O/T Are you enjoying your sport this year?

[Andy_Faber]

A word of thanks to Rugby League from me. Kept the season going, worked out a fair way of resolving the league, two brilliant Challenge Cup semi finals, an excellent final, two great play off matches last week and the semi finals still to come - Hull v Wigan and St.Helens v Catalan this coming Thursday and Friday evening on Sky, before the final on the 27th.
Tough, sometimes brutal, skilful, massively committed and a Covid necessitated minor rule change has actually made it even quicker.
Used to play, but looking at the physiques and collisions so glad I’m just watching these days.

What was the rule change?

[ramAnag]

What was the rule change?

No scrums at the ‘turnover’ restarts...so essentially...no scrums.
Incidentally, Adam Pearson, once of Derby and now at Hull FC (confusingly that’s the RL team) is in hospital with Covid.

[Andy_Faber]

No scrums at the ‘turnover’ restarts...so essentially...no scrums.
Incidentally, Adam Pearson, once of Derby and now at Hull FC (confusingly that’s the RL team) is in hospital with Covid.

thanks, and I had already chosen to ignore Geoff's helpful contribution

[MadAmster]

No scrums at the ‘turnover’ restarts...so essentially...no scrums.
Incidentally, Adam Pearson, once of Derby and now at Hull FC (confusingly that’s the RL team) is in hospital with Covid.

Have you noticed that, in Union, at the breakdown, play seems to have become very much like League. Nothing like as many rucks and mauls as there used to be. It's not as ceremonial as in League where the ref declares "tackle" and then only one player is allowed to stand close to the man with the ball while he rolls it back to the dummy half.... Union still has the odd player in there but they all line up, defensively, in the same way they do in League.

[ramAnag]

Have you noticed that, in Union, at the breakdown, play seems to have become very much like League. Nothing like as many rucks and mauls as there used to be. It's not as ceremonial as in League where the ref declares "tackle" and then only one player is allowed to stand close to the man with the ball while he rolls it back to the dummy half.... Union still has the odd player in there but they all line up, defensively, in the same way they do in League.

I was one of the ‘girls’ in the backs, MA...centre, full back or, if I got selected up a level, usually on the wing. Used to try and keep out of the way of the forwards until they passed the fags and the beer round in the communal bath afterwards.
Never really understood scrums, rucks and mauls...still a generally dull part of the game imo, although on cold days in northern England I did look on at the literally steaming forwards with envy as exposure became a real risk stuck out in the backs.
I agree with you about how Union is looking more like League in some respects. To me both codes are at their best as running games and I’ve always thought that the additional two wing forwards in Union are counterproductive to entertaining rugby.
Glad I played when I did...there’s a lot of talk at the moment about how repetitive heading of a ball in football may lead to dementia, but some of the collisions between increasingly huge men in rugby must be causing long term damage and in the unlikely event of me ever having been selected to play in the front row I’d have walked away...just so much pressure on necks and backs, particularly in Union.