Good, honest on-field biff is an acceptable part of Rugby League. In fact, if we're really honest, for most of us it's one of our favourite parts isn't it?

Depends how far it goes. If you want to watch fighting though, go try MMA or boxing, because it isn't Rugby League.

IMO, an on-field punch up is not violence. Even if it is an all in brawl, I still don't class it as violence as long as it's 6 of one and half a dozen of the other.

If it's unprovoked, one party is defenceless or comes as a cheap shot(Tuilangi on Ashton in RU, Farrell's headbutt for Wigan v Saints(?) a fair few years ago, or Kelvin Skerret's forearm on Morley for example) then this is where it becomes violent IMO.

Violence has no place in our game but a punch up does.

Define violence, for these purposes?

Who was it said rugby league wasn't a contact sport, it was a collision sport? (Laurie Daley?)

Every collision in rugby league has an element of violence in it. Every single tackle would probably land you with an assault charge if you did it to someone in the street, but thanks to most players exercising their duty of care to fellow professionals they pass without incident.

When players neglect that duty of care is where it strays into the sort of violence I think you're probably referring to, and that has no place on a rugby league pitch IMO.

MMA? If I wanted to watch blokes lying around on top of each other for ages I'd watch Union....

I often think the violence and aggression ON the pitch is one of the reasons there's so little violence and aggression OFF it.

Just had an interesting conversation with my brother who is an RU Junior coach at a club in Leeds, they are getting increasing numbers of youngsters (his group this year is the U10s) coming to them from Leeds rugby league amateur clubs because of the amount of violence that is now seemingly acceptable at those young age groups in RL.

Two new members came last week from a well known Leeds amateur RL club who had played the previous week where team mates had suffered a broken nose (not just bloody but broken) and an eye closed up because of the violent play from a team based in South Leeds.

A lack of discipline and violence coached into 10 year olds is not the way the game should be going.

The odd bit of biff every now and again is great for the game at pro-level. At amateur level it has no place whatsoever and should be extremely harshly punished. The same goes for violence off the pitch.

What a hypocritical comment. Why can it have a place in the pro game but not amateur?

Violence has no place in RL at all now. All this talk of biff is prehistoric now. Sport in general is in a whole different place. Our sport is hard enough without players getting punched/kicked etc..

Why is it hypocritical to take a different view on a part of the game with different characteristics?
At pro level they are, by definition, professionals. If they get injured they don't lose anything other than some form but they still get paid and are well looked after. In the amateur game players have jobs to go to and only the NHS for any assistance. Plus the entire aim of the pro game is to win, that is not (or should not be) the case at amateur level. I'm not talking 80's style elbows to the head and no-one has mentioned kicking people which there is no place for. But the odd fight here and there gets players going, gets the crowd going and shows the players are bothered. Do I want to see a fight every 5 mins? No.
Do I mind if there is one in a big, important game. No.

If you really think violence has no place at all in rugby league then I assume you wish for the sport to ban tackling and contact of any kind. Since a tackle is violent, and big hits (which are a vital ingredient of a good rugby league game) certainly are violent.

Cut out the biff and start playing with a round ball .

Thoughts ?

It's not a game for flamin' Nancy boys is it really.

Make the lads that ain't scared of a bit of biff wear black boots , and the ones that don't want any wear yellow ones . Kinda like martial arts gradings .

Don't be so childish.

Contact is part of the game. You know that's not the point im making.

What I object to is violence outside of the rule book. That is what I class as 'violence'.

The problem with RL as a whole is closely linked to an issue like this. The sport needs to fit the needs of the modern sporting era. This is a time when sports that by their nature are violent, ie boxing come under public scrutiny, so a sport like RL where a large number of fans still embrace violence beyond the rules is in danger of being seen as outdated.

I remember Andy Dannant (spelling) breaking Hanleys jaw with an off the ball high elbow. Did you like that? Make you feel like you'd seen a good game? Maybe its people like you who would be more suited to watching the round ball.

Yes, and that contact is often violent.


Whether you object to it or not, when you have highly charged, highly athletic, very determined men who's objective is to win participating in violent contact regularly in a short period of time it is naturally going to lead to occasional outbreaks of "violence". So long as it is occasional and within reason I don't see it as a problem in the professional game.


I agree that RL does not currently fit the needs of the modern sporting era. But I don't believe that it is due to excessive violence in the professional game. In fact violence is quite rare on a professional rugbg league pitch these days. Pro RL has far bigger modernising worries such as stadium facilities, PR and modern business models.
Also to compare pro RL to boxing is a silly comparison in this context. To compete in a boxing match means the boxer MUST commit violence. That is not the case in rugby league where any violence is a by-product of the aggressive nature of the sport and not the only way of participating in that sport.


Did you even read my post? Where I specifically stated I wasn't talking about such incidents? I'll assume you didn't and direct you to your own advice