Want more space? Have fewer players

Monday 30 November 2009
Published By: Ben Welch
International Rugby > Scotland

Mention the possibility of reducing the number of players on a rugby union team to any hardcore fan and they'll either laugh in your face or slap it. The very notion of making the game even the slightest bit like the 'other' code is horrifying at best, but maybe a change is needed.

The sport is being heavily criticised for failing to live up to fans' expectations, with the dominance of kicking currently in the firing line. Conservative coaching is usually blamed, but the fact is that the trend has emerged because teams are increasingly having difficulty finding any space with which to create attacking situations.

Experimental law variations were supposed to boost excitement levels by removing mauls in the hope that more open play would be encouraged, but we all know how that turned out.

In an article for the BBC, former Lion John Beattie suggests that removing two players from the pitch could well be the way forward. And before you dismiss him as a raving lunatic, consider the argument on its merits.

Professionalism has created a new breed of rugby player, with most looking more like wrestlers than the nimble figures from highlight reels of years past. But the size of the pitch hasn't changed - meaning larger bodies occupying the same area as before. Fewer players would mean more space, which would mean more room to run.

It's a simple enough suggestion, but one that could go a long way in creating the return to exciting, running rugby we all so crave. Of course, the likelihood of the powers-that-be actually making a radical change like that is virtually nil. But with sevens on the ascendancy, it may well be that failing to adapt could leave the traditional form of the game struggling to win new fans and being left behind by the existing ones.