ABs admit more care needed to avoid high shots
Tacklers must ‘take responsibility’ to avoid serious head knocks
becoming increasingly dynamic and high-impact, but that doesn’t make them any easier to watch and it will serve to put some players and parents of youngsters off the sport.
It has to be taken seriously, and thankfully the All Blacks appear to be. Tuungafasi, as gentle a soul as you could meet off the pitch, sent a note of apology to Grosso afterwards and his fellow front rower Franks, a man who recently served a two-match ban for making contact with Blues hooker James Parsons’ head, which caused a concussion, said players have to be more careful.
“You have to take time, for example, to sight a good target at a ruck and be aware of how you’re using your body,” Franks said.
“For example, against the Blues, I didn’t even know that had happened until I saw it on the big screen because you’re dealing with splitsecond decisions.
“It’s the importance of getting the skillset right and taking a little bit more time to really get your body angle right.”
The high tackle is an obvious risk but the ruck “cleanout”, a euphemistic term for the way players from an attacking team drive (or sometimes dive) into a breakdown to get rid of the opposition is another, and frankly it’s a wonder more head injuries aren’t received here.
A problem with the cleanout is the vulnerability of players trying to make turnovers who have their eyes down on the ball and who don’t see the opposition coming shoulders or heads first.
All Blacks loose forward Luke Whitelock said his side knew the consequences of getting tackles wrong. And that could apply equally to the tackler and the player on the receiving end.
“It’s pretty evident the way things are being reffed; if you get that part
It’s pretty evident the way things are being reffed; if you get that part wrong, you can see yourself sitting on the sideline.
All Blacks loose forward Luke Whitelock
wrong, you can see yourself sitting on the sideline,” Whitelock said. “It’s something we have to train and get right as individuals, to get our techniques right.
“Obviously when you say the target changes — we have to change the way we try to make that tackle.
“Every time is different — you’re always trying to adjust to what’s in front of you.
“People carry the ball differently and it’s your responsibility, I think, as the tackler [to get it right].
“You can’t afford to get it wrong because it has quite a big consequence, obviously.”