23rd February 2025 - Rugby
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We are currently in the midst of the 6 Nations rugby tournament. It is held
yearly and has 6 nations which take part:

- England
- France
- Ireland
- Italy
- Scotland
- Wales

It is a seriously fun tournament and I try to catch the majority of the games
each year. 

However, what is rugby? Why is it pleasing?

At it's heart, rugby is about 2 teams trying to get a ball from one end of the
pitch to the other and to place that ball at the opposite end. There are some
funky 'H' shaped goal posts at either end of the pitch. The ball is long with
pointy ends. Think of an egg with pointy ends at both ends. Players can kick
the ball but typically will hold the ball and pass it between theirselves.
Balls can only be passed backwards. When the ball is placed at the
opposition's side of the pitch, a try is scored. This is worth 5 points. A try
is followed by a kick. If the ball passes over the cross bar but between the
posts of the 'H' shaped goal posts, an additional 3 points are scored. There
are lots of formations such as scrums, rooks and mauls but they are just ways
of settling disagreements. As ever, games get complicated. There are of course
different types - union and league. The differences are mostly about the
formations and some historic stuff about pay. It is a typical north south
divide affair too. There are lots of player roles with them broadly split into
forwards and backs. The forwards are typically big, heavy bruisers while the
backs are spritely. The forwards are there to pile in and provide pushing
power while the backs are there to grab the ball and sprint. There are 15
players and they can have daft names such as hooker.

While watching the 3 different games over the weekend, it struck me what
rugby truely is. Rugby is a game of flow. You have to pass the ball 
between players. As you cannot throw the ball forwards and kicks tend 
to send the ball in an unplanned direction, it forces the players to 
charge forwards. The opposing team aims to prevent the charging 
players from progressing. This is where the rook and maul come in. 
Both involve a player being tackled or prevented from moving, other 
players piling in to provide a barrier so the ball can be scooped backwards 
to a free player who can hopefully run with it and continue pushing 
forwards.

If you compare this against football/soccer, there is a clear difference.
Football involves passing the ball in any direction, hoping to find an
opening. Plays tend to involve multiple players passing the ball between them
while looking for gaps. With rugby, you find the players are like a shield
line. The lines of opposing sides go forwards until they clash. Then some
manouvering occurs and hopefully  a player finds a gap and makes your 
hopes soar, excitedly babbling as this player evades brutes with 
millimetres to spare. 

When you watch a great game of rugby, each millimetre of forward progress is
hard work. Players often end up rooking, mauling and in scrums. This pressure
to find a gap adds to the excitement. Scores end up close and any mistake can
lead to a penalty or some other advantage. Spectators find theirselves pulled
into this battle and emotions ride high. There is something special about a
player finding that gap and going hell for leather across the pitch. It is
even better if they evade a tackle and score the try while flying through the
air. 

Bad games of rugby tend to have a dominant team. The flow is all wrong and
feels very one sided. I find that teams travel without significant challenge
and that just makes it boring. I find it does not matter if I have 'skin' in
the game with supporting a team or not. The whole shield wall aspect 
just seems missing. Maybe it is me. Maybe it is a fundamental to 
rugby.

ALL HAIL THE FLOW!