favourite rugby team

[Scottoffee]

League's essentially touch rugby, could be the reason there's only 2 leagues of note and their World Cup went past without much notice.

Union's the form of rugby that the world watches and for the most part, plays - many more League to Union converts than vice versa.

3 teams for me - Scotland, Waratah's and ex-local side Dundee HSFP.

 

[Nebbiolo]

League's essentially touch rugby, could be the reason there's only 2 leagues of note and their World Cup went past without much notice.

Union's the form of rugby that the world watches and for the most part, plays - many more League to Union converts than vice versa.

3 teams for me - Scotland, Waratah's and ex-local side Dundee HSFP.

Touch rugby? Have you seen the size of those guys and the tackles they make? That's pretty heavy touching, mate. The reason it does not figure so much in the public eye is that it is only played in the Lancashire and Yorkshire and is still a working-class game.

 

[Bruce Wayne]

RL has 3 teams with a chance of winning, RU has 4 teams. Neither can really stand particularly proudly. The Southern Hemisphere teams play a far more league style game and it's down to that reason that they are the most succesful teams in the world. British teams are stuck in 10 man rugby that sees wingers often go whole games with barely a touch of the ball.

RU played at its best is a super spectacle but watching the England front 5 trundle around the fringes of the ruck or putting up garryowen after garryowen is a turgid sight.

It's churlish to consider RL mere touch rugby when the games coaches and players have offered so much to RU in recent years. Unless you regard Jason Robinson, Lote Tequiri et al mere touch rugby players.

Personally I'd say that RL is much more athletic. You wouldn't see a RU prop hitting it up like a Feka Paleaasina for instance. That's largely been the problem with the British game in recent years, that our forwards are too slow to get to the breakdown or make breaks of the defensive line. We don't have a So'ealo or Collins in our game.

 

[coyney]

is this the case for most evertonians? does liverpool not have a team

and excuse my ignorance, but what's the difference between league and union rugby, which one is more common?

Many years ago I used to watch Liverpool city in the Rugby but they moved to Huyton then Runcorn as as far as I know dont exsist now I also used to go to their club in Old Swan but never met many there interested in rugby all soccer fans

 

[Welton Toffee]

i used to hate union, but after living in the southern hemisphere i realised it was a totally different game they play down there, and the crusader are the finest exponents of it, they are supposed to be bringing a game to twickenham, as good an excuse as any to go see what looks a great stadium.

It's awesome mate

 

[coyney]

Boo

My cousins lad from Warrington hates Wigan with a vengeance calls them the kopites of rugbyhis dad was a passionate blue but when he passed away the lad started going to watch Warrington with his mates.myself I have always had a soft spot for Widnes thought they got ripped off

 

[Bruce Wayne]

If you support Widness you may as well support Wigan the number of our old boys you have

 

[Reidy's Bottle Of Grecian]

touch my arse

as has been said they play a league style of union in the south. hem.
when the pie-eaters signed "inga the winger" he was sent to the thistle health club next to haydock park, i know cos my arl fella had the same trainer to lose weight, the guy had to lose about 5 stone before he could wear the rag of wigan, his fitness level was nowhere near the level of his new teammates, even jonathon edwards struggled fitnesswise at 1st. inga had come direct from n.z. as well, no slouch time to develop a tub, he arrived as the all black record try scorer, league is far more demanding.

as well as that it's the game of the working man, not the doctor or gynaeocologist.

 

[toffeestillidie]

touch my arse

as has been said they play a league style of union in the south. hem.
when the pie-eaters signed "inga the winger" he was sent to the thistle health club next to haydock park, i know cos my arl fella had the same trainer to lose weight, the guy had to lose about 5 stone before he could wear the rag of wigan, his fitness level was nowhere near the level of his new teammates, even jonathon edwards struggled fitnesswise at 1st. inga had come direct from n.z. as well, no slouch time to develop a tub, he arrived as the all black record try scorer, league is far more demanding.

as well as that it's the game of the working man, not the doctor or gynaeocologist.

ah that last bit makes some sense. i learned everything i know about rugby (which is very little) in university, and i go to a pretty snotty private university (god only knows why), which i guess explains why i haven't even been exposed to league really.

so for the most part, do the national teams play union, or do most countries have a league team and a union team?

