Robbo on NRL360 tonight

[roostersrule2]

Bloody hell in the 1970s & 80s it was mainly a 22 round competition, there was the midweek cup, there was a pre-season cup, more rep games than now,Kangaroo tours every 4 years to France and England that included 20 odd games. The grounds during a wet winter were mud pools, the centre of North Sydney oval was concrete, the showers at Henson park only had cold water, there was no interchange so you couldn't take a couple of hit ups and run off & once you came off you couldn't go back on, you were allowed 2 replacements who had to play at least half a game in reserve grade to even qualify, hookers had to hook and the scrums were brutal, the medical support was a St Johns ambulance man, the trainers had a water bucket with a sponge for any injury, the players were paid rubbish and to top it off they ALL had day jobs (like Eloni Vunakece does today) .....and the players NEVER complained.

Fast forward to today and theres 25 rounds, 3 state games, a couple of internationals. Clubs have bigger rosters, 8 interchanges with 4 reserves, grounds that are like playing on cushions, gay scrums, every tackle is scrutinised, big support coaches/staff/ medical assists, most don't have day jobs, get great money and spend half the week killing time playing X Box.

Well i say to those players toughen the fark up. Im not buying into this player welfare BS......no one is going to drop dead because the season is supposedly too long. If they get injured its because its a contact sport -no other reason. If it means rotating your roster to keep players fresh then so be it. They should thank their lucky stars they are playing in this day and age because they got it good

lol and have you seen the players of those era’s today? Their bodies are as broken as their mind because of the fatigue and lack of awareness for player welfare.

Not to mention their careers were much shorter. We’re seeing amount of games records broken all the time because players are able to stay in the game much longer. So the players haven’t gone soft they’re just better managed.

It’s no longer about having two training sessions a week then turning up on Sunday. The players have super intense training throughout the week, media commitments, rehabilitation appointments. Not to mention whatever their currently doing to set themselves up for life after football.

What you’re saying is just pure ignorance because you’re glorifying the old days based on what’s just straight up nostalgia and ego.

[Thirteen]

I don’t give a shit about player welfare. Not my problem. I just want to watch footy. If there are too many games than the clubs need to manage their players better.

[007]

Spot on,

you will get people saying that the game is faster now and players are bigger so the collisions are harder, but they also get the best treatment,diet and rest to compensate.

The world has turned soft, and around every corner you have a political correctness mob crying about every little comment. People may as well stay indoors these days, as there are freaks on the street which we have to accept as normal or else they get vindicated and accused of being sexist,racist or unaccepting of society.

Bulldogs supporters? Souths possibly? Justin Bieber?

[milanja]

Bulldogs supporters? Souths possibly? Justin Bieber?

Hehe, and then some.

[Louis N]

Bloody hell in the 1970s & 80s it was mainly a 22 round competition, there was the midweek cup, there was a pre-season cup, more rep games than now,Kangaroo tours every 4 years to France and England that included 20 odd games. The grounds during a wet winter were mud pools, the centre of North Sydney oval was concrete, the showers at Henson park only had cold water, there was no interchange so you couldn't take a couple of hit ups and run off & once you came off you couldn't go back on, you were allowed 2 replacements who had to play at least half a game in reserve grade to even qualify, hookers had to hook and the scrums were brutal, the medical support was a St Johns ambulance man, the trainers had a water bucket with a sponge for any injury, the players were paid rubbish and to top it off they ALL had day jobs (like Eloni Vunakece does today) .....and the players NEVER complained.

Fast forward to today and theres 25 rounds, 3 state games, a couple of internationals. Clubs have bigger rosters, 8 interchanges with 4 reserves, grounds that are like playing on cushions, gay scrums, every tackle is scrutinised, big support coaches/staff/ medical assists, most don't have day jobs, get great money and spend half the week killing time playing X Box.

Well i say to those players toughen the fark up. Im not buying into this player welfare BS......no one is going to drop dead because the season is supposedly too long. If they get injured its because its a contact sport -no other reason. If it means rotating your roster to keep players fresh then so be it. They should thank their lucky stars they are playing in this day and age because they got it good

I hadn't looked at the situation as closely as that. But it's true and over in England they played twice as many games, which was mentioned by Zac in an earlier post. Softer gounds though helped. The ones that did take better care of themselves played on late into their careers. I recall Billy Wilson, then retired and coaching North Sydney, actually donning the guernsey and taking the field in the second half to show his team how to defend. he was forty two.

Brad Fittler showed it can be done in the Auckland Nines running almost the length of the field for an intercept try. In the old days the big drinkers didn't make it far past thirty - if that. By then they were generally running around in the thirds. The fitter ones, like Fulton played into their thirties and big Artie showed how effective he could be in that iconic State of Origin game.

