Oddball rugby ideas

I WAS amazed to note over the last few days that a number of academics were attempting to have certain aspects of the rugby game outlawed therefore depriving youngsters of yet another opportunity to enjoy the pleasures of sport.

Harry Mount’s excellent article (Mail) is very scary indeed. I find it concerning that this collection of odd-

balls are actually employed, probably on big salaries, to teach youngsters the nonsense that is listed in their Cvs.

ADRIAN TANNER, Ellon, Aberdeenshire

RUGBY needs to take a long, hard look at itself. if it wants to be american football with bulked- up man-mountains, go ahead – break out the helmets and pads. if it instead wants to be the fastflowing game of skill it once was, with players of widely varied body shapes, then the current over-emphasis on crunching tackles has to be addressed.

E. GRIGOR, Edinburgh

AN IMPORTANT aspect of the debate over school rugby and tackling is being overlooked.

as a particularly anxious child, i was introduced to the game at boarding school and was initially afraid of coming up against bigger and stronger boys. But once i’d learnt to how tackle (low and fast is best), i realised the truth of the old saying ‘the bigger they come, the harder they fall’. it instilled in me the essential belief that one can succeed, despite often overwhelming odds.

GRAHAM PURCHES, Bristol.

WHAT a real shame it will be if young people are no longer allowed to play full- contact rugby. it’s a game i enjoyed from the age of 11 and played throughout my school and university years to a high standard.

i occasionally received injuries, but never anything lifethreatening. i suspect there’s a similar chance of serious injury horse - r i ding and playing football and ice-hockey. high-tackling and tip-tackling are dangerous and are already pro- hibited in adult rugby and at younger ages, and in under-16 games there are only uncontested scrums.

it would be a great favour to adult rugby if scrums, as in rugby league, were uncontested. Everyone is fed up with the constant scrum collapses, penalty offences and the wasted time of set scrums in professional rugby today. another thing which is spoiling rugby is the flat defensive line across the field behind the ruck or maul.

This encourages crash-balls and adds danger to the tackler. if the defensive team had to be five yards behind the ruck or maul, the game would open up and runners would be encouraged to run wide as we used to do in the old days.

Rev BOB SHORT, Nottingham.

WHAT is the bigger risk to children: organised, well-coached r ugby or a couch- potato lifestyle?

N. RODGERS, Dumfries