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Scotty Stevenson: A Note To Everyone Complaining About That Sam Cane Tackle

Sam Cane

Only in a game like rugby union could you ever expect to hear someone saying tacklers have a ‘duty of care’ not to hurt their opponents, writes Scotty Stevenson.

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For the uninitiated, rugby union is game played by fifteen large people, all of whom spend at least 70 percent of any given day getting larger and stronger by working out with professional trainers and eating their body weight in whey protein. Rugby is the game for all sizes, as long as that size is at least XL (or you’re a halfback. Halfbacks have special privileges in rugby union because they are most often tiny men with loud, annoying voices).

Once a week or so, these fifteen people run out onto a rectangular grass paddock and proceed to try to run around or over or through fifteen other people who in turn try to put their large bodies in the way so that the other guys can’t do so. The game has been played in this manner for a century and a half (give or take a few years) and in that time it would be safe to wager that not a single participant has finished a season without a bruise, a strain, a knock on the bonce or a broken bone or two. If you have, you’ve probably been doing it wrong.

Rugby is a fiercely competitive contact sport – the only professional oval ball code that allows the ball to be live once the player in possession hits the ground. At this point, a number of large people throw themselves at or near the ball with little regard for their health and safety or the health and safety of the person they are throwing themselves into. It is because of this that sometimes a player will emerge from the fray only to discover that they have lost an eye. Usually they play on. On other occasions a player may be pinned at the bottom of a ruck under a face load of nutsack (in the men’s game that is). In these situations it is best to play dead.

Rugby union likes to claim it is a game for gentlemen (and women) because it has a long history of players beating the crap out of each other for eighty minutes and then sharing a beer together afterwards. Quite frankly, a number of absolute creeps have also played rugby over the last 150 years. They share a beer afterwards only because running around for eighty minutes is thirsty work. Rugby union certainly does build character though. It teaches you how to keep running without the ability to re-inflate a collapsed lung.

In its rush to protect the sport’s image so that helicopter mums will still let their children play, the governing body has, over a number of decades, banned such things as all-in brawls, punching, kicking, biting, rucking, taking a player out while that player is airborne, and referees making crucial decisions in a game without the assistance of a less qualified referee sitting on a chair watching a television in a small room. Most of these things have had a positive effect on the game, and emergency room waiting times.

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As a result of these interventions, the game is safer than ever. At least, it’s as safe as a game can be when that game is played by fifteen (okay fourteen and a half) large people all of whom are trying to stop a team full of other large people by attempting to break them in half. You can’t mitigate for every bump and scrape in the game of rugby union. Occasionally someone will get hurt. Rob Henshaw got hurt on Saturday in Dublin and we all hope he will be okay.

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What’s not okay is the subsequent overreaction to the incident that led to Henshaw’s early exit from the game. What’s not okay is claiming a player in full flight attempting to stop another player in full spin has a ‘duty of care’ to that player. A ‘duty of care’? Spare me. What is not okay is picking a still photograph from a game of many fast-moving parts in order to paint as a villain a man who was simply trying to do his job.

Sam Cane’s job is to put players on their backsides. His job is to make dominant tackles. A dominant tackle is one which immediately halts a player’s forward progress and puts that player in reverse. Dominant tackles tend to be made by players who stand tall. Sam Cane made more dominant tackles this season than any other player in New Zealand.

He’s also been on the receiving end of more than a couple. Just recently Cane returned from injury to play for his provincial side, Bay of Plenty, against Otago in New Zealand’s domestic championship. The first time he got the ball a young Otago midfielder by the name of Sio Tomkinson aimed up and flattened him with a classic blindsiding hit. A few minutes later he did it again. They were the kinds of tackles that Cane himself has become famous for. Did they hurt him? Damn right they did. Had he moved his head at the wrong moment they could have potentially hurt much worse. He didn’t, the game went on, and nothing more was mentioned.

On Saturday in Dublin the All Blacks (193) and Ireland (93) made 286 tackles in the test match. On top of this there were 216 rucks.  That is a tick over 500 contact points in the game during which someone could snap, break or crack. If people wish to agonise over one tackle, then please by all means go back and watch every single contact in the game and come back to me with a full list of perceived indiscretions. I doubt you’ll have the time nor inclination.

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In the meantime, you could always pick a more leisurely pursuit for your viewing pleasure, one in which very large and very strong athletes aren’t compelled to tackle each other with every force they can muster. The players know there is always a risk when they take the field – most of them talk in war metaphors for goodness’ sake – and we must acknowledge that too.

