is smaller than an NRL field, the amount of grass and area surrounding the field is enough to accommodate the minimum Rugby League requirements. There are still many NFL teams that have grass pitches and so this could easily be done to get a regulation field.

Also the issue on having 11 a side ... effectively this is a different sport.... no other country in the world will play "this version" of the game. Internationally the USA will be screwed since they don't play 13 a side Rugby League. If anything they would take a massive step backwards in this regard.

nfl=rugby
basketball=netball
baseball=cricket
yeah cause its not like america to play sports that no one else really plays and call there sefl world champions

 

[pennpool]

Take out the lock and fullback perhaps? Having no defender roaming around the back of the pack, or running insane lines on offence would make it a little interesting. A chip over the defensive line would not immediately be gathered by the FB and would put more pressure on the D to react.

And locks; well, they're outdated. They were used to 'lock' the scrum. Since scrums have been taken out of the equation, I guess there is no real use for them.

the lock is by no means outdated in league. a good lock can act as another second row/center whilst having the ability to link in as a ball handler, thus allowing a team to competently spread the ball from one sideline to the other with ease. a good lock can also take control of the in play kicking game. paul sculthorpe was a prime example of this.

just as the hooker has evolved to be most important in the ruck area nowadays

 

[SeattleForce]

Absolutely. I certainly used the wrong wording and I appreciate you bringing this up. I guess what I was referring to was typically for scum use. Having a lock gives more stability to the scrum. But, since taking away contested scrums, they have no real use there.

I agree 100% that locks are a valuable asset to a team; their size and strength, etc.

 

[Big Picture]

nfl=rugby
basketball=netball
baseball=cricket
yeah cause its not like america to play sports that no one else really plays and call there sefl world champions

I don't know what planet you live on, but American sports are played in lots of other countries. Basketball and baseball both have established world championships (Japan won the first 2 Baseball World Classics, which both featured China and Korea as well) and even American football has started one, though it's still strictly amateur as far as I know.

 

[roopy]

The reason they trialled 11s in the under 20s was that they were looking for a way to reduce injuries, and the theory behind it was that very large forwards would lack the fitness and mobility to deal with the extra defensive workload and gang tackles would also be less attractive because of the holes that would create in the defensive line.
In short, the endangered species in 11s are giant props, especially ones who lack mobility. Guys like lock forwards might not get to call themselves lock forwards, but you'd probably try to have as many guys with that skillset in your side as possible. They are just what you need for 11s.