Finally, the new law interpretation introduced by the bigwigs of the International Rugby Board has had a positive effect on the game of rugby, almost making up for their recent failings to do so. As such, the law hasn't been changed, but re-enforced by the IRB in order to speed up the play of the ball at the ruck. Rule 15.4(a) reads:
“When a player tackles an opponent and they both go to ground, the tackler must immediately release the tackled player. Sanction: Penalty kick”
Last season, the tackler was given free reign to compete for the ball, whether he'd released the player or not. Anyone who has played any rugby this season will have noticed how much the referees have been ordered to keep an eagle eye on this particular area. Formally, law changes or experimental law variations have been met with grumblings from the players, coaches and spectators, but this time, it seems to have been a breath of fresh air for everyone. What the board committee members have done, cleverly, is eradicate to the best of their ability the grey area in the breakdown. Whereas before, it was a battle of interpretation, one team might see the law as one thing, their opponents another and crucially, the officials had a completely different stance on it. Everyone involved in a tackle is now aware of exactly what is expected of them. If you are in any way involved in the tackle as a tackler, you must return to your feet and make it clear that the tackled player has been released before competing for the ball. The tackled player, once released, has no excuse but to place the ball, thus releasing it from his possession. This has given the attacking team a greater opportunity to retain possession from the breakdown and therefore the rewards are much greater for keeping the ball in hand as opposed to kicking possession away to gain territory.
This has resulted in a much more enjoyable spectacle, with considerably more running rugby and substantially less kicking. The aerial ping-pong that dominated the game post ELV's was something the viewing public had become accustomed to because of the perceived fear of losing the ball in the ruck. At that time, Scrum V pundit and BBC commentator Jonathan Davies made an extremely valid point of saying that no team is forced to kick the ball, if both teams want to go out and play rugby they will, similarly, if they want to go out and kick the ball for 80 minutes, they'll do that too. Whether it's the law variation or just teams consciously going out to throw the ball around remains to be seen, but the evidence is that the IRB have at long last found the right balance.
If we take the most recent English domestic game, that of London Irish versus Gloucester, as an example, the statistics make for pleasant reading:
| London Irish | Gloucester Rugby | ||||
| 2008/09 | 2009/10 | 2010/11 | 2008/09 | 2009/10 | 2010/11 |
| Kick : 37 | Kick : 28 | Kick : 18 | Kick : 36 | Kick : 23 | Kick : 18 |
| Pass : 77 | Pass: 109 | Pass : 152 | Pass : 113 | Pass : 88 | Pass : 136 |
| Run : 71 | Run : 68 | Run : 108 | Run : 86 | Run : 53 | Run : 85 |
It's clear to see the changes that are evident from as little as 12 months, the corresponding fixture from last year saw 15 more open play kicks, 91 fewer passes and 72 fewer runs with the ball. A further 12 months previous again, there were a staggering 73 kicks in open play. Bearing in mind the ball is in play for roughly 44% of the 80 minutes (35mins 12secs), staggeringly that means that in the 2008/09 season, the ball was being kicked over 2 times every minute. These changes aren't only evident domestically. The recent Tri-Nations competition was rugby in it's purest form, a fluent, fast and beautiful game. The matches left spectators In awe of some truly electrifying skill and physicality. Again, taking the penultimate game from the tournament, Australia against the All Blacks, the changes are equally visible:
| Australia | New Zealand | ||||
| 2008/09 | 2009/10 | 2010/11 | 2008/09 | 2009/10 | 2010/11 |
| Kick : 38 | Kick : 33 | Kick : 20 | Kick : 27 | Kick : 32 | Kick : 22 |
| Pass : 69 | Pass: 118 | Pass : 119 | Pass : 103 | Pass : 101 | Pass : 117 |
| Run : 70 | Run : 55 | Run : 94 | Run : 74 | Run : 113 | Run : 106 |
From these statistics and just by watching rugby in general, it's plain to see that there is less kicking, more running and passing and therefore a much more enjoyable experience. The breakdown is a vital part of the game, but the chances of the ball coming back on the attacking side has been increased significantly by the emphasis of the laws by the officials. There are of course exceptions to the rules, players such as David Pocock is a master craftsman at the ruck, and his technical and physical capability shouldn't be outlawed. His ability to turn ball over almost at will is a phenomenal sight within the game, with the odds stacked up against him he achieved some incredible feats during the Tri-Nations. That said, rugby is better for these feats being achieved less frequently.
However, coaches aren't idiots (apart from Martin Johnson that is), and the fear is that some coaches will completely neglect the breakdown and commit no numbers to it. That will mean 15 players defending the width of the field leaving virtually no space for attacking teams to penetrate, leaving little option but to kick. Hopefully though, this won't be the case and all teams will buy into the current brand of pure rugby, possibly even the men who wear the red rose.