It certainly is a lot more professional with injury assessments, scans and treatment, recovery sessions and the players working for the football club these days. But I think the big difference is the salary cap and the closeness of the teams and no easy games. Back then the champions played for either St George or Souths, or in the 70's Easts or Manly and later Canterbury and St George. Those sides were superior over a number of years and it was easier for a player to go missing for a while. The pace of today's game makes that a real liability. I realise we have a lot of stoppages with this bunker stuff but the fitness levels now are something else. But you make some good points Random Rooster.

[Random Rooster]

What you’re saying is just pure ignorance because you’re glorifying the old days based on what’s just straight up nostalgia and ego.

So you think the season should be shortened because of player welfare? Im glorifying the old days based on ego.....not sure what you mean?

[trewhella]

You have to look at why he wants the season reduced?

player welfare?

he wouldn’t be saying that if he didn’t have the origin captain and two key players in the squad.

its the same for every team, why bring up something that you know will never change.
‘Excuses are for losers.

[ism22]

Spot on,

you will get people saying that the game is faster now and players are bigger so the collisions are harder, but they also get the best treatment,diet and rest to compensate.

The world has turned soft, and around every corner you have a political correctness mob crying about every little comment. People may as well stay indoors these days, as there are freaks on the street which we have to accept as normal or else they get vindicated and accused of being sexist,racist or unaccepting of society.

These days players dont feel the pain of injuries because they get a jab as soon as something hurts a little.

That said, when I watch games from the 70s and stuff... it was so much less professional, players were soooo much smaller, the speed/tactics werent there and the general conditioning training wasnt there (so players were nowhere near as muscular/explosive). Even somebody like big Artie isnt particularly large or skillful by todays standards (188cm and 100kg... what was huge yesterday is now meh).

70s games are in slo-mo (none of the players would be anywhere close to elite by todays standards). Dont confuse less interchanges with being tougher. Fatboys run outta juice easily and 70s league was sooooo slow. Like sooooo slow!!! Think fat durry munchers plodding around the field while completely gassed. In the modern game you are either an 80 minute player or a power player. Defending fresh legs (of a power player) 10-15 minutes from the whistle would be tough. Fat smokers can have so much weight that they are difficult to bring down but they wont hit you with much accelleration (and they are much smaller + less muscle dense than todays big men).

Another point is that rules have HAD to become softer because the tactics are now so brutal that you would have spinal injuries every week if they didnt. Back in the day you just ran into people as hard as possible. Now we use a variety of devious wrestling/judo tackles that can really mess people up.

Some rules have become irritating and their interpretation can make even less sense. However, it is far more difficult to make it in todays game. 70s ARL is more like the quality of todays park footy (where you will come across some big human beings by their standards... who are probably fitter too).

[milanja]

These days players dont feel the pain of injuries because they get a jab as soon as something hurts a little.

That said, when I watch games from the 70s and stuff... it was so much less professional, players were soooo much smaller, the speed/tactics werent there and the general conditioning training wasnt there (so players were nowhere near as muscular/explosive). Even somebody like big Artie isnt particularly large or skillful by todays standards (188cm and 100kg... what was huge yesterday is now meh).

70s games are in slo-mo (none of the players would be anywhere close to elite by todays standards). Dont confuse less interchanges with being tougher. Fatboys run outta juice easily and 70s league was sooooo slow. Like sooooo slow!!! Think fat durry munchers plodding around the field while completely gassed. In the modern game you are either an 80 minute player or a power player. Defending fresh legs (of a power player) 10-15 minutes from the whistle would be tough. Fat smokers can have so much weight that they are difficult to bring down but they wont hit you with much accelleration (and they are much smaller + less muscle dense than todays big men).

Another point is that rules have HAD to become softer because the tactics are now so brutal that you would have spinal injuries every week if they didnt. Back in the day you just ran into people as hard as possible. Now we use a variety of devious wrestling/judo tackles that can really mess people up.

Some rules have become irritating and their interpretation can make even less sense. However, it is far more difficult to make it in todays game. 70s ARL is more like the quality of todays park footy (where you will come across some big human beings by their standards... who are probably fitter too).

Always tough to compare an era. You get used to watching and excepting the game for what it is each year. Has the game gotten better year to year? Definitely not.

This years games have been the slowest that I can remember, the amount of stoppages in today’s game has become a joke. Players lay on the field for 2-3 minutes, give away penalties to get breathers, dawdle off the field when sent to the bin, take two minutes to kick a goal from in front, game is stopped for every head knock.

you don’t think players from the 80s and so on wouldn’t have benefited from being interchanged after 15min, have a rest and then came back on full of running?

There are players like Dugan and co who are getting injured every game, acl’s are snapping, pec injuries have become a norm.

just because players have become fitter, hasn’t made them better.

[roostersrule2]

So you think the season should be shortened because of player welfare? Im glorifying the old days based on ego.....not sure what you mean?

I do, it’s a lot more of a hectic schedule for the players these days. It’s not just the 80 minutes anymore. You can have a never ending debate on whether the game was harder back then than what it is now but the Monday-Friday aspect of it is much tougher.

