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Indeed. Aussie rules is probably the least tackle-intensive of the non-round-football games. A better comparison would be to Rugby League, which is tackle-stop

by hugh3 16y ago

Indeed. Aussie rules is probably the least tackle-intensive of the non-round-football games. A better comparison would be to Rugby League, which is tackle-stops-play much like Grid Iron (which is what we call American Football). But there's still less tackling, because you're only allowed to tackle the guy with the ball, whereas Grid Iron seems to be an everybody-tackles-everybody-all-the-time sort of situation.

anigbrowl 16y ago
Quite. In American football the basic play is to prevent the entire team from following the ball around. In rugby the only time you have this pushing behavior is in a scrum (aka scrimmage), where most of the team members get into a group blocking position against the other team and the referee throws the ball into the middle between their legs. Then the teams try to push each other backwards so one of them can get over the ball and kick it out to the rear of their scrum, where another player can pick it up and start running. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/rules_and_equipment/4205334.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/rules_and_equipm... has an explanation and a useful picture) Even though this scrum is a test of brute strength, there's no impact involved because the scrum is carefully arranged and supervised by the referee before the ball is thrown in, not least to minimize the risk of injury. Pushing is one tactic, especially beloved of teams like the New Zealand All-Blacks who have a lot of big Polynesian players, but an equally valid approach is to rotate the scrum to one side or the other and use an opposing team's forward momentum against them. The main injury risk is a broken neck or torn ear, but these are mercifully rare. About 10% of rugby injuries involve concussions, but the overall rate of injury is much lower, and you could play many games without ever getting a bang on the head. Strength is important, but no more so than speed or agility. I weigh only 140 pounds but I was a fairly good rugby player in school because I was nimble, and there are quite a few small professional players. If you are interested and have 4 minutes to spare, this video shows the highlights of a game with two excellent, versatile teams doing 'a bit of everything': http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heoO_5MvZ0w&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heoO_5MvZ0w&feature=relat...

by hugh3 16y ago

anigbrowl 16y ago

Quite. In American football the basic play is to prevent the entire team from following the ball around. In rugby the only time you have this pushing behavior is in a scrum (aka scrimmage), where most of the team members get into a group blocking position against the other team and the referee throws the ball into the middle between their legs. Then the teams try to push each other backwards so one of them can get over the ball and kick it out to the rear of their scrum, where another player can pick it up and start running. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/rules_and_equipment/4205334.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/rules_and_equipm... has an explanation and a useful picture) Even though this scrum is a test of brute strength, there's no impact involved because the scrum is carefully arranged and supervised by the referee before the ball is thrown in, not least to minimize the risk of injury. Pushing is one tactic, especially beloved of teams like the New Zealand All-Blacks who have a lot of big Polynesian players, but an equally valid approach is to rotate the scrum to one side or the other and use an opposing team's forward momentum against them. The main injury risk is a broken neck or torn ear, but these are mercifully rare. About 10% of rugby injuries involve concussions, but the overall rate of injury is much lower, and you could play many games without ever getting a bang on the head. Strength is important, but no more so than speed or agility. I weigh only 140 pounds but I was a fairly good rugby player in school because I was nimble, and there are quite a few small professional players. If you are interested and have 4 minutes to spare, this video shows the highlights of a game with two excellent, versatile teams doing 'a bit of everything': http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heoO_5MvZ0w&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heoO_5MvZ0w&feature=relat...