The Aviva Stadium is a total sell out – South Africa, world champions, are coming to town. There’s probably more chance of digging for gold on Lansdowne Road than getting a ticket, so it’s down to begging, borrowing, maybe even a little stealing. It’s the last match of a riveting, but punishing, November schedule for the Irish team.
South Africa have retained the Rugby Championship title, playing some great rugby, with all four teams positively contributing to the best championship for a long time. But, and there is a definite but, the levels of legal brutal physicality blasted through the stratosphere.
Just when it seemed an impossibility to heighten those levels, that’s what happened, particularly in the two New Zealand v South Africa clashes. While it was one win apiece, the all-time record thrashing (43-10), delivered by the Springboks in Wellington, saw the All Blacks, like a dazed boxer on the ropes, just waiting for the end. That’s a first.
These matches were terrific, continuous offloading at pace, keeping the ball alive was the mantra; often mesmeric. However, it must be recognised that play was utterly attritional, carnage in terms of injuries. Players departed with alarming frequency for a variety of nasty injuries, including brain checks.
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A few of the HIAs were identified by newfangled mouthguards which send a signal to the medics when a player has received a head knock which must be assessed. These mouthguards are positive in ensuring that players who need attention, get it. But, they are “after the event” and do nothing to prevent or reduce the high number of such knocks.
While they are not compulsory, they do have value. It is becoming well nigh impossible for the human eye to observe which players need to be assessed, even with the assistance of replays. When a player is slow to get up, unsteady on their feet and obviously very shaken, the medics should not depend on, or allow themselves to be overruled by, a reading from the mouthguard which doesn’t indicate that a brain check is necessary.
We have been living for some time now with the goal-line drop out. Introduced to reduce the number of pick and drives close to the goal-line, it has done nothing of the sort.
Ireland’s Dan Sheehan is a marvellous player, a generational hooker in the making. In pick and drive scenarios, in line with common practice, Sheehan leads with his head, which means his brain is taking repeated hits. Repetitive sub-concussive impacts to the head do have potential for long-term brain damage, but they do not demonstrate the typical effects of concussion. England hooker, Luke Cowan-Dickie also goes head first; and has had no issue in knocking himself senseless with a tackling technique which has involved using his head, instead of his arms.
The pick and drive tactic has become a near obsession in the game. It doesn’t really matter if a player gets held up over the goal-line, the ball will regularly be returned to his team via the subsequent drop out. The attack plan is to eventually pull in so many defenders that space opens up out wider, when the ball will be sent into these channels. It needs more thought, but there is an argument for restricting it to three pick and drives in any sequence of play. While it all counts as ball in play time, it can hardly be called “quality” time.
Joe Schmidt’s Australia made quite a buzz in the Rugby Championship, with scrumhalf Nic White very involved, having temporarily suspended his retirement due to an injury to regular 9, Jake Gordon. Aged only 35, the now definitely-retired White is facing into a series of unavoidable surgeries. Both knees, his legs straightened, and one completely new shoulder installed. As well as the brain, the human frame was not designed to take the levels of legal but savage, heavy “hits” delivered by massive players, which have become central to play.
So, while we all want a ticket to the Colosseum, aka the Aviva, it’s to watch the gladiators tear into each other. As for actually entering the arena to participate, heck, no thank you. And, that failure to participate is a major problem facing the amateur side of things
The red card controversy in the Connacht v Bulls match, unsurprisingly, grumbles on.
The hearing has rescinded the red for Connacht’s Josh Murphy, and handed Bulls’ Jan-Hendrik Wessels a hefty nine-week ban for interfering with Murphy’s nether regions. The cameras did not supply proof, so the judiciary acted on the balance of probabilities, following interviews with both players, and the citing commissioner, Ireland’s Peter Ferguson. I would have thought that’s the job of those who sit on the bench, but the displeased Bulls are mulling over an appeal. Perhaps they might tell us why they think Murphy so very suddenly turned on Wessels.
Finally, maybe also surprisingly, a word of praise for a Scottish referee, Ian Kenny, in the Leinster v Zebre match. I’ve not seen him before and it’s hard to judge on just one match. But he was assured throughout, not prone to the non-stop, meaningless chatter favoured by his confrères, Hollie Davidson apart.
He delivered two red cards without fuss, originally these were “yellows” sent to the bunker for review. We’ve seen similar looking offences not upgraded but players, who put themselves in the bunker, can’t realistically blame the officials if their offence turns “red”. It’s a fool’s game to second guess their lordships, but hard to see Leinster’s Andrew Osborne, and Zebre’s Thomas Dominguez, avoiding suspension.
It was only after the match that my phone pinged, telling me that Kenny is not Scottish at all. He is, in fact, an Irishman, currently living there. It was news to me, scout’s honour.