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H
Hellhound 25 minutes ago
Springboks' No.1 status in world rankings coming under increased threat

I disagree. A fair system would include points for EVERY MATCH you play, top guns or dregs. The WC should not influence the points table. No tournament should. It should be simple. This much for a home or away win. The problem with that is that Top Tier nations can point stay by arranging a lot of games against those nations to bring up their points tally, which wouldn't work. At least not on the points table. It would however give Tier 2 nations more game time against the Top Tier nations, which in itself is a good thing. However, that being said, it would dilute the quality of teams as they don't face tough enough opposition to handle the real tough teams, so come WC time, they would suffer for those consequences. There is no points system that currently can be used that would be fair to all, so the best is to try and be as fair as possible. We may not like the current system, but it's the best we have. Some suggested the Soccer system, but it won't work in rugby. No one has come up with a better points system and if they did, WR isn't sharing that. They would rather keep an eye on Dr Rassie with pen in hand ready to declare everything he does as illegal and against the spirit of the game. The SA men are too big, we can't stop them. Maybe we should ban the big men from SA as illegal but keep the big men of other countries? Oh wait, now the SA backs are too fast and slippery. That isn't good for WR so let's declare fast SA backs as illegal too. Yeah, that's how it works in WR isn't it? WR and all other countries hate the Boks. Never give them the respect they deserve, then are shocked completely finding out that no South African care what the world of rugby or its fans or other nations think about us. We don't care about the points system. It's as rotten as World Rugby and it's socialistic communistic rule of laws. The Boks will keep leading the brand of rugby. Keep innovating. Keep pushing boundaries. Keep the game interesting. We respect the AB's because they respect us. They may not like us, but the respect has always been crystal clear. Over 100 years of the biggest rivalry in rugby’s history can't be thrown away just like that. No points system can do that. Between WC's, we care about the AB's, the rest is just preparation for the next WC.

95 Go to comments
J
Jfp123 28 minutes ago
New Zealanders may not understand, but in France Test rugby is the 'B movie'

It would be interesting to see how the financial deal and viewing figures for these last 3 matches compare with those for previous tours by leading NH nations. I imagine that broadcasting rights are negotiated a fair way in advance, so did the broadcasters realise France would send a B team when they signed on the dotted line? And to what extent were viewing figures affected? I’d have thought die hard fans would tune in anyway, and more casual fans wouldn’t know much about French players, except perhaps Dupont, and wouldn’t care who played on the French side - wouldn’t it be which ABs played that would matter to them? Although the big ‘disrespect’ furore might have had an effect, but whether to increase or decrease viewing figures I couldn’t say.

It’s not only the French national team that sends out B teams, many of their clubs do too, both in away matches in the Top14 and in Champions Cup. But these B teams often play in front of sell out crowds, and the value of the broadcasting rights for the Top 14 have gone up and up.

Of course, home advantage is real, and matches against the Saffas and ABs where they play best is I guess at the current time the hardest test of all. However, it doesn’t look like we’ll actually see France A in NZ or SA for the foreseeable future - the Top14 really is a fabulous competition, almost year round brilliant rugby, with big stars from around the world, madly enthusiastic fans, and a big money earner, I can’t see the French making major alterations (I’m not French, but I’m a big fan too and the only alteration I’d make is a limit on individual playing time for player welfare).

Considering their home record against NZ and away against Ireland, I think that’s enough to acknowledge that the top French players have a very high degree of skill, but if SH fans don’t see things that way, that’s up to them. My point was, if NZ fans don’t think much of them, why are they so bothered they’re not there. Anyway come 2027, France A will travel to the SH, if not NZ or SA, and we’ll see what happens!

100 Go to comments
S
Soliloquin 49 minutes ago
All Blacks squeeze past France to sweep July series in Hamilton

Big question!

I think they would get outsmarted by the A team, outpacked forward and depending on the form of the A team, the score would be more or less 15-20 points a higher or lower victory.

The only issue is that France has a lot of 13s, and they were all in NZ.

This weekend’s team was gassed out, so it’s also very much linked to fitness level.

Just like the ABs were tired at the end of November, while the French were rusty after just one game against Japan.

I fear they will get smashed in Paris without Dupont (confirmed to be still out) by the Springboks as it will be their first game of the international season (a nonsense to me - the biggest game will be the first)


The squad for this France A would be:

Gros-Mauvaka-Tatafu

Flament-Meafou

Cros-Ollivon-Alldritt

Dupont-Ntamack

Moefana-?(all 13s were in NZ) Costes ?

Bielle-Biarrey-Penaud

Ramos


(But if you can take players from the NZ, then Guillard and Barassi or Fickou could be in)


Against the C team:

Erdocio-Bourgarit-Slimani

Auradou-Halagahu

Fischer-Guillard-Brennan

Le Garrec-Hastoy

Fickou-Depoortere

Attissogbe-Villière

Barré


And a B team would be:

Baille-Marchand-Atonio

Cazeaux-Vergé

Jegou-Jelonch-Gazzotti

Lucu-Jalibert

Danty-Frisch

Lebel-Dréan

Buros


———

France A-France C at full fitness: 38-12

France A-France B: 28-17

France B-France C: 32-20


It seems a bit like Toulouse is kind of France A at full power last year, UBB is France B at full power last year and Racing92 is France C at full power this year.

112 Go to comments
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