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Understanding the confusion at the breakdown.

smartcooky

Referee Coach and Advisor
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For those who enjoy either playing, supporting, or just watching Rugby Union, the breakdown can be both confusing and frustrating. It can cause more beer glasses to be thrown at TV screens, and more verbal abuse directed at referees than any other part of the game. However, it is a vital part of Rugby Union, and gives it its single most important point of difference from its close cousin, Rugby League, and its distant relative, American Football. Spend some time browsing around internet forums and rugby websites, reading Rugby magazines, watching Rugby and listening to commentators, and you'll soon find that there are as many opinions about the breakdown as there are people willing to give them.

The object of the Laws around the breakdown is to make a fair contest for possession when the ball carrier takes the ball into contact with their opponents. Do not confuse this with making it an equal competition, because it is not, nor is it the intention of the Laws to do so. Make the contest too much in favour of the team in possession of the ball, and the opposition will not even bother trying to contest for it, and instead, will "line the trenches" with players that they might otherwise have committed to the breakdown in order to win the ball.

Make the contest is too much in favour of the team without the ball, and the team in possession will try to avoid being tackled or taking the ball into contact, especially in their own half, in order to minimise their chances of giving up both possession and field position at the same time. Instead, they are most likely to kick the ball away, giving up possession, but gaining field position. This lead to the terrible rugby we had to endure in 2009, where teams kicked the all up and down the field, giving us periods of the game that more resembled our even more distant cousins, Aussie Rules and Gaelic Football.

The difference between getting the breakdown laws right and wrong is a very fine line, and the problem for the Law makers is that a tiny change can have a huge effect on what happens. Even worse a poorly thought out change, even a very small one, can lead to the wrong effect, and even the opposite effect of what they were trying to achieve. You sometimes hear this referred to as Merton's Law, or the "Law of Unintended Consequences."

After the dreadful rugby season in 2009, the SANZAR referees, lead by Lyndon Bray, decided they were going to do something about it. They devised a plan that was both bold and simple. They were not going to change, rewrite or re-invent any Laws, they were simply going to interpret the Laws of the Game as they are written! and in the order they are written.

Law 15.4 defines the tackler's obligations and responsibilities
Law 15.5 defines the tackled player's obligations and responsibilities
Law 15.6 defines other player's obligations and responsibilities at the tackle

They put their plan into effect in February 2010 in the Super 14 . The simple change they made was to ensure that the tackler met his obligations first, so that the tackled player had an opportunity to freely release, push, pass or place the ball. The result of this tiny change was dramatic, and the evidence is there for all to see. In 2010, Rugby Union has once again become the free flowing spectacle that it used to be. Some of us remember the heady days of Super 12 in its early years, the late 1990's, when rugby was fast, exciting and played at a furious pace. 2010 is the nearest we have come since then to recapturing that brand of Rugby Football.

The IRB and the RFU were so impressed with what they saw in Super 14, that they immediately embraced the changes SANZAR had made, introducing them into the then current NH competitions in about April of this year.

Now, referees are given direction from the IRB, through their National Unions, on how to interpret what happens at the breakdown. Compared with the previous confusion, these directions are relatively clear and simple..

The Tackle: In order of precedence:

1. Tackler … release the tackled player (and ball) and away - (get to feet or roll away)

2. Tackled player … play the ball â€" place it, push it, pass it or release it

3. Third man in and/or Tackle Assistant + all other players… must be on-feet (without support) and must enter through the gate.

