Running Fly-half vs Kicking fly-half?

[Ronjay]

I remember a few years ago where the rugby world cup 95 boys took on a few of the 80's guys in a benefit match and the 80's guys were flipping awesome. And they were a lot older then the 95 guys. So the technical level of today may be above that of the 80's but you can't right off sheer genius.

 

[sand_man]

Your comment assumes that you'd just take a player from the 80's and dump him into today's rugby. When in reality if they did play today, they would be doing the same training and preparation the players do now.

Frik could do all the training he liked, he would never get to the minimum height for an international lock of around 6.5, same with "pinetree" Meads.

 

[cybershark]

Frik could do all the training he liked, he would never get to the minimum height for an international lock of around 6.5, same with "pinetree" Meads.

So you can't think of another position he would have been able to play? It takes a lot more then height and muscle mass to make a good rugby player.

 

[sand_man]

So you can't think of another position he would have been able to play?

Yeah, linesman...

It takes a lot more then height and muscle mass to make a good rugby player.

Not really no. 70% of it is just that, height and muscle mass. At 6.2 and 96kgs there not too many options.. And even with modern training methods at his height if he weighed 110kg-115kg he would probably have been too heavy for his height and therefore too slow to play in the loose forwards. Perhaps prop or hooker...? But don't take my word for it. Do yourself a favour and watch some footage from 20-30 years ago. The game and the men/women that play it have/has evolved to such an extent that legends from 6 or 7 seasons ago would battle to make the 1st XV now..

 

[cybershark]

Yeah, linesman... Not really no. 70% of it is just that, height and muscle mass. At 6.2 and 96kgs there not too many options.. And even with modern training methods at his height if he weighed 110kg-115kg he would probably have been too heavy for his height and therefore too slow to play in the loose forwards. Perhaps prop or hooker...? But don't take my word for it. Do yourself a favour and watch some footage from 20-30 years ago. The game and the men/women that play it have/has evolved to such an extent that legends from 6 or 7 seasons ago would battle to make the 1st XV now..

Again, you're making a comparison in isolation. Naas Botha's first comment when talking about other eras is to say, "it's not fair to compare".

There are more loose forwards in the 6ft 2in range than you realise, Richie McCaw to name one.

 

[sand_man]

Again, you're making a comparison in isolation. Naas Botha's first comment when talking about other eras is to say, "it's not fair to compare".

There are more loose forwards in the 6ft 2in range than you realise, Richie McCaw to name one.

Agreed, one cannot and should not compare... Legends relative to their era's... One cannot and should not compare Carl Lewis and Usain Bolt one on one but what is comparable is the impact each athlete made and had on their generation....

The average height and weight of international loose forwards I would guess to be in the region of 6.3-6.4 and 105-108kg..

 

[Sharks fan]

True. although I'd just like to say that even though the loose three where not as mobile back then as they are now, if you got nailed by one of them, well, traction was probably the least of your worries. Being hit by a bus would have been a more pleasant experience.

As I've said, I don't like the kicking anyway. I can understand kicking from positions where there is no other option but from within opposition half where an attack is on the cards just pisses me off. How many times this year alone have the Boks been in good positions to run at the opposition only to have the scrummie or flyhalf kick it away?

I agree 100 percent. We could have made more this Tri Nations if we kept position of the ball.
Maybe we need a running fly-half(Ruan Pienaar) and get a full Back(Franz Steyn) to do the kicking to goal. In that way we can be more unpredictable, which we are not at this stage.

 

[Pitbull]

I don't care if he is a kicking or running fly-half.

As long as:

1. He actually kicks the ball out when needed.
2. He passes the ball and not keeps running into his opposite number
3. He kicks only 1 or 2 up and unders a game not 500 of them.

I do think a kicking fullback and a running Fly-half. Like in the Theo van Rensurg + Hennie Le Roux days.

 

[Ronjay]

@ Sharks Fan, yip, only getting the powers that be to see that, is another story. Our whole game plan seems to be kick first then look around to see which option is better.

@ Pitbull, your second point is another of my pet peeves, leave the drive work to the forwards and do the job you are supposed to do, distribute the ball. As for the up and unders, they waste time, allow opposition a 50/50 chance of getting the ball (but in our case, they usually have a 90/10 chance), and is becoming as predictable as a soap opera plot. It's getting to the point that you can see opposition moving into position to collect it before the kick is made.