330 comments
Break up the Union!International England by Robbo Robson (U5722413) 04 February 2008   Every so often I give rugby union a chance. Probably the saving grace about rugby union is the fansDerek 'Robbo' Robson 5. The 'handbags at 20 paces' baloney that the ex-players like to trot out. There's a lot of people around rugby union who quite happily chuckle away when some lock-forward takes out his opposite number with a right cross and a head-butt – but would advocate hanging if two yobbos went for the same tactic in a pub car park. 6. The sheer size of these blokes. I like the Welsh lad Shane Williams 'cos he almost looks like a part of the human race. Most of them look like they’ve walked out of a comic book. If you had to pass one of these monsters on the street it'd put a good quarter of a mile on your journey. I can foresee an episode of Doctor Who where the lad Tennant gets all bug-eyed 'cos the world has been taken over by seek-and- destroy rugby players and there's only enough room on the planet for 42 of them. 7. If you’re lucky you’ll see some slick French hands (a phrase that has me missus shuffling in her seat somewhat) but basically it's a lot of incredible hulks in over-stuffed lycra crashing into each other. It's stock-car racing with the vehicles replaced by giant bags of supervits, testosterone and scar tissue. Worst of all, it rewards negativity over and over again. Probably the saving grace about rugby union is the fans, who not only somehow manage to tolerate this stodgy fare, but do so with a good-natured sportsmanship that the less evolved part of football's tribe could learn a lot from. (If there's one thing that's really got me goat in the last couple of weeks, it's the worry that we can't mark the death of 23 young people on a plane some 50 years ago 'cos there are a few sub-literate ogres who can't bring themselves to be quiet for one minute of their lives out of respect. I tell you, it's downright shameful.) Regular readers will know I prefer to watch rugby league every time. You don't need a degree in corporate tax law to understand the rules. The emphasis is all on keeping the ball moving so you don't have passages of play that look less like sport and more like a bunch of randy bullfrogs in the breeding season. Any nonsense and you're off, pretty much. They need to change the rules of union quick. Ideally, two less players per side, no line-outs, six tackles and return possession to the other team...that sort of thing. I might still watch the All Blacks or the French at their best, but the rest... forget it. If I want to watch artificially-enhanced lumps bumping into each other, I'll get a Teletubbies DVD. Latest 10 commentsRead members' comments or add your own
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You_Silly (U11005518) posted Feb 7, 2008 Soccer is a gentlemen's game played by thugs and Rugby is a thugs game played by gentlemen... enuf said.
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austin_healey_bald (U7605544) posted Feb 7, 2008 Well bless my cotton socks - something I never knew, Edwards captained England RU.
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hairbearboyos (U11015621) posted Feb 8, 2008 Hmmm. I feel i should get out my thesaurus to find some more words other than drivel and absolute rubbish to describe this article. You clearly dont understand the game. "They need to change the rules of union quick"? The rules are just fine, why should we substitute them for rules to suit a group of people who dont have a clue, of which you seem to be one? Poor article and very uninformed. I would expect more from a BBC pundit than a ignorant view such as this, i dont know what you ussually write about but i would suggest you stick to that.
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Diomedes1 (U11016907) posted Feb 8, 2008 Anyone, like your dear Robbo, who suggests that Saturday's Rugby match between England and Wales was boring, yet tunes in to watch England's dire football performance and can stomach it for a full 90 minutes needs both a brain and eye transplant. Yes England lost, but the match was hardly lacking excitement. If you don't understand the game don't criticise it, and then choose to jump on the convoy of band wagons when things start to go well.
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SmokingJoeFrasier (U10359023) posted Feb 8, 2008 Hairbearboyos, you clearly have no idea of what is going on in the world of Rugby Union if you believe that the rules are 'just fine'. The senior administrators of the game obviously do not agree with you, which is why they are currently experimenting with massive rule changes in Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, many of which WILL be implemented globally. Reading elements of this thread might enlighten you.
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Glenn A (U2665157) posted Feb 9, 2008 Hear hear, Robbo, I absolutely detest this complicated, boring and violent game and wish the BBC could have lost the rights to rugby union so they could keep England matches and the FA Cup, which attract far more viewers. If rugby union is so great, how come all the sports talk on a Monday at work is about the premiership and almost none about the rugby equivalent. Rugby union is like paint drying and the players get more female attention than they deserve.
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hairbearboyos (U11015621) posted Feb 9, 2008 I apologise SmokingJoeFrasier you are right, the rules are far from perfect and i am aware of the changes being tested currently. I think i was unclear in what i meant though. The main point of that statement was to say that we should not have to change the rules so drastically as 'Robbo' is suggesting to entertain peoples such as him. i hope my view has been made clearer now
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U737320 posted Feb 23, 2008 The RFU has 1.5 million registered rugby players - they can't all be toffs, it's just not possible.
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alcabiades (U1637381) posted Jul 3, 2008 1.5 million players registered, so 1 in 20 of the population play rugby union???? The good old union calculator in action again.
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I've got the cheese Lynn (U9885754) posted Jul 3, 2008 1.5 million players registered, so 1 in 20 of the population play rugby union???? The good old union calculator in action again Comment on this article |
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