Footy is meant to be about toughness, resilience and soldiering on if you’ve been clobbered in to a different dimension.
However these days it’s grow to be something however, with gamers opting much less to hold on bravely in favour of carrying on like pork chops.
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The cauldron of Suncorp Stadium was lowered to a theatre of damsels for Magic Spherical with gamers floundering to take advantage of penalties so typically that the unbiased physician gained three Dally M factors.
Even with the lightest of influence, ball carriers would interrupt proceedings to induce themselves in to a coma earlier than discharging from the ICU and enjoying the ball 15 seconds later.
Whether or not clutching a neck for a crusher deal with, lingering a leg to draw contact after a kick and even simply mendacity in a state of dramatic repose after a mere show of pressure, everybody agrees there’s nothing extra tawdry than overstating damage to realize a aggressive benefit.
That’s as a result of there’s solely factor worse than a excessive shot, and that’s doggin’ it for one.
It’s even taking place on the opposite facet of the ball, with gamers diving on the ft of lead runners to earn obstruction penalties regardless that the contact happens in a unique hemisphere to the attempt scorer.
Witnessing our footy heroes flopping on-spec is worlds away from the glory days after they’d wave away directions to return from the sector regardless of having their head taken off on the waist.
In reality, they appear to be much less targeted on profitable the ruck and extra on profitable penalties and BAFTAs – and the histrionics are making contact footy appear to be the Western Entrance as compared.
And worse?
Gamers will not be solely enjoying useless to earn penalties, they’re displaying the rat-cunning to do it when the sport is on the road.
Manly have been on the receiving finish of their 13-12 loss to the Broncos when Jaxson Paulo was penalised for an ethereal brush to the ear of Deine Mariner that wouldn’t have blown the froth off a lime spider.
Described by coach Anthony Seibold as “the softest penalty ever”, the Broncos marched upfield within the following set for the profitable discipline aim to be kicked by Jock Madden.
It wasn’t the primary time this season Manly has copped such conniving both, with Shaun Johnson incomes a game-levelling penalty within the dying levels of their match towards the Warriors in spherical six after hamming-up late contact from Josh Aloiai.
And what have we seen since?
A spate of paranoid referees penalising any influence to the kicker, even when the contact has as a lot impact to the leg as a squirt of Veet.
Whereas not within the clutch levels, the penalty blown towards Harry Grant on Daniel Atkinson final weekend was the prime instance of current occasions, a name Braith Anasta described as “embarrassing” and “loopy”.
It appears the NRL can’t keep tempo with the elite ranges of gamesmanship, and it makes us all miss these wonderful years when the worst faux damage was Kenny Edwards’ cramps.
Briefly, the trendy participant is just too shrewd for a rule e-book attempting to maintain tempo with society’s attitudes in direction of participant security, which coincidentally in addition they circumvent by grabbing a pinky when bleeding from the temple to keep away from a HIA.
With the ensuing stoppages and opinions, it’s making rugby league a extra excruciating viewing expertise than Graham Annesley’s Monday backtrack session.
– Dane Eldridge is a warped cynic craving for the glory days of rugby league, a time when the sponges have been magic and the Mondays have been mad. He’s by no means strapped on a boot in his life, and as such, ought to be taken with a grain of salt.
