Latest news with #TopsyOjo
Telegraph
6 days ago
- General
- Telegraph
Wingers in danger as law change unleashes chaos
The press box at Ashton Gate offers an impeccable view of the pitch, which often brings small instances – such as friendly fire during the warm-ups – to the attention. On Saturday afternoon, as the Harlequins starters were running against replacements and travelling reserves half an hour before kick-off, Rodrigo Isgro and Jake Murray charged in opposing directions to vie for a high ball. They leapt into the air and whacked into one another, with Murray coming off worse. Clearly in some pain, the young scrum-half peeled himself off the floor. Fortunately, he would be fit to come off the bench against Bristol Bears later on. Topsy Ojo, meanwhile, was preparing to commentate for BBC Radio 5 Live high up in the media seats. The former London Irish favourite winced. Fairly or unfairly, wing used to be regarded as the position where one could most easily avoid the physical stuff and keep a clean shirt. These days, chiefly because of a refereeing directive that has made a profound impact, back-three players must be immensely courageous because many believe that the pivotal battleground of aerial competition has become as perilous as anything in rugby. Fans of rugby union have become accustomed to the concept of unintended consequences and an apparent increase in aerial collisions is a result of the crackdown on 'escorting'; the practice of teams protecting their own back-field catchers by shepherding chasers after an opposition kick. Angus Gardner set a decisive tone during England's loss to New Zealand last November, demanding that players be granted 'access' to the ball, and the sport has looked different since. 'Duty of care for catcher appears to have gone' Training practices, tactics and even recruitment have been influenced. Trends are cyclical, and one source stressed the point that it is less than a decade since there was a push to protect catchers with a spate of red cards for reckless chasing. 'You are essentially encouraging contact in the air now, which only seems to get penalised if something bad happens,' a senior Premiership coach said. 'The duty of care for the catcher, which was there a few years ago, appears to have gone. I think that's very, very strange. Only a couple of years ago, we were trying to reduce those situations. Now, we're openly trying to get more of them. 'It's definitely more dangerous now, of course it is. You can go up high, at pace and bump the catcher. That's how we have to coach it. And that's very challenging because you don't want to risk injury in the week, but you have to expose them to what it is going to be like in a game. 'Catchers need to really own the space and almost go through the chaser, where the chaser has free licence to make contact. It seems very like AFL.' AFL laws allow players to call for a mark anywhere on the pitch provided the ball has been kicked 15 metres, which obviously heightens the significance of a clean catch. By last summer, escorting in rugby union had effectively become coordinated obstruction. Possession from kick-returns was so reliable that it was treated like another set-piece and the 'gloves' of backpedalling team-mates that cocooned catchers were ugly on the eye. Authorities were also eager to create more broken-field scenarios. Alex Goode, the Saracens full-back who bowed out last weekend after 402 club appearances, remains highly sceptical. 'I don't think it's better for the game,' he says. 'Escorting had probably gone too far, but it's now chaos. You've got guys running into the air and colliding with each other and the refs are in a difficult position. 'It just encourages more kicking, because there is such a good chance of winning back the ball. There was a theory that there would be more transition situations and more unstructured attack, but I don't think that's coming to fruition.' Saracens train 'live' aerial drills once or twice a week, but Goode fears that the injury situation 'will only get worse' because 'there are collisions left, right and centre'. It is understood that governing bodies are more focused on eradicating 'always illegal' actions such as shoulder charges and reckless actions against vulnerable players at the breakdown. Ben Stevenson, the Newcastle Falcons wing, copped a ban this week after being sent off for a mistimed challenge that flipped Santiago Carreras of Gloucester, showing that sanctions are still doled out. Ojo highlights Freddie Steward as an emblem of how the landscape has changed. Close to indispensable to England at one point, the Leicester Tigers full-back was usurped by George Furbank as head coach Steve Borthwick leant into kick-return as a source of attacking impetus. Steward could find himself coveted again soon because there is agreement that chasers have a big advantage. 'Before, chasers had to work a bit harder to get around the escort while keeping their eye on the ball and then getting up,' Goode adds. 'The kick had to be good and the chase was something you had to really refine to make it a skill. Now, it does seem a bit too easy to get up and spoil with one arm. I'd say that it encourages a more kick-focused game.' Andy Farrell's cohort of back-three players in the British and Irish Lions squad leaves little doubt over the importance of aerial prowess. Tommy Freeman, Mack Hansen, James Lowe, Duhan van der Merwe, Elliot Daly, Hugo Keenan and Blair Kinghorn all stand at least 6ft. Darcy Graham, who is 5ft 9in, was overlooked. 'I think [the directive] will affect recruitment strategies over the coming years,' suggested one source. 'Wingers' values had dropped, if you look at the positional stuff that comes out of the salary-cap report. People weren't spending as much money on them because they were putting it towards other areas. 'The change means a full-back who is very, very good in the air becomes more important and valuable. It will be the same for wingers who can go and get the ball. 'Will Muir is probably the best in the Premiership. He owns the space really well, he's brave in the air and goes for it with one hand a lot of the time. Kyle Steyn had a field day there on Friday night for Glasgow Warriors against Stormers as well.' The days of wings keeping a low profile and returning to the changing rooms in spotless kit are long gone. In the air, fierce commitment is critical and danger now comes with the territory.
