Grizz adds his voice to loud chorus of concern
Alex Wyllie has urged the NZ Rugby board not to ignore the pleas from a group of former All Blacks who fear for the future of the sport.
A former All Blacks coach and test player, Wyllie has joined a cluster of other former internationals and Wellington businessman Douglas Catley in saying NZ Rugby must do more to change the game if it’s to continue to be regarded as the country’s national sport.
Last week Catley, the driving force behind the campaign, placed advertisements in newspapers around the country to gauge the public’s opinion about what he perceived to be the negative consequences of professional rugby on the amateur game.
Yesterday, Catley said he had been gratified to receive a ‘‘huge response’’ from rugby supporters. NZ Rugby chief executive Mark Robinson has previously been in contact, but Catley still hopes a representative will be allowed to address the NZ Rugby board.
Wyllie, who played 40 games for the All Blacks in the early 1970s and coached the national side between 1988 and 1991, has a number of gripes about the state of rugby.
Like ex-internationals such as Ian Kirkpatrick, Allan Hewson and Dave Loveridge, Wyllie wants the sport’s gatekeepers to find ways to ensure rugby is entertaining and appeals to players of all sizes.
Right now, Wyllie believes, they are losing the fight.
‘‘What NZ Rugby should take note of, is the number of people who are dissatisfied with the way the game is being played or managed, call it what you like,’’ Wyllie said.
Country rugby, especially, seems to be bearing the brunt of a changing society, although that can probably be traced back to when Rogernomics tore through rural communities in the late 1980s.
Yet Wyllie, who lives in North Canterbury, believes a number of other issues are also to blame.
While NZ Rugby has been praised for
Alexwyllie Former All Blacks player and coach introducing an under-85kg club cup, it struggles to convince parents their children are safe playing in the lower grades.
Defence is king in professional rugby. And the trend of placing a fence line of forwards in the backline has trickled down to club and school grades.
‘‘When we look back to when we were playing as kids, it was a game when you space to run with the ball in hand, pass and try and score tries,’’ Wyllie stated.
‘‘It seems to be all about defence, now, and that is not really what the game is about. It is about attack, so that people can enjoy watching it.’’
In Wyllie’s day, rucking was a logical way to shift bodies and generate quick ball.
He accepts the sight of players being spat out of the back of a breakdown are gone but believes the ruck cleanouts, when big forwards charge in with their shoulders and heads, are even more dangerous. The tackle law is a shambles, he says.
‘‘They have to look at the rules they have made. They thought it was for player safety but, of course, as soon as you make rule changes the first thing that coaches do is say ‘how can we use that to our benefit?’’’
Wyllie also fears the wicked collisions could result in a serious injury.
‘‘They are brutal. Especially when you have got guys standing there with their backs to the opposition, and all of a sudden they are getting cleaned out.
‘‘You are talking about whiplash and back injuries and all the rest of it. We have been damned lucky there have not been some [players] with major back problems.’’
Visiting the gymnasium wasn’t an option in Wyllie’s day. He said he once tried to make some weights in a farm shed, but he relied on work on the land to keep him in shape.
‘‘But these guys, nowadays, they do work out a lot and get stronger. Things have changed a hell of a lot. Whether it is for better or for worse? Some people might say it is for the worse.
‘‘We played rugby for enjoyment. Not the money because there wasn’t any then. We did it because we loved it. We had a lot of fun.’’
‘‘It seems to be all about defence, now, and that is not really what the game is about. It is about attack, so that people can enjoy watching it.’’