why hasn't rugby league taken off???

[International RL]

haha, that field reminds me of Mod league.

I like those ideas, though im not sure of 9 a side, maybe 11?. That might just make it harder once again to keep up fitness wise. Doesn't the masters rule prevent gang tackling? I thought it was 2 in a tackle at most.

 

[Kurt Angle]

POST OF THE YEAR.

surely everyone used to play modified rules as a kid, down the park with their mates?

:lol: Hell yeah... back as a kid, it was still the old 22 line, pre-10 metre markings.

5 or 6 aside, and we'd run sideways and play between the try line and the 22.

Anyone live(d) near Granville oval ? I grew up near there as a kid, and the place had 3 RL pitches, 2 soccer pitches, 2 cricket pitches, a concreate basketball court and even the sitting tables embedded with chess boards.. great place to grow up.

Quite often just me and 1 or two mates would walk down, and just join other kids RL games, even if we never met them before.

this could bring that through into a social game as adults.

prob even make it 4 or 5 tackle rule given the size of the field, and do away with scrums...?

I'd still make it 6, remember you have 5 metre defences.

I'd still have 3 man scrums for restarts.

 

[Kurt Angle]

haha, that field reminds me of Mod league.

I like those ideas, though im not sure of 9 a side, maybe 11?. That might just make it harder once again to keep up fitness wise.

Yeah but the fitness areas that degrade most are aerobic fitness, so it happens trying to run distances longer than your 5 metres purts.. and more importantly your recovery.

Without sprinting 10 metres and putting in 40 metre kick chases, or running back 30 metres to take the next hit up, you are prevented from that sort of aerobic expenditure.

Doesn't the masters rule prevent gang tackling? I thought it was 2 in a tackle at most.

I'm still big enough and ugly enough to cop a few gang tackles. I mean I'm putting forward a game for guys who are late 20's, early 30's who have an office job and don't have time to train.

Even for guys like this RL is too much...but they do go down to a basketball court on a wed night run around pretty intensely for fun.... it's just without constant sill training they shoot 2/15... but its the weekly activity and fun that's important.

The game I've proposed with 20 minutes halves on a week-night.. that's a 1 hour gig.. better than staying home and watching "CSI: Dubbo" isn't it?

 

[International RL]

Yeah but the fitness areas that degrade most are aerobic fitness, so it happens trying to run distances longer than your 5 metres purts.. and more importantly your recovery.

Without sprinting 10 metres and putting in 40 metre kick chases, or running back 30 metres to take the next hit up, you are prevented from that sort of aerobic expenditure.



I'm still big enough and ugly enough to cop a few gang tackles. I mean I'm putting forward a game for guys who are late 20's, early 30's who have an office job and don't have time to train.

Even for guys like this RL is too much...but they do go down to a basketball court on a wed night run around pretty intensely for fun.... it's just without constant sill training they shoot 2/15... but its the weekly activity and fun that's important.

The game I've proposed with 20 minutes halves on a week-night.. that's a 1 hour gig.. better than staying home and watching "CSI: Dubbo" isn't it?

Definitely mate. I totally agree the way forward in terms of participation is to try and create a game that isn't as demanding no time and the body as 80 minute seniors is.

I was just reflecting on how big a commitment footy is this year in both training, playing and attrition on the body. I can see why it doesnt appeal to some.

 

[roopy]

I think a picture can be worth a thousand words in this discussion - so i offer you a picture of the skinny prop forward for the Dora Creek swampies from 2006. His front row partner was Les Mason - the 'little' brother of Willie - who weighed in a a svelt 150kg. (The swampies play in the Lower Hunter second division and win more than they lose).

To sum up my point of view - fat, unfit people can go ok at a lower level of league.

 

[Kurt Angle]

He also happens to live in NSW roopy, where RL is the number one game in town. In a place like Dora Creek, RL means more than "playing a game on the weekend", RL is instrinsic to the social fabric of the area.

I feel its imoprtant to note however in regards to expanding the game, a more social version needs to be put forward.

Basketabll is great in this. It prospers in places Melbourne, Perth, Townsville and Cairns.... it does not have the place of being embedded in the social fabric like either RL or AFL does in the according areas, but does exist as a 1 hour mid-week sporting release for many people.

And what you find is amongst the large numbers of social players, come a smaller number who take the next step up, which would be 80 minute seniors. A much easier infrastructure set up than going straight into 80 minute seniors as your starting point.

 

[macavity]

Les is older and bigger than Willie, Roops.

and im with Kurt on this - I am one of those that played bball for a very long time after finishing up with RL as I could no longer commit to training and the wear/tear on the body - and im too big / immobile for tag/touch.

If I had a "league lite" version to play, I would have kept on with it. Surely Kurt and I aren't the only ones.

RLIF, run with it!

 

[International RL]

Kurt,

why don't you knock together a set of rules and a short form proposal as to how a league might be formed etc?

Can't hurt to try and get it in front of the WARL or something similar.

 

[Kurt Angle]

I know from just talking with RL fans from the South perth club, the WARL and the big 2 have their own agenda, and I don't have the sports admin knowledge or experience to even know where to start with this sort of thing.

As I said, I would envisage this as your "Wednesday night activity" sort of thing.

 

[Kurt Angle]

*double post*

 

[Sam_the_man]

Les is older and bigger than Willie, Roops.

and im with Kurt on this - I am one of those that played bball for a very long time after finishing up with RL as I could no longer commit to training and the wear/tear on the body - and im too big / immobile for tag/touch.

If I had a "league lite" version to play, I would have kept on with it. Surely Kurt and I aren't the only ones.

RLIF, run with it!

Personally when i finsihed with league because my body could take the contact any longer i played union for another 3 seasons. I went from playing 60 minutes of league a game and being absolutely buggered to playing 80 minutes of union and not feeling to bad.

 

[NK Arsenal]

The main reason Rugby League has and will not take off because off one man and his supporters.
The man is Colin Love and his supporters are the RLIF board.

 

[Kurt Angle]

You can't blame Colin Love for the lack of expansion between 1895 - 1995.

 

[screeny]

I think that league's physicality is something we need to use in the global 'why is union more popular than league' polemic.

For example, in countless conversations I have been able to use this - quite authentic - reason for league's limited numbers, as older players tend to drop off and take the easy way out - rah rah. It's not the only reason of course - I still maintain that union's systematised persecution is the main reason for this - but it's nevertheless a valid one.

It allows leaguies to wear a badge of pride. It goes hand in hand with Lionel Hurst's excellent statement that RL is the Swiss finishing school of rugby. We're an elite, and as roopy says, playing a low level of the sport still allows people of less than superlative fitness to challenge themselves (and stay fit).

Besides, the lower the level, the skinnier the 'ten' is and the less emphasis on penalising a defensive control of the ruck area, allowing less scooting as a genuinely attacking tactic, which it isn't, or at least shouldn't be.

 

[Eastender]

POST OF THE YEAR.

Agreed!:thumn

Personally, I wouldn't do away with gang tackling although I would, as I have seen in another set of Master's rules, perhaps limit tackles to no higher than the line from armpit to armpit. This may help reduce the amount 'headhunters' trying to benefit from a narrower pitch and dominate in a forward-orientated battle.

As the last poster says, the (higher) level of physicality in league is one area that sets it apart from union (amount of front on tackling, etc) and needs to be retained if the modified rules are to be used as a stepping stone to full rules.