Rugby Safety

Pinetree Boy

ALH-06 wrote:

Fear or hesitance has no place on the rugby pitch. In fact, it'll get you injured. If you give less than 100% commitment to the tackle and other contact, you'll end up hurting yourself, perhaps badly. I mistimed a tackle there back in March and my kneck is still hurting...

But its no coincidence that New Zealand have the highest number of paraplegics in the 18-25 y/o bracket in the world...

I have never heard this before. Per capita or the highest number?

Steffano2002

Pinetree Boy wrote:

I have never heard this before. Per capita or the highest number?

I'm thinking per capita... I mean, New Zealand is as big as Ireland, with a population of around 4 million. Pretty sure China or India have a better chance of having more paraplegics in the 18-25 year old bracket!

Gowranistan

Is playing in the backs dangerous at all??? Obviously I know that playing as a forward is really dangerous (i.e hooker) because you could do serious damage to your neck from the impact of scrums. Rucks arent too bad are they???[/QUOTE]


Methinks he's not suited to the rigours of rugby. If he's fullback he will have to hurl himself at giant maurauding props. Can't be chicken doing that. It's not that dangeroust though. Worst i've gotten in ten years as a foward was nearly all my teeth knocked out (While wearing a gumshield). But that was a fluke.

Tim Robbins

bugler wrote:

I share your contempt for tag, Tim Robbins.
By any chance are you from Munster?

Ain't from Munster. I don't like 10 man Rugby either
Tag is actually a decent sport at the right standard. But the standard of most of tag right now, make it look like kiss chasing for adults. a lot of the teams are work teams and the rule where you have at least 3 girls on the pitch, or the fact that many soccer / gaa heads play it mean that only about 2 / 7 people on average on each team can pass the ball and have a clue what's going on.
So the other 5 just run around like headless chickens, with no concept of passing, running lines, doing loops, switches etc.
In fact it's really annoying watching people get in a tizzy who haven't a clue about the most basic patterns of running Rugby. For example the soccer and gaa heads thinking you man mark in Rugby in the same way as you do in Soccer and GAA.
Then when the other team runs a simple under 12 switch and the defenders bang into each other, they still don't realise, defenders never cross each other in Rugby no matter how many times you explain it.
There's nothing more head recking being in a competitive enviroment with such a mix standard, doesn't happen in any other sport.

Go and watch or play a game at the higher levels and it's not bad.

Rant over.

Tim Robbins

Sorry for the second post. A good book I would recommend reading is the following:
is called the handbook of safe rugby:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Handbook-Safe-Rugby-Bill-Beaumont/dp/0713645202/ref=sr_1_1/203-9689463-4487929?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1182112409&sr=8-1

I would recommend reading this. I nearly broke my arm in a maul because I had in the wrong place. I read this book, and I was the second man to the maul in subsequent match. Put my hands in the right place - on the ball and pass it back through the maul from which we scored a push over try.

Didn't tell anyone I read the book though Too embarrassed.

Pinetree Boy

Gowranistan wrote:

Is playing in the backs dangerous at all??? Obviously I know that playing as a forward is really dangerous (i.e hooker) because you could do serious damage to your neck from the impact of scrums. Rucks arent too bad are they???

Methinks he's not suited to the rigours of rugby. If he's fullback he will have to hurl himself at giant maurauding props. Can't be chicken doing that. It's not that dangeroust though. Worst i've gotten in ten years as a foward was nearly all my teeth knocked out (While wearing a gumshield). But that was a fluke.[/QUOTE]

I played prop and hooker for 25 years and never had a neck injury (nor did I ever play in a game where another front rower did). The front row gets a bad rap. The key is making sure that the technique is right (head up- arse down) and that the guys playing there are the right physical type. Rucktimeis far more dangerous. You are hitting something that hasno structure at pace and can get caught in a tangle which you can do nothing about. The tackle is far more dangerous and I have seen plenty of backs have their career ended by a bad hit.

I don't know about Ireland but NZ had a spate of injuries to guys in rural areas where you had idiot coaches with limited resources throwing young 19 and 20 year old tight forwards into senior games before they were ready and when their bone structure was still devloping.