Last Saturday, the boos ringing out at Murrayfield grew louder during the Scotland and France Six Nations match.
The fans were not protesting grievous foul play, instead they were voicing disgust at the seemingly never-ending kick tennis that had broken out between the teams in the final quarter of the game.
The culprit, “Dupont’s law” had again left its ugly mark on a game, draining the atmosphere out of another rugby stadium.
The law is named after the gifted France and Toulouse halfback Antoine Dupont, who sat down last year, studied his rugby law book, and realised he could exploit the offside law to benefit his team as a kicker.
According to World Rugby’s laws, opposing players can be put onside by the kick receiver either passing the ball or running five metres, even if they are stationed far ahead of their own kicker, with no need to retreat. Until then, they have to stand still.
This can lead to a group of players camped deep in the opposition half, leaving the receiving team with little option but to kick the ball back; otherwise, they will be easily tackled by the far-advanced opposition.
Under the law, kickers also have the option of standing still in the backfield, forcing a farcical standoff with static defenders. This is explained in our video below using the example of the recent Wales v Scotland Six Nations game:
Inevitably, the paying punter is then left with an interminable game of kick tennis that ruins any sense of spectacle that the code is desperate to retain.
What is Dupont’s law, why is it ruining the game, and how will Super Rugby stop it?
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17.02.2024
Last Saturday, the boos ringing out at Murrayfield grew louder during the Scotland and France Six Nations match.
The fans were not protesting grievous foul play, instead they were voicing disgust at the seemingly never-ending kick tennis that had broken out between the teams in the final quarter of the game.
The culprit, “Dupont’s law” had again left its ugly mark on........
© The Sydney Morning Herald
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