Telegraph
7 days ago
- Health
- Telegraph
Rugby is more dangerous for wingers than any other position
The press box at Ashton Gate offers an impeccable view of the pitch, which often brings small instances – such as friendly fire during the warm-ups – to the attention. On Saturday afternoon, as the Harlequins starters were running against replacements and travelling reserves half an hour before kick-off, Rodrigo Isgro and Jake Murray charged in opposing directions to vie for a high ball. They leapt into the air and whacked into one another, with Murray coming off worse. Clearly in some pain, the young scrum-half peeled himself off the floor. Fortunately, he would be fit to come off the bench against Bristol Bears later on. Topsy Ojo, meanwhile, was preparing to commentate for BBC Radio 5 Live high up in the media seats. The former London Irish favourite winced. Fairly or unfairly, wing used to be regarded as the position where one could most easily avoid the physical stuff and keep a clean shirt. These days, chiefly because of a refereeing directive that has made a profound impact, back-three players must be immensely courageous because many believe that the pivotal battleground of aerial competition has become as perilous as anything in rugby. Fans of rugby union have become accustomed to the concept of unintended consequences and an apparent increase in aerial collisions is a result of the crackdown on 'escorting'; the practice of teams protecting their own back-field catchers by shepherding chasers after an opposition kick. Angus Gardner set a decisive tone during England's loss to New Zealand last November, demanding that players be granted 'access' to the ball, and the sport has looked different since. Training practices, tactics and even recruitment have been influenced. Trends are cyclical, and one source stressed the point that it is less than a decade since there was a push to protect catchers with a spate of red cards for reckless chasing. 'You are essentially encouraging contact in the air now, which only seems to get penalised if something bad happens,' a senior Premiership coach said. 'The duty of care for the catcher, which was there a few years ago, appears to have gone. I think that's very, very strange. Only a couple of years ago, we were trying to reduce those situations. Now, we're openly trying to get more of them. 'It's definitely more dangerous now, of course it is. You can go up high, at pace and bump the catcher. That's how we have to coach it. And that's very challenging because you don't want to risk injury in the week, but you have to expose them to what it is going to be like in a game. 'Catchers need to really own the space and almost go through the chaser, where the chaser has free licence to make contact. It seems very like AFL.' AFL laws allow players to call for a mark anywhere on the pitch provided the ball has been kicked 15 metres, which obviously heightens the significance of a clean catch. By last summer, escorting in rugby union had effectively become coordinated obstruction. Possession from kick-returns was so reliable that it was treated like another set-piece and the 'gloves' of backpedalling team-mates that cocooned catchers were ugly on the eye. Authorities were also eager to create more broken-field scenarios. Alex Goode, the Saracens full-back who bowed out last weekend after 402 club appearances, remains highly sceptical. 'I don't think it's better for the game,' he says. 'Escorting had probably gone too far, but it's now chaos. You've got guys running into the air and colliding with each other and the refs are in a difficult position. 'It just encourages more kicking, because there is such a good chance of winning back the ball. There was a theory that there would be more transition situations and more unstructured attack, but I don't think that's coming to fruition.' Saracens train 'live' aerial drills once or twice a week, but Goode fears that the injury situation 'will only get worse' because 'there are collisions left, right and centre'. It is understood that governing bodies are more focused on eradicating 'always illegal' actions such as shoulder charges and reckless actions against vulnerable players at the breakdown. Ben Stevenson, the Newcastle Falcons wing, copped a ban this week after being sent off for a mistimed challenge that flipped Santiago Carreras of Gloucester, showing that sanctions are still doled out. Ojo highlights Freddie Steward as an emblem of how the landscape has changed. Close to indispensable to England at one point, the Leicester Tigers full-back was usurped by George Furbank as head coach Steve Borthwick leant into kick-return as a source of attacking impetus. Steward could find himself coveted again soon because there is agreement that chasers have a big advantage. 'Before, chasers had to work a bit harder to get around the escort while keeping their eye on the ball and then getting up,' Goode adds. 'The kick had to be good and the chase was something you had to really refine to make it a skill. Now, it does seem a bit too easy to get up and spoil with one arm. I'd say that it encourages a more kick-focused game.' Andy Farrell's cohort of back-three players in the British and Irish Lions squad leaves little doubt over the importance of aerial prowess. Tommy Freeman, Mack Hansen, James Lowe, Duhan van der Merwe, Elliot Daly, Hugo Keenan and Blair Kinghorn all stand at least 6ft. Darcy Graham, who is 5ft 9in, was overlooked. 'I think [the directive] will affect recruitment strategies over the coming years,' suggested one source. 