Royal survive Pete scare

The games over the weekend provided plenty of food for thought. TCK got back to winning ways as they thumped their way back into some resemblance of form. The Joes did very well to pocket the trophy as they won a hard fought encounter against the Thoras.

On Sunday, Pathana after a rather sluggish start in the first half made sure that their presence was felt in the second half. Science did admirably well in the first half against a consistent green tidal wave, but it was a matter of time, before the effects were felt and it eventually did. The Pathana lineout has been very impressive throughout the season and their levels of consistency has had a lot to do with the back division getting good clean and quick front foot ball.

The other game which was the point of discussion was the RC/Pete game. Some had predicted a cake walk for RC given their sterling performance in the Bradby second leg. The Petes over the years are proving that they are a tough nut to crack on their home turf and proved it against TCK and once again did themselves proud with their performance on Saturday.

Many of us are still flabbergasted with the decision once again to start the Pete skipper on the bench and it simply defies all logic. The introduction of Skipper ‘Kutty’ with just a minute or two to halftime was ill-timed and a poor decision, especially when the person he replaced was having a good game. The Petes conceded a try immediately as they did within the first few minutes of the restart.

The RC pack had more to contend with up front than they had had to do in the entire season and there were signs of chinks in their armour. The Petes were quick to the breakdown point and thereafter used their three quarters to run the width of the field. In doing so, they exposed many shortcomings in the RC defence and Pathana must be watching the Video of the game and making plans to exploit this.

The game was played at a fast clip and the tactical kicking from both sides was good.

In the end the Petes let themselves down with their inability to convert any of the touchdowns and the penalties. RC on the other hand had partial success. Kicking at goal and tactical kicking are important aspects of the game and teams must focus a lot more on this. Many a team has been able to stamp their authority if they are able to secure three points every time they are awarded a penalty in the opposition twenty two.

The RC three quarters also showed that they had a lot to offer and that they were not reliant on the forwards alone to score. Some of the tries scored by the three quarters were of the highest quality, in terms of speed, acceleration and the angle of the run. Both sides can be proud of their three quarters performance and judging by what has been on display this season, this aspect of the game appears to be in good hands at national level in the future.

The refereeing needs to be consistent and at times it was difficult to fathom why at scrum time a team was penalised. In a scrum there are many infringements that can take place and it is not humanly possible for the referee to see all of them. Without doubt the service of the Assistant Referee comes into play. On a number of occasions, incorrect binding, driving at an angle went unnoticed and unpunished.

A lot has been said and written about the RC rolling maul and the tactics that can be employed to counter the same. The Petes chose not to contest the lineout in certain instances and in doing so forced RC to not move the ball to the back. If RC did so, the person in front would be deemed offside. Thus the referring of this important aspect must be consistent and unfortunately, it was not so.

The concussion rule needs to be looked at with a sense of urgency and the local rule book does not permit a replacement until the test is complete. This is definitely a disadvantage and we must move into permitting a replacement.

In the lineouts, too, there must be consistency in that if the ball is thrown in straight and then veers to a side as it travels to the back of the line out it must be deemed as a fair throw. This is prevalent is the interpretation of a forward pass in the international circuit. What matters is the direction of the movement of the hands at the time the balls leaves the hand and not the position of the ball when it is eventually caught.

With Pathana and RC being unbeaten so far their clash will be an event to look forward to and cherish as I cannot see them losing in the coming week.

 

(The writer can be reached via [email protected].)