Before I start, I have an important announcement: I TOLD YOU SO!!! Last week I mentioned my... Displeasure and disagreement with the first yellow card given to Bismark du Plessis. (I may have been less diplomatic about it!). I'm going to try something new here. Let's see if this works?
Now.... If that worked, you should see a video!! Pay attention to the guy wearing number 2 in the green jersey - this is Bismark. He's the one who makes the initial tackle that leads to the... Let's call it a scuffle! This is the hit that got him his first yellow card and IT WAS A CLEAN HIT!!!! The International Rugby Board released a statement saying, basically, it was a fair hit and the ref was wrong. AND the red card he got later in the game has been wiped from his record!!! WooHoo!!! This is great news!! Yeah, they keep track of red cards and players end up facing review boards to "please explain" and sometimes they get suspended from play as punishment. I am happy!!!
now... on to some rugby basics:
First and most important thing to know: football and rugby are very different!!
Got that? I can't stress this enough. If you decide to check out a rugby game, forget everything you know about football. Tackles? Offense? Defense? Kicking? Just... Let it go. Sit back and watch. It will go much better this way - less confusing and stressful.
We are going to start with the teams. I keep mentioning the Springboks - they are South Africa's national team. New Zealand has the All Blacks - jerseys not skin color! - Australia has the (ick!) Wallabies.. you get the idea, most countries (lets just leave the US out of this!) have a team. These national teams are kinda like... Well, fantasy football! In this case, the coach (or team of coaches) picks the players who are on the team. There are teams that are like our football teams; they represent provinces - kinda their version of a state. In SA rugby you have the Sharks, Bulls, Stormers, Cheetahs and others and these teams play against each other - yup, this is like football! Now, the Springboks coach can pick the best players from any of the teams - he builds his fantasy team! And he builds according to their opponent! Some guys are right for one game but not another. Are you with me so far? National teams that are picked by the coach! No guarantee that the guy who played this match will play in the next one. Being picked for the national team is getting "capped" - don't ask me, I don't know why. I just go with it. Your audition to play for the Springboks? Playing on the provincial team. You play your best in every match and THEY come to you!! You don't go and tryout. Doesn't work that way. You gotta earn it!
Now, this makes for a great Springboks squad but... It makes it complicated as a fan! There is a guy they call The Beast and he is universally loved!!! He is almost always playing for the Boks but he also plays for the Sharks. Not everyone is a Sharks fan. I know people who hate when the Sharks win but they love the Beast!! So... Just something interesting about being a rugby fan - you love the players but not their other teams. For me, not being from the country or having a "location" connection to a team... It's hard. I seem to have settled on the Sharks just 'cause I like the way they play. But I like the Stormers a lot!! Sometimes I'm a Bulls fan though. Oh.. Man. It's hard!!!
So... Nothing too strange so far. Kinda cool and interesting! Yeah... It gets even more interesting when play begins.
Everyone has seen a basketball game, right? OK! Think basketball on a field with a ball that looks kinda like a football, only bigger & fatter AND throw in tackling and lots of kicking the ball! You're starting to get the idea! You are a rugby player - you don't play offense. You don't play defense. You just play rugby!
Penalties...
Lets get the ugly stuff out of the way - serious penalties. Now, like in soccer, you can get a yellow card or a red card. A yellow card will get you time out of the game in the "naughty chair" or sin bin. A red card? You are done for the day! These aren't like penalties in football - these are for serious offenses. Now, you cannot replace a carded player! Yellow card? 10 minutes (or however long they are penalized) playing one player down. Red card? The rest of the match one player down. This can seriously hurt!! Oh!! If a player gets 2 yellow cards? It's an automatic red and he is gone! Before you panic and think these happen all the time, like in football, not the case! You know those hits that end up costing NFL players $100,000? THOSE are the kinds of penalties that get cards. There are other penalties, lots of them, but teams are awarded a kick for these. Wait? They kick the ball? Yup! And often, they get points!! Penalties can make or break a team - you can win off penalties but you can lose off them as well! A penalty kick through the posts is worth 3 points! Remember this when I mention kickers later, OK?
Numbers...??