'Wingers' values had dropped, if you look at the positional stuff that comes out of the salary-cap report. People weren't spending as much money on them because they were putting it towards other areas. 'The change means a full-back who is very, very good in the air becomes more important and valuable. It will be the same for wingers who can go and get the ball. 'Will Muir is probably the best in the Premiership. He owns the space really well, he's brave in the air and goes for it with one hand a lot of the time. Kyle Steyn had a field day there on Friday night for Glasgow Warriors against Stormers as well.' The days of wings keeping a low profile and returning to the changing rooms in spotless kit are long gone. In the air, fierce commitment is critical and danger now comes with the territory.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Pressure is on for Bath Rugby to lay down marker, believes Topsy Ojo
Bath Rugby have the chance to lay down a real marker with a hat-trick of titles this season, and former England winger and Premier Sports pundit Topsy Ojo believes the pressure is on to do just that. Having ended their 17-year wait for silverware by lifting the Premiership Rugby Cup earlier in the season, Bath will now try to book a place in the semi-finals of the EPCR Challenge Cup when they host local rivals Gloucester Rugby at The Rec on Sunday evening, live on Premier Sports 1 from 5pm. And for Ojo, who is working as a co-commentator for broadcaster Premier Sports, the onus is on Bath not only to win that West Country derby but to go all the way, while also doing the same in the Gallagher Premiership, which they currently lead by 10 points. He said: 'They are still in a position now, if they get things right, to win three trophies this season. "What they have been trying to build over the last few years, that would be a real flag in the sand to say 'right, we are here, we are ready to enjoy a sustained period of success'. 'They will be favourites, home advantage plays into their hands this weekend, and they would be based in the UK in a semi-final, so they will have no fears about going the whole way. 'They have been there or thereabouts the last few years, getting to the Premiership final last year, but to be in a position to win three trophies would be something. "That is their goal now, we have spoken about their squad, and that has to be the ambition. They have to be a team that starts to win things regularly. 'They are now in striking distance at the business end of the season, so far so good, but we will know really where they are in six weeks - are they in Cardiff for the Challenge Cup final? Are they at Twickenham for the final as well? 'For this team, I think where they are now and what they have been through the last couple of years, I don't think getting through to the finals is enough. They have to pick up one, if not both of the trophies they are still in the hunt for.' Ojo will be at The Rec on Sunday evening as part of the Premier Sports punditry team with Wales and Lions legend Jamie Roberts alongside Claire Thomas, Jenny Drummond and Martin Gillingham, with the broadcaster having added further global competitions to their offering in the form of Japan's JLR1 and USA's Major League Rugby. The two leagues will be shown as part of a new 24/7 rugby channel, Premier Sports Rugby, while the broadcaster will now host more than 400 live rugby games every season from competitions across 11 rugby nations. But this week is all about international club rugby action as we hit the quarter-finals of the Investec Champions Cup and EPCR, with all eight boxoffice fixtures live and exclusive on Premier Sports. On Sunday evening, Ojo will be able to see Bath up close and personal as part of the Premier Sports team, explaining that Bath's depth may be the deciding factor in the fixture: 'Gloucester will back themselves to go there and spring an upset. "The key is the thing that a lot of teams have struggled with, it's defensively. They are really going to need to hang in there and not to say that they have bad discipline, but they need to make sure they don't give away cheap penalties that become very costly. "Those penalties that end up being kicked into the 22 where Bath can start a driving maul. Those unnecessary ones, if they can cut those out, they give themselves a chance. 'Gloucester can score points; they are very good in that aspect and have been all season. So to give themselves a chance, it's without the ball that they need to be better. 'For Bath, if they get into a shootout with Gloucester, yes, they might be favourites, but that plays into Gloucester's hands. 'They will be looking for a bit more control from their point of view. We know they are a brilliant attacking team, but they will want to squeeze Gloucester a little bit and keep them at arm's length more than anything. 'From a Bath point of view, they know that across the 80 minutes they will stay as strong, if not get stronger, where other teams tire. "So take the opportunities when they present themselves, but they don't necessarily need to win the game in the first 20 minutes because they know they can maintain that level across the whole game.' is the home of Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup rugby and offers rugby fans more than 400 games live across its channels during the season with all the action from the United Rugby Championship, Top 14, Investec Champions Cup, EPCR Challenge Cup, MLR in the USA and Japan League 1. Join the home of rugby for just £11.99 a month. Visit
