Cannonball tackle
A cannonball tackle, also referred to as a missile tackle, the kneecapper and the immobiliser,[1] is one in which defenders "hold up" an opponent while another charges or dives at the attacker's legs.[2][3]
During the 2011 NRL season there were fears that the cannonball could cause serious injury to players.[2] Some in the media campaigned for the technique to be banned, with an injury caused to a junior player highlighted as an example of potential consequences.[2] Orthopaedic surgeon and former footballer, Merv Cross warned, "this tackle could tear a ligament or break the bone. It is a real danger. A dislocated knee would mean major surgery".[2]
One incident focussed on was a challenge by South Sydney's Chris Sandow on Brisbane Broncos' Josh Hoffman.[1]
In June, Nathan McGuirk, the NRL's director of football operations, talked with the referees' coaches Stuart Raper and Bill Harrigan about the technique.[2] McGuirk said that they didn't want to "prevent someone tackling around the legs but there is clearly a potential for a dangerous situation to develop around the trend of players charging at the legs comparatively late in the tackle".[2] McGuirk noted that existing rules prohibited "conduct which involves an unacceptable risk of injury" to opponents.[2]
In July 2011, the NRL issued new guidelines designed to remove cannonballs from the game.[3] Bill Harrigan said the NRL had been assessing how best to update the guidelines "for a few months", as "you can't just go and change things ad hoc. As soon as you tamper with a rule, there is a flow-on effect".[3] Referees were told to penalise infractions.[1] Stuart Raper explained that, the guidelines were "not designed to stop a player tackling around the legs", but that referees would be able to act to stop a dangerous situation.[3] He said, "player safety is paramount to the success of our game".[3]
Nathan McGuirk said that he did not expect the flow of the game to be impacted significantly by the changes.[3] He said referees would not "overreact" to the changes.[3] McGuirk said the match review committee would consider sanctions against players who speared their bodies at the legs of vulnerable opponents.[3][1] Greg McCallum, the match review committee's chairman noted that there had already been fewer cannonball tackles following the negative reaction to them.[1]
[edit] References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Honeysett, Stuart (2011-07-06). "NRL kneecaps cannonball". The Australian. Archived from the original on 2011-07-05. http://www.webcitation.org/5zxmggxe8. Retrieved 2011-07-05.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 Richie, Dean (2011-07-01). "NRL moves to ban the cannonball tackle". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 2011-07-01. http://www.webcitation.org/5zrTUycR7. Retrieved 2011-07-01.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 McCullough, Ian (2011-07-05). "NRL outlaw cannonball tackles". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 2011-07-05. http://www.webcitation.org/5zxkert5v. Retrieved 2011-07-05.
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