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New World Rugby '50/22' kicking proposal has well and truly divided fans

TJ Perenara has his kick charged down by Courtney Lawes. Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

World Rugby has proposed a number of changes in recent weeks that have divided fans significantly. The Nations Championship is something that still has swathes of critics who are yet to be won over.

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However, after the recent World Rugby symposium, it looks as though there is a new hot topic for discussion amongst fans on social media and that is the proposed 50/22 law variation.

The new trial is borrowed from rugby league’s 40/20, and would allow a team in possession to earn an attacking lineout if they kick from their own half into touch in the opponent’s 22 with the ball bouncing.

It is almost impossible to introduce a new concept like this without facing opprobrium, and that has happened in this instance.

This is what the skeptical fans are saying on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/KeithClarke1/status/1108655935982133248
https://twitter.com/glewisfed1888/status/1108651012020207616
https://twitter.com/ktf81/status/1108649507745599490
https://twitter.com/liversedge/status/1108635094233825280
https://twitter.com/CallumCouch/status/1108646999694413824
https://twitter.com/huwjpthomas/status/1108629639398862848
https://twitter.com/RichardsChris81/status/1108655649687302144
https://twitter.com/CaomhanMacandra/status/1108665806890651648

The initial fears amongst these fans is that rugby would become dominated by kicking and driving mauls. The term ‘kick tennis’ has become infused into rugby vernacular in recent years, and some think that this new proposal will lead to kicking dominating rugby at the expense of running.

However, World Rugby are saying that it will lead to the opposite. As defending sides add numbers to cover the backfield, that will create more space in the defensive line, which will facilitate more attacking rugby. Tactical kicking will still play a pivotal role in the game, if not more so, but it will also reduce the chances of an attacking team facing a defensive wall consisting of 13 or 14 players.

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With the large number of concussions remaining one of the major concerns to World Rugby, this measure is supposed to reduce the number of head-on collisions due to the increase of space in defensive lines.

This is what many of the fans that are in favour of this proposal are arguing, as there is a considerable portion of supporters that are backing this new trial. This is what they are saying:

https://twitter.com/thedeadballarea/status/1108632960650149888
https://twitter.com/phillipstaffy/status/1108655986372431872
https://twitter.com/RonnieG303/status/1108642442255974405
https://twitter.com/Horsebox1986/status/1108640074508484613
https://twitter.com/RaversgGreen/status/1108652830808858624
https://twitter.com/haydn_davies/status/1108644210025136128

Player welfare is at the forefront of World Rugby’s thinking, and it looks as though they are consistently trying to make rugby safer. Alongside this, other proposals are being made with the aim of reducing injuries, but as expected, this new kicking trial has split fans.

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H
Hellhound 46 minutes ago
South Africa player ratings | 2024 Autumn Nations Series

There is this thing going around against Siya Kolisi where they don't want him to be known as the best national captain ever, so they strike him down in ratings permanently whenever they can. They want McCaw and reckons he is the best captain ever. I disagree.


Just like they refuse to see SA as the best team and some have even said that should the Boks win a third WC in a row, they will still not be the best team ever. Even if they win every game between now and the WC. That is some serious hate coming SA's way.


Everyone forget how the McCaw AB's intimidated refs, was always on the wrong side, played on the ground etc. Things they would never have gotten away with today. They may have a better win ratio, but SA build depth, not caring about rank inbetween WC's until this year.


They weren't as bad inbetween as people claim, because non e of their losses was big ones and they almost never faced the strongest Bok team outside of the WC, allowing countries like France and Ireland to rise to the top unopposed.


Rassie is still at it, building more depth, getting more young stars into the fold. By the time he leaves (I hope never) he will leave a very strong Bok side for the next 15- 20 years. Not everyone will play for 20 years, but each year Rassie acknowledge the young stars and get them involved and ready for international rugby.


Not everyone will make it to the WC, but those 51/52 players will compete for those spots for the WC. They will deliver their best. The future of the Boks is in very safe hands. The only thing that bothers me is Rassie's health. If he can overcome it, rugby looks dark for the rest of the rugby world. He is already the greatest coach in WR history. By the time he retires, he will be the biggest legend any sport has ever seen

4 Go to comments
J
JW 1 hour ago
'They smelt it': Scott Robertson says Italy sensed All Blacks' vulnerability

No where to be seen OB!


The crosses for me for the year where (from memory);


This was a really hard one to nail down as the first sign of a problem, now that I've asked myself to think about it. I'd say it all started with his decision to not back form and fit players after all the injuries, and/or him picking players for the future, rather ones that could play right now.


First he doesn't replace Perofeta straight away (goes on for months in the team) after injury against England, second he falls back to Beauden Barrett to cover at fullback against Fiji, then he drops Narawa the obvious choice to have started, then he brings in Jordan too soon. That Barret selection (and to a lesser extent Bell's) set the tone for the year.


Then he didn't get the side up for Argentina. They were blown away and didn't look like they expected a fight and were well beaten despite the scoreline in my opinion. Worst performance of the year in the forth game and..


Basically the same problems were persistent, or even exaggerated, after that with the players he did select not given much of an opportunity, with this year having the most number of unused subs I can remember since the amateur days.


What I think I started to realise early on was that he didn't back himself and his team. I think he prepared the players well, don't get me wrong, but I'll credit him with making a conscious choice in tempering his ambition and instead choosing cohesion and to respect (the idea of it being important in himself and his players) experience first and foremost (after two tight games and that 4th game loss). I think he chose wrong in deciding not to be, and back, himself. Hard criticism.


And it played out by preferring Beauden to Dmac on the EOYT (though that may have been a planned move).


I hope I'm right, because going through all the little things of the season and coming up with these bullets, I've got to wonder when I say his last fault is one we have seen at the Crusaders, playing his best players into the ground. What I'm really scared of now is that not wanting a bit of freshness in this last game could be linked with all these other crosses that I want to put down to simple confidence issues. But are they really a sign that he just lacks vision?


Now, that's not to say I haven't seen a lot of positives as well, I just think that for the ABs to go where they want to go he has to fix these crosses. Just have difficult that will be is the question.

27 Go to comments
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