NPR

A few years back, southern hemisphere rugby was derided as 'basketball rugby' for the high scoring games that were common. Meanwhile we in the north enjoyed our connoissseur's rugby where 20 points was a high score.

And yet here we are today with matches where big scores are common.

'Basketball rugby' used to be criticised for being all about attack with poor defences. We now seem to be in era where there is good defence and good attack, but where the balance is such that try scoring opportunities are being made, and perhaps more importantly, taken.

I don’t think anyone bought that nonsense.

It wasn’t so much strong defence as weak attack.

In those days the NH still haemorrhaged those number of points against the ABs and the others.

Ymx wrote: Sun Dec 17, 2023 12:32 pm I don’t think anyone bought that nonsense.

It wasn’t so much strong defence as weak attack.

In those days the NH still haemorrhaged those number of points against the ABs and the others.

Matches like that were mostly played in terrible conditions on pitches that were incredibly slow. Modern pitches mostly never get that bad/slow. Also conditions in SA and Aus were rarely so bad.

petej wrote: Sun Dec 17, 2023 2:31 pm

Ymx wrote: Sun Dec 17, 2023 12:32 pm I don’t think anyone bought that nonsense.

It wasn’t so much strong defence as weak attack.

In those days the NH still haemorrhaged those number of points against the ABs and the others.

Matches like that were mostly played in terrible conditions on pitches that were incredibly slow. Modern pitches mostly never get that bad/slow. Also conditions in SA and Aus were rarely so bad.

Yup. When I think of a 9-6 or possibly even a 6 -3 I remember games at The Rec in the middle of winter where the pitch looks more like a marsh, with puddles of standing water all over the place or Murrayfiel being lashed by torrents of freezing rain making it an absolute misery simply to exist, let alone try and play rugby in a way that involved catching and passing.

Around those times, assuming we are talking about the same era. The NH teams were shipping big totals against them.

Link

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of ... st_matches

9 -6 game - that's a real Scorefest

My first international game that my father took me to ended 5-0 to Wales

Artificial pitches is a good point, they certainly make a difference.

But the point I was trying to make is illustrated by the scores in the cup games this weekend. Lots of high scoring games and few low scores. It used to be unusual for a losing team to get a try bonus. Now it is not common, but it is not rare either. Losing to a try bonus score used to be considered a hammering, now it is common. 20 points was a relatively high score, now it is common.

It may be that I am old man and my memory plays me false, but I just do not remember there being such a high proportion of games where 30, 40 or 50 points were scored, and especially where there were scores with both temas in the high 20s or 30s.

I'm guessing that a 'then compared to now' frame covers the introduction of professionalism and the development of that through the wider game including coaching, conditioning and training facilities... we've got huge resources going into the development of players both physically and mentally. Rather than slogging through and surviving the 80 minutes, players are now switched onto tactical opportunities every minute they're on the field...

think back maybe ten years and the sight of a winger and a centre setting up over a ruck was novel and now we see it in every team.

On top of that, the European professional club scene ( I'm including UK and Ire) is rich enough to have attracted some of the world's best players and provided a fertile paddock for aspiring coaches so we've seen that particular arena develop and produce the sort of high skill, fast paced game that was derided when it was a SH only product.

Bump !

Final score in Irish Inter-Pro

Munster 3 - Leinster 9

Horrific conditions in Limerick tonight; you wouldn't put a milk bottle out on a night like tonight, but I suspect half the attendance got their tickets in their Christmas stockings.

fishfoodie wrote: Tue Dec 26, 2023 9:30 pm Bump !

Final score in Irish Inter-Pro

Munster 3 - Leinster 9

Horrific conditions in Limerick tonight; you wouldn't put a milk bottle out on a night like tonight, but I suspect half the attendance got their tickets in their Christmas stockings.

Nowt wrong with low scoring or tryless games: in either rugby code.

I have fond memories of sitting on the terrace in the rain watching Valleys grind out a 9-2 win over Brothers in the 1974 Brisbane Rugby League grand final. All the points scored were off the boot.

Fairly sure I saw a 9-6 at the Ricoh with wasps Vs falcons. One of the few live games I'd managed to get to. Ref disallowed two perfectly good wasps tries.*

* The tries may in fact have been rightfully disallowed.

I have fond memories (not) of the 6 all draw played out between Ireland and Scotland in the 5n.

Munster beat Connacht 3-0 not that long ago from what I recall. My greatest rugby achievement was contributing to under 14s schools B team beating Bruff 3 nil in a friendly.

You can compare the Stormers vs Bulls historic scores to Munster vs Leinster.

Its never a run away score, thats why its call a rivalry.