Today I watched two videos. One was the "shoulder charge" that papalii was penalised for in Monday nights' game against penrith. The other was a highlights package of hits from the NFL.
I've never followed NFL. And have only had a passing interest in it since hayne's attempts to break into the 49ers team. But the contrast between the two videos was almost scary.
I realise that this was a highlights package, and probably not representative of what you would expect from a regular season game, but it was exciting to see big hits celebrated again. And I'm seriously considering buying the NFL app so I can watch and follow their game.
I used to feel justified having arguments with NFL about which is the tougher game. But no longer. How can I advocate the toughness of our game when a bump like the one from papalii is considered illegal play? The NFL use significant padding and protection, but they take hits. It seems more and more that this is not allowed in our game. If it comes down to a choice between getting rid of the heavy contact and wearing full body armour, then I would be in favour of all our players getting fitted for helmets. It's Something I would never have previously considered to be an option in our game. But the increasing sanitisation of the sport has left me wondering whether it might be worth it, as long as we allowed proper contact again.
I've never followed NFL. And have only had a passing interest in it since hayne's attempts to break into the 49ers team. But the contrast between the two videos was almost scary.
I realise that this was a highlights package, and probably not representative of what you would expect from a regular season game, but it was exciting to see big hits celebrated again. And I'm seriously considering buying the NFL app so I can watch and follow their game.
I used to feel justified having arguments with NFL about which is the tougher game. But no longer. How can I advocate the toughness of our game when a bump like the one from papalii is considered illegal play? The NFL use significant padding and protection, but they take hits. It seems more and more that this is not allowed in our game. If it comes down to a choice between getting rid of the heavy contact and wearing full body armour, then I would be in favour of all our players getting fitted for helmets. It's Something I would never have previously considered to be an option in our game. But the increasing sanitisation of the sport has left me wondering whether it might be worth it, as long as we allowed proper contact again.