I think we are ready to play!! Hey, notice anything about their numbers? There is a number 8 on both sides. There's a number 2 on both! What?!? OK, stop thinking football. In rugby, your number indicates your position!!! It would be like all quarterbacks in football wore the number 2 and every wide receiver wore the number 11 and every tight end wore 88... Get it? Number = position. Keeps it pretty simple! There are 22 players on a team. 15 players on the field. 7 reserves or replacements. Now... Just something to note here: there is NO player number 23!! (well, this has recently changed for international games but... My point remains!!). If someone says "Hey! You could be player 23!!" that doesn't mean you should be on the team - its not really a compliment. If they say, "We are getting down to player 23!" this means we are running out of healthy players to play and we are in trouble!! Think the 12th man in football, OK?
The Kickoff...
OK, so... Two teams take the field and there is a kickoff - just like football!! Once play starts? Not so much. First thing you will notice is that the passes go backwards - you cannot pass forward in rugby!! There is no quarterback who takes the ball. There is no lining up and starting a play. The ball gets kicked and the action starts!! Yes, they are working toward an end zone to score but forget plays being called and four downs and all of that!! Go back to your basketball here and you will do better.
That can't be legal...
Now we have a guy running with the ball. He can pass it back to a teammate or he might get tackled. Now, brace yourself for some serious hits!! There is no such thing as a horse-collar. Unnecessary roughness? Not sure I've ever heard that in rugby. I have seen penalties for high tackles (still upset that du Plessis got called unfairly for this!!) but... So much that is wrong and will get you fined in football is perfectly legal here. I had to adjust. It was not easy. This is a rough sport!! Bleacher Report does a recap of the "hits of the week" in their rugby section and they have hits from teams all over the world! It's... Eye opening!!! (I was serious when I said I would PAY to see Suh on a rugby field!!!)
Who has the ball...??
So, let's say our guy got tackled. There are lots of other guys all over him but you hear the ref shouting "release". What?!? OK, let me explain. If you tackle a guy, you gotta let him go and try to get out of the way. Your teammates will come pile in there, it's OK. AND the guy with the ball also has to release the ball. Yup! He's got to let go of the ball back so that his teammates can push the whole pile of people forward and someone else can take over. Weird but that's the deal. A pile of guys pushing against each other trying to get the ball!! It's pretty aggressive and intense!
Now, I was really confused here. Guy got tackled, ball gets pushed back and it's just sitting there while people get into position. Huh? Why doesn't someone from the other team just grab it and make a run for it?!?? Calm down, he can't. It's against the rules. It looks like you could just bust through and grab the ball (it's just sitting there!!) but these guys (mostly) know better and it doesn't happen. I no longer scream for someone to "GET IT!! IT'S JUST SITTING THERE!! DON'T JUST LOOK AT IT!" nope, I have learned!
What's with all the kicking...?
Now, this is a prime time for something super weird to happen. The ball gets passed and suddenly a guy kicks it!! He kicks it way down field AND out of bounds?!? Yup. Seriously. I was totally confused the first time I saw this. Made no sense to me and I demanded an explanation.
Go back to basketball here. The ball is going to be thrown back in! The team that did NOT touch the ball last is going to throw it back in - just like basketball, OK? Now, unlike basketball, there are going to be two lines of guys (one from each team) trying to get this ball as its thrown in - this is why they call it a "Line Out"! If you ever see the guys jumping/getting pushed way up in the air as another guy throws the ball into play, you saw a Line Out!!
Ohhhh!!! The light bulb went off for me!! I get it!!! Two things can happen when you kick it out of bounds like that (into "touch" as they call it) 1) the other team gets the ball but has bad field position or 2) you get the ball back in GREAT field position! Nice! Makes sense now!! Either option works!
Now... About those kicks. You watch it and it looks a whole lot like a punt but... Not exactly. There's something weird that you just can't quite put your finger on... Oh! The ball hits the ground! Wait, what? Yup, it's called a drop kick. They drop the ball, it bounces and they kick it! Now, let me just say - this is HARD!! Seriously! I have tried. It did not go well. I was embarrassed. Rugby players make it look SO EASY! Nope. Not even close to easy. Now, I will admit to getting frustrated when there's a lot of back and forth kicking - it does happen. It doesn't usually last too long so I can deal but don't be surprised when you see this.
Touchdown! Not a touchdown...?
So... Our team has the ball and we are close to the end zone!! This looks familiar but... Wait. Who moved the goal posts?!? Who put the goal posts at the FRONT of the end zone?!? This can't be right. Yeah... It is. Don't ask me - I STILL think this is odd but it is what it is.
