Play the Ball penalties

[BDGS]

"letting things go" is what has got us in this mess in the first place. I hope Harrigan is extremely strick with this all season! The smarter teams will soon learn to comply and reap the rewards accordingly (just like the smarter teams have learnt to bend the rules in the past to their advantage).

EXACTLY, it is what resulted in the poor referring season the refs had last year. Now they are making moves in correcting that and the same people bag them. They obviously can't win with some people.

 

[LineBall]

Agree, it's been the leniancy of the past that has gotten us to this point. By enforcing a stricter play the ball would mean less wrestling at the ruck, as the players can get off quicker, knowing that the play the ball should be a bit slower as it has to be done properly.

What gets me is the uproar amongst some coaches about the spate of penalties in TRIAL matches. Well guess what boys - you were told about it at the beginning of the season - if you can't coach your players as to what to do - then maybe you should be looking for a job elsewhere.

 

[AlwaysGreen]

"letting things go" is what has got us in this mess in the first place. I hope Harrigan is extremely strick with this all season! The smarter teams will soon learn to comply and reap the rewards accordingly (just like the smarter teams have learnt to bend the rules in the past to their advantage).

Harrigan was the king of letting things go. Except when he wanted to be in the headlines. Then he'd make sure to blow the whistle.

 

[franklin2323]

The 2 games I have watched have had crack down yet failed to improve the game quality. Markers aren't square, players hoovering behind the markers but not back 10. Fix that up then worry about the foot on the ball. Isn't the rule you need to make an attempt?

 

[LineBall]

Harrigan was the king of letting things go. Except when he wanted to be in the headlines. Then he'd make sure to blow the whistle.

I think you'll find that earlier in his career he would blow plenty of penalties. over time players realised that he wouldn't put up with any crap and they knew what he wanted and what they could get away with, hence he wouldn't blow many penalties in the game as he became the more senior referee.

 

[S.R.]

The walking off the mark is the big one. It's a very grey area to say the least.

I've seen a shyteload of penalties blown for it in junior reps already. Most of which were 50/50 calls.

Be prepared for a sh!tfight.

 

[Dragon]

I'd love to see the refs try and pull players up for this in Origin, they will cop a hammering. Im predicitng the 'crackdown' will last 2 rounds then fade away

 

[Parra]

The rules should be enforced.

The problem lies with the sanction, not the fact the ref is doing his job.

 

[Quidgybo]

The problem lies with the sanction, not the fact the ref is doing his job.

Exactly. The problem isn't with the having rules that say you've got to use your foot and you can't walk off the mark. That's fine, enforce that strictly. But if we're going to enforce that strictly, recognise that no matter how many times you say "it's not that hard" experience shows it's going to generate a lot more play the ball penalties against the team in possession. The original poster's point is that the rule that's the problem here is the one that says a penalty against the attacking team for a play the ball infringement is worth loss of possession plus 30 or 40 metres territory or 2 points. It's that rule that causes all the controversy because it turns very subjective nit picky and technical penalties into massive game changing/deciding scandals.

Leigh.

 

[Crusher]

If play the ball penaties were correctly applied then laurie Daley would have been penalised in the 1989 grand final for his foot not making contact with the ball.

Two plays later, Chicka Ferguson scored and the rest is history.