Difference between 6 and 7
jemc2
My understanding is that the open-side is more of a ball-carrier and
attacker,
and the blind-side is more defensive; but since everyone on your team
is
attacking when you have the ball, and everyone defending when you
don't,
this can't be the correct distinction.
Surely both of them have to be good at clearing out rucks and stealing
balls?
Except for a scrum that's not in the middle of a field, aren't they
both equally
likely to arrive first in either an attacking or defending position?
And, while I'm asking, has there been a role shift in centres?
If I remember correctly when I was playing in the 70's, the outside
centre
(or second centre as it was then called) was supposed to be a big guy
who could crash through and
(hopefully) break tackles; the inside centre was a quicker, more
nimble player, more akin
to the outhalf. Today that seems to have reversed: the inside center
is supposed to be
the crash ball player, and the outside center more like a wing.
Is this true?
Thanks,
j
Will S
"jemc2" <jemcs...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:9dec9508-96d9-478c...@21g2000yqj.googlegroups.com...
> What is the difference between an open-side and blind-side flanker?
Openside is usually a lot more mobile and is the ball scavenger
Blindside is usually very similar to a Number 8 , not quiet but close.
Usually not as quick as the openside . Then again sometimes coaches want to
play two openside flankers
caspar milquetoast
> What is the difference between an open-side and blind-side flanker?
From the Western Force program "Line Break".
Position: flankers and number eight � the loose forwards
This week we wrap up the big, ugly, stupid meathead brigade, which as
you will recall are called forwards in the noble, true and ancient game
of rugby union. Slightly less big, ugly and stupid than the other
forwards, the players who wear numbers 6, 7 and 8 rejoice in the
collective name of loose forwards. This could be a reference to their
moral standards, but more usually alludes to their role as free-running,
wide-ranging scavengers of the ball.
The loose forwards are the highwaymen of rugby. Combining the size of
light-heavyweight boxers with the speed and endurance of middle-distance
runners, their job is to pilfer, steal, purloin and filch the ball
wherever they find it from one end of the pitch to the other. Should any
player find his watch and wallet missing from his kit after the game,
his thoughts turn immediately to the loose forwards.
They are the middle men of rugby, the fixers and the facilitators. The
tight forwards obtain possession of the ball and the back line attempts
to score points with it, but when the ball is between the two it can all
go horribly wrong. And this is when the loose forwards gallop in like
the US cavalry, swooping on ball that is held up in the tackle or
stealing it from under the noses of the opposition who erroneously
thought it was their turn to hold it for a while. With legs as durable
as tank tracks and lungs like smithy bellows, these rabid hyenas in
rugby boots are always on the move and never far from the kill.
The loose forwards help their larger colleagues in their heavyweight
duties in scrums (where they push a bit) and lineouts (where they jump a
bit) but they save their best work for rucks and mauls. More about them
later, but they happen after the player with the ball (frequently a
back) has been tackled and the ball is up for grabs by anyone with light
fingers and an evil turn of mind. Backs are delicate individuals with
manicured fingernails who cannot be expected to resolve these anarchical
crises. Enter the loose forward, as Bruce Lee would have said if he knew
anything about real havoc. The loose forwards pile into the holdup,
pillage the ball and get the process back on line.
Loose forwards come in three varieties, and while they are sometimes
interchangeable they all have distinct tasks. Number 6 is the blindside
flanker. Surprisingly, his job is not to have ruinous collisions with
other players, although that may be something of a fringe benefit. Big
and hard, he follows his faster colleague with a view to making up for
in mayhem what he lacks in speed. Number 7 is the openside flanker, the
fastest and most creatively criminal of the trio. His job is to get to
the tackle first and before you can say �Ronnie Biggs�, mysteriously
remove the ball from the traffic jam and return it to the grateful hands
of the backs, their fingernails intact. Number 8 is known, for reasons
of simplicity, as the number 8. Traditionally the largest of the group,
he hangs out at the back of scrums and lineouts and tidies up anything
the other two might have missed.
The Force�s openside flankers are David Pocock and Matt Hodgson, the
blindside flankers are Tamaiti Horua, Richard Brown, David Pusey and
Scott Fardy, and Scott Fava is number eight. However, showing just how
larcenous these individuals are, half of them have currently stolen each
others� positions.
Simon S-B
"jemc2" <jemcs...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:9dec9508-96d9-478c...@21g2000yqj.googlegroups.com...
> What is the difference between an open-side and blind-side flanker?
Usually about 6 inches.
didgerman
cue matua.
As far as I know the 7 goes for the ball, and the six tackles anyone
with the ball, unless it's the 7.....
Simon S-B
"didgerman" <didg...@rfu.com> wrote in message
news:hj7a15$fea$1...@news.eternal-september.org...
We've answered this question so many times, if the OP does a search on here
he'll find the answer. He just has to ignore all input from Mitty, who
thinks Worsley is the worlds greatest 7.