Great piece by Knoxy (esp. on EOS)

[jezzer]

PROGRESS, someone once said, is little more than the exchange of one nuisance for another. If that is the case, then maybe the current state of world rugby and its future development should not concern us. But that surely is an unnecessarily negative viewpoint.

Thus, the dross served up around the rugby-playing world last weekend ought to be addressed. For the vitality of the game seems under threat. France's abysmal performance for an hour against Italy set the tone. England were lamentable in Scotland for longer than that and lost, albeit to a Scottish side which focused more on destroying the opposition and stopping them playing than worrying about creativity in its own ranks.

Then came the bore of Lansdowne Road. Leinster backs coach David Knox, my man in the stands to take the common pulse, reported with disarming honesty. "Mate, it wasn't very good, was it? Plenty of people were falling asleep around me."

Meanwhile, of course, the ball was whizzing through pairs of hands with bewildering speed and finesse all over the southern hemisphere, as round three of the Super 14 tournament was played in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Well, no, actually. Listen to the bleatings of one Kiwi commentator on the weekend's events.

"There could be weekend celebrations as all five New Zealand sides won. Much of the rugby, though, was grim, a lot of it stuttering or incomprehensible."

Wynne Gray, the New Zealand Herald writer, is a respected analyser. But what is disconcerting is that he could equally have been describing France v Italy, Scotland v England and Ireland v Wales. Across the oceans, a South African colleague made a similar point.

"Our rugby so far this season has been dull. It's terribly conservative, full of kicking with a high rate of errors."

So what has gone wrong with the game worldwide?

Gray pointed the finger at unpredictable refereeing, but if we blame Jonathan Kaplan for the mogadon-type rugby last Sunday we might as well indict him for masterminding the bank raid that netted £53 million. I am more drawn to David Knox's summarisation.

"I just think rugby is a very defensive game now. It is going like rugby league was 20 years ago. They (the IRB) have to look at changing a few rules, because it's become so defensive minded."

Knox's bete noire is the insidious encroaching of players over the offside line. "I'd make them stand five metres further back behind the rear feet; it would be a great game if you could do that. Referees don't police a lot of things. It's a pity because it's still a great game. But it could be so much better if it was policed properly. No-one worries about offside in the backs. Our backs at Leinster get tackled without the ball these days, teams are so scared of them. And if they're not doing that, they're standing where the second rows' feet are in a scrum. It is a massive difference."

But where does the motivation for attack, as opposed to the negativity of defence, originate? What can a team do without the sanction of its coach?

And, if the external pressures from media and public are such that they come to be seen by most coaches like a mugger in a dark alley, how can the game throw off this constrictive cloak?

Knox detects an innate conservatism in most northern hemisphere rugby teams. What perplexes him is that even countries like France seem to be aping the trend.

"To see two of their guys kicking penalties dead against Italy, missing the corner, was ridiculous. It was like they had been drinking all night or something.

'I have virtually Eddie O'Sullivan's whole backline at Leinster, yet I've never spoken to him, he's never called me '

"Ireland have some wonderfully talented backs but unless they get a No. 10 who can play and set them up, they'll never fulfil their potential. When Ronan O'Gara plays for Munster, he is phenomenal behind their pack. The trouble is, he has never been encouraged to play the game all the time like that. Against a team with equilibrium, he looks ordinary and can't read a game so the way Ireland are playing at the moment, they won't do it. England are the same, they have many talented players, but they're not fulfilling anything near their potential.

"But it's not just over here. Even in Super 14 it's not like it used to be. They concentrate now more on defence. Their rugby hasn't been much better this season."

Conservatism takes many forms, as Knox himself well knows. He confesses he finds some attitudes puzzling in northern hemisphere rugby. "I have virtually Eddie O'Sullivan's whole backline at Leinster yet I've never spoken to him, he's never called me up to ask how so and so is playing or how an injured player is going. His ideas are very different to mine. Ireland are playing a very structured game.

"But then, you do things to protect yourself as a coach. There are a lot of ambitious people out there who think they can do better. Coaching now is a very protective world. I suppose it is like playing, you want to do it at the highest level you can. But I'm not sure how enjoyable that would be.

"Eddie Jones (former Wallaby coach) is an ex-flat mate of mine and I spent a couple of days with him not long ago. It was incredible, like everyone was walking around on eggshells. He said 'Mate, it's a business'. But to me, it's still a game. I don't know whether I would want all that as the No. 1 coaching guy."

Similarly, the selection policy in this part of the world leaves the Australian scratching his head. Take the case of young Leinster wing Rob Kearney. "I was told about him by a guy at the Academy who is an Australian. He said, 'you really should take a look at this kid, he's just wasting away'. We brought him in for a couple of training sessions and he immediately looked the business. He's a revelation, he's killed them when he's had a chance. He should have been in the Ireland team in the autumn internationals.

"Some people said to us, 'you're doing the wrong thing putting him in the Leinster team so early'. But he's 19 and players like Joe Roff and Tim Horan were in the Australian team at 18. I can't understand it. People can die for their country at 16 but over here, they're not old enough to play international rugby at 19."

Whatever the rights and wrongs of individual selections, I believe one factor above all else is responsible for the current playing difficulties. The modern game, as it has evolved under professionalism, has become so much more difficult to play; it demands a far higher level of skill. To make a success of it, a player must be supremely skilled, talented and visionary, not to mention intensely fit and strong. He must be able to handle the pace, power and intensity and needs to demonstrate skills under fierce pressure in a modicum of space.

Frankly, too few players fit that criteria. And, when even a player of the skill of a Brian O'Driscoll or Daniel Carter considers he has done well if he has made two significant line breaks in an entire match, then it is surely time to address certain law changes to tilt the balance in favour of the side willing to attack. At present, rugby rewards the defensive-minded, those intent on shutting down the game. Which is why rugby is heading up a one-way street.

And the signpost does not have the word 'Entertainment' on it.

[Flash Gordon]

Excellent. Where is it from?

[jezzer]

Indo... (I know, I'm still in shock myself...)

Not sure I agree about his line of thought on the blooding of young players. Agree we're a bit too conservative, but Australia tend to breed them a bit tougher and beefier. There's a balance there, and putting Kearney in against NZ or OZ could have been his undoing as much as his making.

[Flash Gordon]

Indo... (I know, I'm still in shock myself...)

Not sure I agree about his line of thought on the blooding of young players. Agree we're a bit too conservative, but Australia tend to breed them a bit tougher and beefier. There's a balance there, and putting Kearney in against NZ or OZ could have been his undoing as much as his making.

Agree there. If you see the All Black under 21 team they are bloody massive! I would have given Rob a run vs Romania - maybe from the bench. Still not 100% sure on his defence, he missed a couple of tackles yesterday again....

[Malahide Mullet]

Not sure I agree about his line of thought on the blooding of young players. Agree we're a bit too conservative, but Australia tend to breed them a bit tougher and beefier. There's a balance there, and putting Kearney in against NZ or OZ could have been his undoing as much as his making.

Rubbish