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Waratahs expats thwarted by defensive tactics of the north
Rupert Guinness | December 27, 2007
THE challenge to make rugby more exciting could be a lot harder than most anticipate, judging by the frustration of former Waratahs Chris Whitaker and Peter Hewat about the game in the northern hemisphere.
While the unions of Australia, New Zealand and South Africa continue to push for the introduction of the experimental law variations at Test level, it appears the boring 10-man kicking game is as popular as ever among the rich clubs of Britain and Ireland.
Former Waratahs captain Whitaker and his former teammate, winger/fullback Hewat were frank in their descriptions of the professional game in the northern hemisphere in the latest edition of the NSW Rugby podcast Tah Talk.
Although both men said they were enjoying their spells in Europe - Whitaker for Irish club Leinster, and Hewat for English club London Irish - their insights illustrated the north-south divide on what is perceived to be good rugby. Although they cite weather and refereeing as key influences on the British and Irish game, disturbingly, there seems little - if any - push by the clubs to change the way they play rugby.
Indeed, in a year where teams such as England used the 10-man game to great effect at the World Cup, it wouldn't be surprising to hear some last-gasp opposition to law changes set to be instituted by the International Rugby Board.
"The one thing that came out of the World Cup was that the teams that played defensive kicking games are the ones that got through," said Whitaker, who is still recovering from a broken leg sustained recently against Toulouse.
Whitaker described a "bigger the pack, the better" mentality, aided and abetted by referees. "They just referee the game differently [in the north]," he said. "They don't focus on the breakdown, the clearing of the ball. They quite enjoy a pile-up at the breakdown, so it's slow ball to slow ball.
"It would be different if the referees were better and it were drier. The skill level [of the game] is up there. It is obviously a different game. It is getting better, but just not as good.
"Offside at the breakdown, rolling away from the ball … it is almost non-existent. It detracts from the game. But the crowd over here seem to enjoy a big forward pack and No.10s kicking to the corner. It seems to work. So they keep going. Look at England at the World Cup."
Whitaker, who joined Leinster last year, said he took some time to adapt to how the game was being played. "In the first five or six weeks I was having a nightmare. It was driving me mad," he said. "The referees were not 'reffing' the breakdown. It took quite a while getting used to to them."
Near sell-out average home crowds of 18,000 at the Royal Dublin Showground indicate, however, that 10-man rugby is still a crowd-pleaser.
Hewat, who is in his first season with London Irish, was also immediately aware of a different playing culture. "It is a lot of 10-man rugby. It is quite vicious up front," he said. "The teams put a lot of emphasis on scrums … There is a lot of box kicking. It is real grinding away, trying to get field position and do what you can from there.
"A lot of defences are up and in, whereas back home they were up and out, drifting. There is still a lot of space out wide, but it is a matter of getting the ball there and having the team to do it."
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