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The play stops a lot less often and for a lot less time, and there are no ad breaks aside from at half-time. So you get a whole lot more action per hour. The 1
by lancewiggs 13y ago
The play stops a lot less often and for a lot less time, and there are no ad breaks aside from at half-time. So you get a whole lot more action per hour.
The 15 players stay on the field for the whole game, although 5 (about) can be subbed out (and can't come back).
There are four ways to restart: kick-off, Scrum (big men push), line out (thrown in from the side), penalty, (kick for goal, kick for touch or chase or tap and go), and free kick (same as penalty but no shot for goal).
The players run a lot - it's an aerobic and power game combined, which also means there is a role for players of all shapes and sizes.
The cost of playing is a ball - no pads required. It's also a lot safer as there are a lot less head injuries, as the protective gear in American Football just makes players feel safe, while increasing the impacts to the head..
The coach does not dictate plays - the players decide what to do when on the ground. It's a lot more fluid.
You can see the players' faces and bodies as they play, rather than just the coach.
It's played between countries at the top level. We have a world cup that's a genuine world cup.
It's now an Olympic sport at the 7s level.
and so on
- patrickk 13y agoAgree with most of what you said. > It's also a lot safer as there are a lot less head injuries... There's a bit of debate about that point, there isn't enough data on concussions in rugby as the professional era of massive rugby players isn't as established as the NFL. Great article: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-union/24765650 http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-union/24765650 Tongue in cheek article on why rugby is better than American football: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/589351-seven-reasons-why-rugby-is-a-better-game-than-american-football http://bleacherreport.com/articles/589351-seven-reasons-why-... ---- Where to begin as a rugby newbie? ---- For newcomers interested in rugby union, there's a fantastic subreddit of dedicated fans, really friendly to newcomers too: http://www.reddit.com/r/rugbyunion http://www.reddit.com/r/rugbyunion Check out the sidebar in that subreddit, it's excellent. Rugby to Watch Highlights of the Rugby Championship between South africa v All Blacks (one of the best games in recent memory - it's got power, speed, skill and massive hits in abundance) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f2B0EviQDB0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f2B0EviQDB0 At the moment there's friendlies between top Northern and Southern Hemisphere teams. Fixtures - http://www.ultimaterugby.com/november-internationals-2013 http://www.ultimaterugby.com/november-internationals-2013 6 Nations (Top european nations duke it out). Fixtures - http://www.ultimaterugby.com/6-nation-2014 http://www.ultimaterugby.com/6-nation-2014 The above competitions are national teams, that doesn't even cover club sides, but that's enough to start with! Watch rugby online - http://www.viponlinesports.eu/sports/rugby.html http://www.viponlinesports.eu/sports/rugby.html