So every fan south of the Tweed is livid right now? I'm no different. The ten metre rule was average at best, Queensland's markers got away with murder, the Greg Bird tackle and of course the Inglis try.
Under the new rule which very few League fans know about, if a defender (in this case Robbie Farah) plays at the ball and knocks it loose its a free ball, six again if the attacking team regains possession. Greg Inglis has every right to do what he did. Had Robbie Farah hit the arm and Inglis lost it, no try.
If thats the rule then fair enough, they made the right call.
The problem I have with this is that the NRL rewards mediocrity. The separation rule for tries is also atrocious. The biggest grey area in the game is stripping the ball from a ball carrier and the ball carrier having bad hands.
Players drop the ball on purpose if they feel as though there is a hand on it to try and get a penalty. Thats not in the spirit of the game. More emphasis should be put on the ball carrier. Unless there is a blatant strip then it should be a knock on. As a young player you are taught to treat the ball like gold, now the ball gets treated like a piece of garbage.
In the 2010 Grand Final there was an incident where BJ Leilua in the process of scoring a try had the ball knocked out by Jamie Sowards knee's. Braith Anasta grounded the ball and the try was awarded. Why should a dropped ball be rewarded with a possible 6 points. Mediocrity rewarded.
Comedian Jimeoin talks about AFL and how kicking a behind is a case of "I can see what your trying to do so I will give you a point for that". Same happens now in Rugby League.
The Separation rule for scoring a try is just as ridiculous, as well as benefit of the doubt. Some of the tries given to the likes of Ben Barba for those efforts where they 'bounce' the ball rather that ground it are ridiculous. Your torso and head falling on the ball over the line can be deemed sufficient enough for a 'benefit of the doubt' try. Its just wrong.
Also, if I was to go up to a girl at a pub and say "I'm going to take you home tonight" and she replied "I very much doubt that" there is a massive chance to say I would be back home several hours later by myself. So why should the referee's think that maybe is good enough? Are they living in hope themselves? Unless they can definitively say its a try, it shouldn't be rewarded. What if a Grand Final is decided by a benefit of the doubt try? Its a scary thought!
Other than my gripes about those rules, the gap between NSW and QLD is nothing. NSW are just as good as them now, we don't fear them like we did 2 or 3 years ago. What is now needed is the little bit of class that gets them over the line for a try. The tide is turning. Ricky Stuart was well within his rights to be fined $50, 000 for bagging the referee's but he see's the bigger picture. If he controls whats in his control then the Blues are an enormous chance to still win the series. A lot of class showed from Stuart in that sense.
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