Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
What badger mentioned is important, if as he said an average gridiron game has only 15 minutes of actual play, each quarter would consist of roughly 3.45 minutes of action. When you take into account time spent off the field when offensive or defensive teams are playing, your average am footballer hardly has enough time on the field to work up a sweat.
I spend more than 15 minutes warming up before I go to the gym.
I spend a lot of time watching professional Rugby Union, and you would hardly call those guys lard butts, and they certainly earn ther money
Oh no dobut, playing rugby id say is tougher than playing American Football, which I guess was the orignal question.
Rugby looks hard on tv but its harder playing it, so exhausting.
In rugby, the clock doesn't stop so there is constant activity. I don't think you can conclude that based on that, the athletes are better. I think that if you took the running backs from the NFL and put them on a rugby team, they would be very hard to stop.
I've played both. They each have their tough aspects. Rugby has continuous play, but you still have time to catch your breath at times. Overall, though, the cardio needs of rugby seem greater in general. Regarding the contact, I found myself more likely to have a shoulder injury from tackling or suffer cuts in rugby due to elbows hitting the head etc., but I never got knocked the way I did playing football.
Why would running backs be hard to stop ?
People you are comparing two totally different sports, we do not have 6' 8" lock forwards weighing in at 400LB for one good reason, how would they be lifted in the lineout ?
Imagining some NFL player is going to come straight over and make a hit in union is a pipe dream.
Your running backs do no kicking so how could they play on the wing in union ?
I believe you would be better in comparing golf to chess.
Why would running backs be hard to stop ?
People you are comparing two totally different sports, we do not have 6' 8" lock forwards weighing in at 400LB for one good reason, how would they be lifted in the lineout ?
Imagining some NFL player is going to come straight over and make a hit in union is a pipe dream.
Your running backs do no kicking so how could they play on the wing in union ?
I believe you would be better in comparing golf to chess.
Thats what I was getting at in my first post, its hard to compare the two but I do beleive the NFL have better athletes, but then again their physical ablities wouldn't be so much suited to rugby if you get what I mean.
They are good athletes but putting them into a rugby game and vice versa would be too much.
The rugby codes are more demanding in gametime but the amount of work that goes into gridiron practices leads me to believe that many would have the endurance for rugby. It's the fat guys who intentionally put on weight (and are still more quick and agile than the leaner payperson) that may lag in the long term.
I'm a HUGE football fan, but I've recently gotten interested in rugby.
There's a local club that I intend on playing with here in the next few months. The coach is straight out of England, so he knows he stuff, haha.
But I've done some reading, watched some games and bought Rugby 08 for the PS2 so I could get caught up on how to play the game.
It's definitely fast paced and intense. I'm quickly becoming a big fan.
That being said, I always hate when people try and compare the "toughness" of the sports.
It usually turns into people of ignorance on both sides bashing the other, based on hunches and guesses.
Both games are brutal and trying. But they're different enough to where it's difficult to compare the two.
I think people should like them for what they are instead of trying to make comparisons.
The hardest change for you will be remembering to use your arms in the tackle and the fact that play does not stop when a player is tackled.
Oh, and best not to get on the wrong side of a ruck, having three or four forwards doing the two step on your ribs can be painful.
In the technical sense the biggest change will be the fact that even as a tight head prop you will be running with the ball.
So skills such as how to pass to both the left and right are important for all the players on the team.
Oh, remember, you will be the ONE calling the play if you are running with ball in hand, YOU have to make the decision when to pass so as to put your fellow player into space.
I coached a bloke who had played a lot of American football, the biggest difference to him was that football often had plays mapped out, where as in rugby opportunities often came from rucks where the players had to make the play as they went.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
