Rugby ‘I SPY’ (September 07)
Older colleagues will still treasure their days of mis-spent youth when their parents, on arriving at their summer holiday haunt, would immediately buy them an I Spy Book in an attempt to keep their offspring quiet during the long, hot sunny days. Do you recall how the tiny booklets asked you to make note of all that you saw around your holiday resort and awarded you points whenever you recorded a sighting of a famous monument, a pub sign, or a church gargoyle? On my first day in Scarborough I recorded 10 points for spotting a lobster pot under the pier, and 20 points for catching sight of one of the very few Victorian gas lamps then still adorning the Yorkshire seaside town. Such observations were prized for, unlike the sighting of a seagull which gave you 1 point, such targets were the rarities which helped you to gather enough points by the end of the week to claim your prestigious I Spy badge.
After watching England's games in the World Cup and without prejudging the possibility of our winning the tournament, can I offer older readers the chance to recall the thrills and excitement they received when they spotted an object or an action which carried 15 or 20 points in their I Spy Books?
Can I suggest 20 points if anyone manages a rare sighting of a sidestep? What about 15 points for the sight of a player changing pace to swerve around an opponent? Dare I allow 25 points for the sight of a ball passing through three or four pairs of hands at fingertip level before a centre with perfect timing of the pass creates an overlap for his wing partner? What about 30 points for recording any forward who, at the same time, can run, pass the ball to a team mate, and place him in a better attacking position? Is it worth 10 points for a simple move between the half backs at the base of the scrum?
Of course, as with all I Spy Books the lowest number of points will be awarded for the most common sightings. And I fear that a forward's "pick up and go"; an aimless kick down the middle of the field; a rumbling, rolling maul; any running deliberately into the opposition rather than into space; or the sight of a player floundering in midfield because he has neither pace nor the nous when, or how, to pass a ball, will only be worth 1 point to the collector. Sadly, therefore, very few badges will be handed out to those who watch England's matches even with the most careful eye.
In the media we are told by pundits and players alike that the players are "uncertain over the game being asked of them", that "our execution has been poor because we have been less clear about where we are going on the field", and that there is little fast handling movement because "the ball is slow because people don't really know where to run when it comes back. Players don't know whether to commit or look for space, so the slow ball buys themselves time to think."
Utter gobbledygook! Can anyone fail to see that few of our modern day players - especially the juggernauts in the forwards who hurl their bodies at each other in Sumo wrestling fashion - have more than minimal ability; that very few have the skills or the attributes to sidestep, swerve, run and pass a ball at speed, or deceive the opposition with sleight of hand, or clever running. In this country we are besotted with the rituals of physical confrontation. And that is why I would suggest that those who want to collect a much admired I Spy badge would be better advised to buy the booklet which sets them searching along the Scarborough sea front and not at any rugby union ground where England are playing.
Ray French
Older colleagues will still treasure their days of mis-
After watching England's games in the World Cup and without prejudging the possibility of our winning the tournament, can I offer older readers the chance to recall the thrills and excitement they received when they spotted an object or an action which carried 15 or 20 points in their I Spy Books?
Can I suggest 20 points if anyone manages a rare sighting of a sidestep? What about 15 points for the sight of a player changing pace to swerve around an opponent? Dare I allow 25 points for the sight of a ball passing through three or four pairs of hands at fingertip level before a centre with perfect timing of the pass creates an overlap for his wing partner? What about 30 points for recording any forward who, at the same time, can run, pass the ball to a team mate, and place him in a better attacking position? Is it worth 10 points for a simple move between the half backs at the base of the scrum?
Of course, as with all I Spy Books the lowest number of points will be awarded for the most common sightings. And I fear that a forward's "pick up and go"; an aimless kick down the middle of the field; a rumbling, rolling maul; any running deliberately into the opposition rather than into space; or the sight of a player floundering in midfield because he has neither pace nor the nous when, or how, to pass a ball, will only be worth 1 point to the collector. Sadly, therefore, very few badges will be handed out to those who watch England's matches even with the most careful eye.
In the media we are told by pundits and players alike that the players are "uncertain over the game being asked of them", that "our execution has been poor because we have been less clear about where we are going on the field", and that there is little fast handling movement because "the ball is slow because people don't really know where to run when it comes back. Players don't know whether to commit or look for space, so the slow ball buys themselves time to think."
Utter gobbledygook! Can anyone fail to see that few of our modern day players -
Ray French