Ben Youngs has called for the goal-line drop-out law to be scrapped, claiming that “the balance is wrong “, as the defending team can “bang” the ball 60 metres back, giving the advantage to the defence.
Speaking on his podcast, For The Love Of Rugby, Youngs said: “I am not a fan of this rule. I do not like it.
“If you’re held up, your reward is a goal-line drop-out where the best kickers in the world all bang it about 60 metres. So, you’ve worked hard to get yourself in a position to score a try, only to get held up, and then you have to start again 60 metres out.
“I think that rule needs changing, addressing now. I’m not saying it goes back to what it was, a five-metre scrum, but I do think there needs to be something done.
“A goal-line drop out for a team to hoof it 60 metres is not a reward for doing all that work to be held up. You’ve got to reward the defence for holding them up, absolutely, but a goal-line drop-out when people bang it that far… I feel like the balance is wrong there.”
Balance is needed
Dan Cole, playing devil’s advocate, said: “It’s tough because the game has got to the point where you get to the five-metre line and you bludgeon your way over. It’s pick and go, pick and go, pick and go, pick and go. We saw that a few years ago, where basically the game was more to pick and go, and it’s come back that way around again.
“So, as the defence, you need to have some reward for defending multiple phases. And if you do hold a guy up over the try-line, you should get some form of reward.
“It’s difficult because the attack has to be accurate, but you do have 100 chances on a pick and go, and the one time you get to go over the goal line, the defence should be rewarded. But at the same time, it doesn’t really reward attacking rugby.”
Cole stressed that rugby should not revert to a five-metre scrum after the ball being held up, because that doesn’t reward the defensive effort at all.
The solution
“I don’t think it’s balanced,” agreed Youngs.
“I think you’ve got to reward the defence slightly. But I feel at the moment, it’s too rewarding. The balance is wrong at the moment for the attacking team, you have to reward the defence. At the moment it’s too defensive, especially with the way that these guys can kick a ball and lump a ball. All of a sudden, you’re regenerating and you’re back to what 50 metres from their line, and it’s so bloomin’ hard to get entries. ”
Youngs thinks he has the solution, however, saying: “I think it needs to be a free-kick, a tap on the 22-metre line. That’s what needs to be, and you regenerate the game that way.”
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