League Blog will not go down this dark and haunted path, but will aim to stick to stories about issues that are at the heart of the game and fill fans and players alike with pleasure. So first off the rank - Fighting.
Anyone see that Sandow and Ennis fight in the Bulldogs v Rabbitohs match last week (yes, I know I'm a week behind)? Ennis gave Sandow a soft facial massage after Sandow kicked the ball out on the full, and Sandow responded with fists flying. Now Ennis is a bit of a grub (he was obviously much more of a grub before he joined the noble family team that is the Bulldogs), but the fact that he got penalised and Sandow didn't was an absolute disgrace... So this brings me to a new section: Things League can learn from Hockey*.
NHL Hockey has got its fighting rules worked out - despite being unwritten; all players and officials understand whether a fight is being conducted under 'the code' or not. I won't go into too much detail, but if two players want to fight - the refs just let them go, waiting until there is a natural break by which to separate them. Both players get a 5 min penalty and get sent to cool their heads. Severe penalties exist for 3rd man in, for players who continue to try to fight after being separated, and for fights where one player is hitting another player who is trying not to fight.
This code could be easily, almost naturally, transferred to League. If two players are keen to have a go, let them. Once they stop, send them both to the bin for 10min, and force the teams to use an interchange (i.e. so it's still 13 v 13). With limited interchanges coaches would quite heavily frown upon wasting one unless it was particularly warranted. Send off any player who rushes in. Send off any player who obviously picks a fight where the other player doesn't want a part (this is necessary, because otherwise you'd get someone useless, let's say Daniel Holdsworth, picking a fight with someone decent, let's say Johnathon Thurston, and both would be sent off leaving the Cowboys disadvantaged). I don't think you'd get many more fights than you do now, but the ones that you did get would be particularly good. Wouldn't you love to see Billy Slater and JT going toe to toe in the middle of the field?
Anyway, next week on Things League can learn from Hockey, I'll discuss how real men don't wear mouthguards.
* Please note, obviously I mean ice hockey, but I have a Canadian wife who tells me that there is only one form of hockey - and it's played on ice. Of course, she says, there's field hockey, which is only played by girls.
Your suggestion is not without merit. However there may be more advantage for the NRL in borrowing some ideas from the WWE Smackdown. For example at the onset of a scuffle erupting while a scrum is set, sideline officials could rush in carrying ladders, which are quickly fixed in place and the combatants have to climb up and then resume their altercation. Also, rather than sending off the third man in, how about we have a 'Captain's Call', so that a captain could cry out "Royal Rumble" and then everyone races in until there is only one left standing? Obviously the Captain's Call would have to be restricted to one per game, but there is some potential there for civilised conflict resolution.
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