People always seem to glorify the ‘old days’ just because it was their time. Doesn’t matter if we’ve improved life and society immeasurably by then, nothing’s ever as good as how someone chooses to remember it.

[The Brain]

Robbo has that kind of face I wannna punch on with.

[Louis N]

I do, it’s a lot more of a hectic schedule for the players these days. It’s not just the 80 minutes anymore. You can have a never ending debate on whether the game was harder back then than what it is now but the Monday-Friday aspect of it is much tougher.

People always seem to glorify the ‘old days’ just because it was their time. Doesn’t matter if we’ve improved life and society immeasurably by then, nothing’s ever as good as how someone chooses to remember it.

I doubt anyone could seriously doubt that the players are bigger and fitter. Beetson at his fittest when captaining Easts weighed in about 106 kilos and JWH is 108. But I do think Random Roosters advanced some useful points. People glorify the old days is a 'generalisation' that muddies the waters. Some people may simply be looking over a greater span of time, without ranking one era above another.

The biggest difference seems to be that just about everybody except half backs weigh in over 100 kg and sometimes much more. The game has become more brute forces yardage and the impacts are harder and gang tackling, wrestling etc has made the prospect of injury even greater.

Players like Corder are as tough as any from the past.He's had two had knee reconstructions already and battled his way back to achieve greater heights. Still plays the game at 100 miles an hour. Skill wise I don't think the games offer as much variety. It's hard to find a player today with the hands of a Fairfax or even the kicking skills of a the same guy, or Lockeyer or Johns, outside of say Cronk. Different skills for different eras as the game changes.

I know I learnt a lot about footy from listening to my father and his mates discuss players. Seemed to me that their knowledge was valuable as they had a good handle usually on whether someone was going to be a flash in the pan or the real deal. So I see merits in what Random Rooster says, without detracting from your point, as player welfare is something that needs to be high on the agenda. The media pressure alone has brought a few undone. .

While on the subject here's a great link from the recent Roosters radio and our own Craig Salvatori coming on half way through. Great interview.

https://www.roosters.com.au/news/201...aig-salvatori/

[Ivan Benko]

Milanja just because Dugan goes down doesn't always mean he is injured,he would imo be the worst example you could have used,but I see your point.

[Johnny Brass]

I doubt anyone could seriously doubt that the players are bigger and fitter. Beetson at his fittest when captaining Easts weighed in about 106 kilos and JWH is 108. But I do think Random Roosters advanced some useful points. People glorify the old days is a 'generalisation' that muddies the waters. Some people may simply be looking over a greater span of time, without ranking one era above another.

The biggest difference seems to be that just about everybody except half backs weigh in over 100 kg and sometimes much more. The game has become more brute forces yardage and the impacts are harder and gang tackling, wrestling etc has made the prospect of injury even greater.

Players like Corder are as tough as any from the past.He's had two had knee reconstructions already and battled his way back to achieve greater heights. Still plays the game at 100 miles an hour. Skill wise I don't think the games offer as much variety. It's hard to find a player today with the hands of a Fairfax or even the kicking skills of a the same guy, or Lockeyer or Johns, outside of say Cronk. Different skills for different eras as the game changes.

I know I learnt a lot about footy from listening to my father and his mates discuss players. Seemed to me that their knowledge was valuable as they had a good handle usually on whether someone was going to be a flash in the pan or the real deal. So I see merits in what Random Rooster says, without detracting from your point, as player welfare is something that needs to be high on the agenda. The media pressure alone has brought a few undone. .

While on the subject here's a great link from the recent Roosters radio and our own Craig Salvatori coming on half way through. Great interview.

https://www.roosters.com.au/news/201...aig-salvatori/

The difference in the size of the players from previous eras is enormous in terms of collisions and impact on the body.
Horrie hastings played at about 75 kg and his son in a similar position is 98 Kgs. The speed and athleticism of the modern athletes is amazing. The length of the season impacts the quality of the footy. It's not necessarily the team that's been the best side that wins the comp but the one that is injury and suspension free at the end of a long season which is why I think we play too many games in the season .

[Random Rooster]

The difference in the size of the players from previous eras is enormous in terms of collisions and impact on the body.
Horrie hastings played at about 75 kg and his son in a similar position is 98 Kgs. The speed and athleticism of the modern athletes is amazing. The length of the season impacts the quality of the footy. It's not necessarily the team that's been the best side that wins the comp but the one that is injury and suspension free at the end of a long season which is why I think we play too many games in the season .

Fair enough points made but i think making the game more endurance based will have a bigger impact on injuries than say reducing the season by say 4-8 weeks. The way these forwards are rotated allows them to go flat out for 15-20 minutes. How about bringing in the old rule that when your off you cant go back on.....it will reduce the on field impact and you would see the forwards bodies have to be more flexible rather than that of a bodybuilder. Straight away all these pec injuries would disappear and with the reduced impact of collisions the number of overall injuries would drop too.