Less than two weeks after the tragic death of Stade Francais teenager Nicolas Chauvin, the French Rugby Federation have proposed changes to the manner in which players are permitted to tackle.
Seeking to have the legal height of a tackle brought down to the waist of the ball-carrier, Malcolm O'Kelly, Jenny Murphy and Johne Murphy shared their thoughts on the proposal when appearing on OTB's The Saturday Panel this afternoon.
"When I first started," O'Kelly recalled, "when we tackled we would tackle low and get the person to the ground, that was key."
Yet, of the game as it is now, the former Leinster man admitted that "more and more, it is all about the gain line. People are being told that they need to make these offensive tackles."
Subsequently, O'Kelly believes that such circumstances, without seismic change to the rules, will see "guys [continue] getting concussed and hurt."
For both Jenny and Johne Murphy, the former agreed with the latter when he surmised; "There just needs to be a decision either way."
Although neither Jenny nor Johne necessarily agree wholeheartedly with the proposal outlined by the FFR, both would be happier if a decision could be made and greater clarity surrounded the tackle in rugby.
Outlining the flaws that one can find within the current system, Jenny described the difficulties facing the tackler in such a split-second moment.
"You see as well like, sometimes it's a low tackle but the ball-carrier dips into it," Murphy explained.
"Once you've committed to that tackle, you're only thinking about ball, ball, ball."
Ultimately, although all three of today's panelists had their own unique view of the issues and the potential solutions, a desire for clarity overwhelmed all else as rugby attempts to nullify any threats to the health and safety of its players.
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