Special points to note:

a. Clear the Tackle Zone:
Any player involved in the tackle MUST release the tackled player and ball and stand-up or get clear of the tackle zone.



b. Identify the tacklers: If two or more players grasp the ball carrier but but only one of the grasping players goes to ground, then he is the only tackler. The other players (the ‘Tackle Assistants’) are NOT tacklers and MUST therefore release and come around through the gate.


c. There must be a clear release: The Tackler & Tackle Assistant. At the release, you must see ‘daylight’ i.e. a clear, deliberate movement to release the player and ball. Even if the 'Tackle Assistant' is already in the gate, he still must clearly release the tackled play are ball before playing the ball.

d. Referee positioning … do not stand directly behind tackle area â€" you will likely get in the way of players entering through the gate. Take up the traditional 4 o’clock or 8 o’clock position
 
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Yeah, nice post. The reffing of rucks is atrocious here in Japan. I'm a little bit worried cause I start playing flanker this week (I am a winger)...
 
Yeah, nice post. The reffing of rucks is atrocious here in Japan. I'm a little bit worried cause I start playing flanker this week (I am a winger)...

Whats the rugby like in Japan by the way Charles? is the standard any good over there compared to France?

If there's one piece of advice i can offer you for playing on the flank, its don't bother paying too much attention to cookys post. No matter what the law actually is at the breakdown, what the referee says on the day is the real law.
Every week we get a new referee with a different interpretation, some guys rule by the current law, some haven't caught up with the times and are ruling previous laws, some are just senile or have just straight up decided to make the rules themselves. (We have had referees who say anyone on their feet can use their hands at any time, and refs that say you are never allowed to use your hands fullstop unless you are the halfback clearing the ball from the ruck.)
It can get frustrating when you know the referee is just flat out wrong, but you have to just smile and nod and take it. As a flanker you can get a massive advantage over your opposition by adapting to the rulings quicker, just do what the referee says you can do and laugh while the opposition flanker gets penalised off the park for not playing the referees game.
Its a good idea to go up to the ref before the game and just ask all the basic questions (How long do i have to release the player, do i have to back away from the tackled played before playing the ball, when can i use my hands, what constitutes a ruck etc..) take note and get the edge over your opponent!
 
As a flanker you can get a massive advantage over your opposition by adapting to the rulings quicker, just do what the referee says you can do and laugh while the opposition flanker gets penalised off the park for not playing the referees game.
Its a good idea to go up to the ref before the game and just ask all the basic questions (How long do i have to release the player, do i have to back away from the tackled played before playing the ball, when can i use my hands, what constitutes a ruck etc..) take note and get the edge over your opponent!


In less words..."just do what Richie does"
 
Whats the rugby like in Japan by the way Charles? is the standard any good over there compared to France?

If there's one piece of advice i can offer you for playing on the flank, its don't bother paying too much attention to cookys post. No matter what the law actually is at the breakdown, what the referee says on the day is the real law.
Every week we get a new referee with a different interpretation, some guys rule by the current law, some haven't caught up with the times and are ruling previous laws, some are just senile or have just straight up decided to make the rules themselves. (We have had referees who say anyone on their feet can use their hands at any time, and refs that say you are never allowed to use your hands fullstop unless you are the halfback clearing the ball from the ruck.)
It can get frustrating when you know the referee is just flat out wrong, but you have to just smile and nod and take it. As a flanker you can get a massive advantage over your opposition by adapting to the rulings quicker, just do what the referee says you can do and laugh while the opposition flanker gets penalised off the park for not playing the referees game.
Its a good idea to go up to the ref before the game and just ask all the basic questions (How long do i have to release the player, do i have to back away from the tackled played before playing the ball, when can i use my hands, what constitutes a ruck etc..) take note and get the edge over your opponent!

Ranger,

If you are talking about amateur rugby, I wouldn't know as I only played junior rugby in France. I guess the level is pretty weak though, compared to rugby countries. For a start, there's really few big guys... The reffing is really bad though, that's for sure. The thing about playing the ref is that it is extremely difficult when your team is full of foreigners ( yeah we are a foreigners team), and the other team is 15 little scrawny japanese, and the ref is another little scrawny japanese...Sometimes the ref won't even acknowledge our captain asking an explanantion about a call...facepalm...Also screaming at the ref from the sideline doesn't give the ref the best ideas about our team...I'll keep you updated about sundays game.
 

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