 

[Reidy's Bottle Of Grecian]

both usually, New Zealand just won the r.l. world cup.
union was here 1st, but the northern union broke away and started to play their own "code" which has 13 a side, instead of laying the ball after a tackle the player stands and plays it between his feet on the ground to a player behind, thats the main difference really.
most teams in uk are in the northwest in lancashire and over the hills in yorkshire. in aus the teams were all from sydney but there are now others in the other cities.
in n.z. union is the national everything, yet more people play league on the weekends, they dont have a pro league so a team from aukland plays in the aus. league.
there are no rucks and mauls in league and the scrum has less players.

 

[Reidy's Bottle Of Grecian]

YouTube - Rugby League 2008 World Cup Final Highlights

highlights of the r.l. world cup final (4 mins)

there's a bit of a campaign to bring a bit of "biff" back to rugby and wen great britain went to australia all hell broke loose, in this vid the captain of the lions leads by example and goes toe2toe with australias latest neanderthal willie mason.
YouTube - Fielden V Mason

 

[toffeestillidie]

both usually, New Zealand just won the r.l. world cup.
union was here 1st, but the northern union broke away and started to play their own "code" which has 13 a side, instead of laying the ball after a tackle the player stands and plays it between his feet on the ground to a player behind, thats the main difference really.
most teams in uk are in the northwest in lancashire and over the hills in yorkshire. in aus the teams were all from sydney but there are now others in the other cities.
in n.z. union is the national everything, yet more people play league on the weekends, they dont have a pro league so a team from aukland plays in the aus. league.
there are no rucks and mauls in league and the scrum has less players.

if there are no rucks and mauls, what does a scrumhalf do in that game? (i ask because scrumhalf is the only position i'm really suited to play)

 

[Reidy's Bottle Of Grecian]

if there are no rucks and mauls, what does a scrumhalf do in that game? (i ask because scrumhalf is the only position i'm really suited to play)

as the name suggests he is a half-back who feeds the scrum, and i mean feed these days, they put it virtually in the 2nd row, the scrum now is just another way of resetting play, they play from the base of the scrum too as they get a set of 6 tackles when in possession.

 

[Reidy's Bottle Of Grecian]

i read an aticle one day and it said that a groundsman at twickenham was retiring after about 2 millenia in the job, he had seen them all and was asked at his awards who the greatest player he saw at twickenham. the amassed rara hobknobs waited in anticipation expecting lomu or edwards, the old guy said without any doubt alex murphy, now alex is pure rugby league legend but while on national service he turned out for the r.a.f. against the army at twickers, he said in that 1 game he did things onn that pitch that nobody has ever done since. at the time there was no crossing between codes, r.l. was pro and union amateur if a union player switched he was banned from returning.

i went to a school btw where you were only allowed to play rugby league, no football only rugby.

 

[Bruce Wayne]

I'd personally say that the scrum half in League is more creative than his counterpart in Union. The Union half back is probably more akin to the hooker in League as his main role is to pass out of the ruck and make the odd scoot around the fringes, which is exactly what a hooker in League does. Jonathan Thurston is probably the best scrum half in the League game. He kicks goals as well as performing his usual duties.

YouTube - jonathan thurston

In the British game Sean Long has been the best scrum half of his generation but lately Rob Burrow has taken on the mantle. He's only a little guy but incredibly quick and has a tremendous scoring record, as you can see by some of the tries in this video.

YouTube - Rob the pocket rocket Burrow, try compilation.

In the Union game I can't really recall any similar players. For England Harry Ellis is more of a scooter in the James Roby mould. Joost van der Vesthuizen has been the best union scrum half that I've seen, although George Gregan is also good.