OK, moving past this... We are pushing toward the end zone. Our guy breaks free, he rushes toward the line and... Dives to the ground? Dude! Why are you slamming yourself to the ground? That's not necessary! Well... It actually can be. See, the BALL has to touch the ground. If you get in there but some jerk gets up under you and you can't put the ball on the ground... No score. These guys get that ball down. It looks dramatic and over-the-top but they take no chances. WooHoo!! Touchdown!!! Wait... It's not a touchdown. They call it a "try" and it's worth 5 points.
OK. Yay!! We scored!! Extra point time!! WooHoo!! Oh... Wait. Why is the kicker lined up so strange? Yeah, this is interesting - the extra point is kicked from where the ball touched down in the end zone. Sometimes, it's in the middle of the field. More often, it's way off to the side and you wonder HOW anyone could get that ball from the edge of the field through the posts. Impossible!! Nope. These guys are insanely good! Do a search for Morne Steyn and check out his kicks. Pat Lambie is another one. Really some talented kickers!! Or... If I were feeling impartial... Check out Dan Carter. My son calls his kicks "Jedi kicks" and says "they look photo-shopped". I would say that... If I were being generous but he plays for the wrong team and I'm not that nice!! So... Yeah... You can check him out, if you want. Anyway... 2 points here so.. Back to the familiar 7 points!! Now.. They don't always get the extra points. Those kicks can be very difficult!
WTF...?
Oh man, what's that? There's a player down on the field and he is bleeding. What!!! They keep playing around it?!? Are you serious? Yup! It's not surprising to see a guy getting medical attention while the game goes on. That took some getting used to as well. They will stop play if there are a few guys down and bleeding but, for the most part... they play on! Oh! And that guy who was bleeding? He usually comes back into the game after getting stitched up and has a bandage slapped on. If you look closely, most of these guys have blood on their uniforms - it happens!
Our turn, again...?
Hey! Something else that really threw me!!! We just scored!! Happiness and joy!! Wait... What's this?!? The other team is kicking back to US?!?! Yup! We score, we get the ball back. Now... This is no guarantee that we KEEP the ball but, we do get first shot at making something happen! Still not sure WHY this happens but... I've adjusted. I've come to think of it as kinda like an on-side kick - sometimes the kicking team gets the ball back, sometimes they don't. It's just the way of rugby! See, let go of these football rules that we all hold near and dear. It's different!
Basically...
So... 80 minutes of playing time. No time-outs. No breaks for end of quarters. Yes, there is half-time but, other than that... You play rugby! These guys are in fantastic physical shape - they have to be!
Dang. There is so much that I haven't even mentioned!! The scrum! A ruck! They have hookers!! Yeah, not that kind of hooker! There is a lot more to rugby. There are things that I STILL don't understand but... I like it!!
I guess what I'm trying to do is tempt you. Catch your interest and get you to check out a match (it's not a rugby game, it's a rugby match!) and give it a chance. Before my son got me to watch, I had no interest because I just didn't get it!! It was SO DIFFERENT!! I was thinking football and... Nope. Not even close. Once I stopped thinking in terms of football, it started to make more sense.
Player search suggestions...
Now, hardcore rugby fans probably won't be terribly impressed here. When they watch an American football game, they will understand why I've explained these things. Rugby is not our game. Football is ours!! But.... Rugby is pretty darn cool!! And these players?!? Damn!!! Search for pics of Pierre Spies! Eben Etzebeth. Bismark du Plessis. The Beast (Tendai Mtawaira) Francois Hougaard. Francois Louw. Oh!!! Check out Adriaan Strauss!!! Love him but... I always think of the late Chris Farley when I see him!! Much better player than I imagine Farley would be! Hmm... Better stop that because I could just keep going. Anyway, these guys are such amazing athletes!! I always just thought they were thugs and bullies - well, some of them are - but they are athletes in fantastic shape!!
Match notice!!!
OK. If anyone is curious... The Springboks play the Australian Wallabies on Sat the 28th at 11:00 AM Eastern. This should be a fun match!!! Not to push DirecTv but... That's what I have and it's on channel 489 or 490. Give it a try!! You really might just enjoy it! No, it's not football. Yes, it's different. It's tough and aggressive and fast paced and, at times, confusing but... I am SO GLAD my son got me to watch!!
And... Like it or not... I will let you know how my boys do against the Wallabies whom I REALLY don't like!! The last match was FANTASTIC so I'm excited about this next one!! Yeah... I really like rugby and I love the Boks (Bokke)!!
No comments:
Post a Comment