It’s all quite absurd, really. Those who prattle on about the violence of the gridiron game seem to forget that it is violence. It’s a brutal tactical war game that requires players to collide into each other at the fastest possible speed to stop an opponent — something players learn at a very young age.
For as bad as it looks now, though, American football was much worse a century ago. There was no padding, very little forward passing, and far more brutal battles in the trenches.
“Practically a similar summing up as that of the major’s is the consensus among the Californians who have seen the game as demonstrated as it is now being taught on the coast. Its general absorption of most of the other types of contests with the leather spheroid has proved the rule whenever the issue was football”, wrote the Times.
“If we Americans want a safe and sane game of football we can do no better than to emulate the Australian style of game”, Major Peixotto says. “It is almost as open as lacrosse, as changeable as basketball, presents almost as many dribbling chances as the association game (soccer), and admits of no such close formations as exist under our college rules, and which, because of their tendency toward injuries, have raised such a hue and cry against the game”
Sure, it was published in 1910, and the old Major had something to sell people back then, but still, it makes you wonder just how many people would be more than happy to make the same arguments today. Perhaps the only difference is the number of deaf ears on which those arguments would fall. For all its faults, we’re still committed to the gridiron game around here. It’s enough to make you think we might be having too much fun with all this violence.
You can read the full Times article here. Nobody writes like that anymore. I wonder why.
There's nothing but urine in Ben Cousins' urine, and St. Kilda is one step closer to signing him. Expect dozens of "Sinner Becomes Saint" headlines in the Australian papers soon.
You know what the real problem is with International Rules Football? They only play it twice a year.
Some folks will disagree with me on this — particuarly this guy and this guy — but that’s because they only see this game through the filter of their own football code. If they stopped and looked at this from a neutral viewpoint, though, they might see a football code that has much more potential than is on display in this Australia v. Ireland test matches. International Rules requires a rare combination of speed, strength, agility and creativity that you don’t usually see in other codes. Yes, the play looked sloppy at times on Friday, but that’s because we’re dealing with two teams playing this particular brand of football for the first time in two years — and the rules have changed yet again, so even now it’s not the same.
If these two nations played this particular football code year-round, however, International Rules might develop into a uniquely entertaining game. We could see coaches come up with game plans and see players execute clever moves that would excite the fans to no end. We could see a form of football that would blossom into something new and exciting.
Imagine for a moment if this were the dominant football code on the planet. Imagine someone like Wayne Rooney was running around up front, taking marks and nailing overs like he used to nail middle-aged hookers. Imagine if Troy Polamalu were darting around the midfield, tackling any ball carrier coming his way. Imagine what Bryan Habana could do with a round ball and a little bit of space on the sideline.
We’ll never get to see that. Australia has its code, Ireland has its code, everyone else has their codes, and that’s that. We already have two truly international football games — soccer and rugby — and nobody really wants to explore the possibilities of any new codes. Why inject a bunch of new rules into football when the old rules seem to work just fine for everyone?
That’s a shame. Given a little bit of room to breathe, I think International Rules could be a great football game. I guess I’m alone alone in that regard.
You know what the real problem is with International Rules Football? They only play it twice a year.
