Rugby is now cleaner but no safer and as New Zealand’s brutal, bruising clash with Ireland – and the citings that followed – showed, something must change
Playing rugby is always going to hurt. That is why some people play it, just as boxers, racing drivers and mountaineers take their own calculated risks. The tricky bit comes when it is not your misjudgment that causes serious injury but someone else’s. At that point people rightly start asking hard questions and the blurred lines of contact sport have to be re‑examined.
New Zealand’s massively physical game against Ireland in Dublin has generated just such a debate. It was inevitably going to be intense, given the All Blacks’ reputation was on the line. As their coach, Steve Hansen, said: “It wasn’t pretty but it never is when you have to win.” Note the word “have”. There was simply no way the visitors could be beaten by Ireland twice within a fortnight. The Irish had also developed a taste for famous victories. Blood was liable to be spilt either way.
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