Ruck needs cleaning up, but I'm not a fan of giving any more discretionary powers to the whistle wielding muppets. Can you imagine relying on the ref to be fair and balanced with deciding when to call play ?
Maybe the NRL can concentrate on policing the CURRENT rules we have before bringing in new ones. I'm positive there is a rule in place that says you must play the ball on the "mark". If we stop all this deliberate moving forward and sideways to milk penalties and isolate markers then that would solve so much of the untidiness in the ruck. Just blow the whistle and make them play the ball again for the first 5 or 6 times, then start penalising the attacking team for moving off the mark. There is also a rule that says the marker and person playing the ball can't touch each other, start policing that and do away with the grabbing and holding that goes on in the ruck. Finally make the person playing the ball get TO THEIR FEET before playing the ball, and I mean both feet. This whole put the ball on the ground and get up over it as a play the ball is BS and half the reason the ruck is a mess. If a team wants to wrestle and slow you down then fine, let the ref call that, but you should be made to regain your feet before you attempt to play the ball. If the ball contacts the ground before both feet are on the ground then penalty to the defending side. There's the extra second every time that the defending team are looking for with cynical ruck tactics.
One other area that needs a solution (but I don't know what the answer is) is reward for genuine leg tackles. Currently you are essentially punished for doing a legs tackle because with NRL interpretation as soon as attacker is grassed he is entitled to attempt to play the ball a nanosecond after hitting the ground. It is impossible for the tackler to get the marker or to "dominate" the tackle and hold the player. It's actually a massive disadvantage to do a copybook legs tackle. They talk about player safety and protecting the head yet punish anyone performing the safest style of tackle there is. Go figure
