Two codes of rugby gradually becoming one

In 1895, a dispute over player payments led to the creation of two codes of rugby. For the first time in those 123 years, the two vaguely similar games have never appeared so close. Are the Experimental Law Variations to blame?

The George Hotel, Huddersfield, in August 1895 was the location and time when 20 clubs from Lancashire, Yorkshire and Cheshire resigned from the Rugby Football Union and formed the Northern Union.  The split effectively meant that the Northern clubs in England had forfeited their amateur status, as payments for players who had to leave work early for matches had begun.

The RFU (established in 1871) refused to accept payments for players, and resisted calls for organised leagues and competitions. The Northern clubs, who opposed this stance, duly resigned. It wasn’t until 1972 that the first club rugby union competition took place in England, and a further fifteen years before the formation of a league.

As a result of that meeting beside a Huddersfield railway station, the games of Rugby Union and Rugby League were born. From that moment on, their paths have been crossed only by player defections from one side to another (initially from Union to League) and the famous ‘Battle of the Codes’ when Wigan RLFC and Bath Rugby clashed in May 1996.

The two clubs made history by playing each other at both codes. The first leg, in Maine Road, Manchester, was played in league rules, and saw Wigan thump their union rivals 82-6. The return leg, under union rules in Twickenham two weeks later, saw Bath gain some revenge with a 44-19 win. The aggregate was heavily in Wigans favour, but that was probably the last time League held sway over Union.

Since then, the fifteen man game has turned professional, has spread throughout the world in a way League could never manage, and has seen sponsorship, attendances and player numbers mushroom. Top players from League are now crossing the great divide to Union,  primarily in Australia and England. In truth, most have been failure, but World Cup Final try scorer Jason Robinson will always be the example that this gamble can pay off.

Today, the game of Union could hardly be in ruder health, however, some important decisions were needed to help rid the shackles of defence. The world cup was on drama, yet poor on quality. Three of the four quarter finals yielded an uninspiring seven tries, whilst England picked up a silver medal having gone 240 minutes in the knock-out stages scoring just one try.

 The response was to bring out the Experimental Law Variations (ELV) and introduce them into the Super 14s. The response from the Southern Hemisphere has been positive, however, the opinion in Europe has been decidedly cooler. Rugby has descended into 80 minutes of quick tap free kicks with little structure.

It would be wrong to state that each of the ELVs have had a negative effect on the game – passing the ball back into the 22, and then kicking it straight out is one rule that needed change; as is pushing the off-side line 5 meters behind the hindmost foot at a scrum time (Previously, all you had to be was level with the number

What has transpired is a game that is so loose it is almost unrecognisable from the fifteen man game we have all become accustomed to. Fewer line-outs and scrums have negated the need for territory, and the endless number of quick taps contain too many comparisons with league. Eventually rugby union will become a high octane hybrid form of Union and League.

Experimental Law Variations are exactly what they state – experimental, so hopefully common sense will prevail in the near future. It’s painfully obvious that the international game is in major need of constructive surgery, but the European Cup, arguably the best rugby tournament on the planet, continues to set the standard for total rugby.

For this game to be exciting, tense, and utterly fulfilling, we don’t need ten tries and a DVD of huge hits. Featured matches like Wasps v Munster, Leinster v Leicester, and Gloucester v Ospreys showcased rugby at its majestic best. Stadia was packed, a respectable number of tries were scored, and each game was undecided going into the final phases of play. What more could we ask for?

In June of this year, Ireland, England and the 6 Nations champions Wales head south for their annual mismatches against the cream of the southern hemisphere. On only fleeting occasions have these sides managed to muster something resembling a competitive fixture, but this summer might just see a change in the old order.

For starters, New Zealand and Australia are competing for the first time since their disastrous world cup campaigns. The intervening eight months will have healed few scars. But crucially, these sides will have become accustomed to playing the ELVs in the Super 14s. We can not underestimate how difficult it will be for the players to revert back to the old style of rugby. A golden opportunity for Ireland, maybe?

In the meantime, the Super 14s continues unabated to its obvious conclusion. Last seasons South African interruption has all but died in the water (unless you follow the Sharks), and the Crusaders march on menacingly to an 7th title in eleven years. The Heineken Cup, on the other hand, sees six of the eight quarter finalists looking for their maiden victory.

Crisis? What crisis? Rugby Union does need the odd rule change, but if the ELVs are to become set in stone, we will see an ugly mongrel of Union and League. The two codes will never seem so alike, and you never know, one day Leinster might be travelling to Knowsley Road for a European Cup match the same day Munster host the Huddersfield Giants. Any-ones guest what sport they’ll be playing.