'I dislocated a shoulder while jackalling and I probably don't go in as much now because of the injury'
Sale Sharks forward Josh Beaumont knows all about the dangers of jackalling for the ball and carries the scars of the surgery that was needed to repair his dislocated shoulder.
How to protect players who are exposed to heavy hits as they try to win breakdown possession has become a major debate in the sport following Jack Willis’s serious knee injury suffered when he was dragged from a break down by a crocodile roll in England’s win over Italy.
Beaumont has only just returned from a 12 month enforced break from the sport after three operations to repair a knee that was damaged when he crashed to the ground at a line out and as he prepares to put his body on the line against Harlequins tomorrow, the former Sale captain admitted his style of play as been tempered by painful experiences.
Beaumont said: “I dislocated a shoulder while jackalling a ball and I probably don’t go in as much now because of the injury. It wasn’t a crocodile roll just a collision in that area but it is does play on your mind and while I am not an out and out ball stealer – it’s not my role in the team – you know there is an increased risk of injury in that area of the game. But, I don’t believe you can take jackalling out of the game completely.
“Guys like Tom and Ben Curry have worked hard to become world-class in that area and it is a skill. It would be slightly unfair to take it away from those players. It is the toughest part of the game in terms of who to reward and it is all factored around player safety which is important particularly with contact with the head and the danger of concussions. We may have to look at the crocodile roll and the rates of injury.
“Last March I was involved in the discussions about the breakdown and how it was going to be interpreted and it was tricky for the guys after lockdown to get up to speed. There were a lot more penalties given and it is clear now that you will be penalised for not rolling away.”
With Ireland’s Peter O’Mahony and Scotland’s Zander Ferguson both sent off in the Six Nations for making contact with the head of an opponent as they drove at speed into a ruck, this has only served to focus even more attention on the collision aspect of the sport and the need to protect vulnerable players. Beaumont added: “If the players had wrapped their arms and made that clearing out motion and shown good intent that takes away a red card situation.
“It is difficult in the heat of the moment when you are trying to win the ball and getting the technique right starts in your training work. There are conversations about what happened to Jack Willis and your view can depend on what position you play.”
'It’s painful when someone weighing 130kg runs as hard as they can at someone else'
'The Clamp' @will_evans69 tells @JLyall93 ??? why he had to change his jackaling style, talks Jack Willis injury & fears of brain damage at rugby's brutal coal facehttps://t.co/tv07DNr7S5
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) February 18, 2021
Beaumont, 6ft 7ins, used to being the “go to man” in the Sale Sharks line out which made his year-long absence following knee surgery a problem they failed to cope with but all that has now changed with return of Lood de Jager, the World Cup winning Springbok lock giving the club a transformational trio of South African targets.
Despite his own height, Beaumont, son of former England captain and World Rugby chairman Bill, is no longer able to look down on his teammates following the arrival of the tallest player in the Gallagher Premiership JP du Preez at 6ft 11ins closely followed by de Jager 6ft 9ins and then Cobus Wiese at 6ft 6ins.
Beaumont, de Jager and Wiese are on duty at Harlequins tomorrow where third place Sale need to bounce back from a loss to Bath and Beaumont said: “It is a nice change of neck position to be looking up at teammates rather than down! From a line out point of view it is good to have more options and that kind of height in that area of the game. We can be more successful than we have been in the past and it is an area where we have spent more time working on it.
“Last year we tended to have just one prime jumper where most teams would have two and so we had to adapt. It was then a case of building confidence back up in our line out drills and that is where we are now. Coming back after a lengthy lay off one thing I have noticed is that referees are more strict on contact in air and jumping across the line and a few years ago you would have got away with things. You have to be extra cautious now and it’s about knowing who is going up in the air in a defensive line out and use it as a weapon.
“A team like Quins want to play with a high tempo and try to get the ball in and out of the line out quickly and we may have to adapt on the day to stop that source of attack.”
Comments on RugbyPass
I wonder what impact Samson has had on their attack, as the team seems less prone to trundle it up the middle, take the tackle and then trundle it up again. I lost faith in the coach last year as the Rebelss looked like a 2nd/3rd rate South African team. I also disliked Gordon standing back, often ignored as the forward battle went on and on. Maybe its our Aussie way of not getting off our A***’s until the enemy is at the gate.
83 Go to commentsThanks for the write up. Great to see the Rebs winning, I am a little interested in how they will go against the remaining kiwi teams, I think they’ve only played Hurricanes and Highlanders but how great to see these players performing!! I also see Parling has a job beyond June 30! A good move by RA? Also how do you fix the Rebels previously scratchy defence?
83 Go to commentsbe smart - go black
13 Go to commentsNext week the Crusaders hopefully have Scott Barrett back. Will be great to have the captain back. Hopefully he will be the All Black captain as well.
12 Go to commentsExciting place to be for the young fella. I expected he was French Polynesian when I saw him included in the France 6N squad (after seeing him in NZs), and therefor be strong grounds we might loose him to rugby down here. Good, in that he is good enough to warrant such a profile, and from a journalism’s fan interaction aspect, to finally get a back ground story on the fella. Hope he has settled into NZ OK and that at least one rugby country will fit with him to help his development, which, if so, he should surely continue for a few years, and then that he can experience France to it’s fullest with a bit more maturity and less reliance on family than you would have at his current age. A good 3 or 4 years before he would be ready for International duty if he wanted to wait. Of course he already sounds good enough to accept a call up, and to cap himself, in the more immediate future (he’d have to be very very good in the case of the ABs), and he’ll get a great taste of that being with the Canes who have a bunch who are just a few years further into their career and looking likely Internationals themselves.
13 Go to commentsI remember towards the end of the original broadcasting deal for Super rugby with Newscorp that there was talk about the competition expanding to improve negotiations for more money - more content, more cash. Professional rugby was still in its infancy then and I held an opposing view that if Super rugby was a truly valuable competition then it should attract more broadcasters to bid for the rights, thereby increasing the value without needing to add more teams and games. Unfortunately since the game turned professional, the tension between club, talent and country has only grown further. I would argue we’re already at a point in time where the present is the future. The only international competitions that matter are 6N, RC and RWC. The inter-hemisphere tours are only developmental for those competitions. The games that increasingly matter more to fans, sponsors and broadcasters are between the clubs. Particularly for European fans, there are multiple competitions to follow your teams fortunes every week. SA is not Europe but competes in a single continental competition, so the travel component will always be an impediment. It was worse in the bloated days of Super rugby when teams traversed between four continents - Africa, America, Asia and Australia. The percentage of players who represent their country is less than 5% of the professional player base, so the sense of sacrifice isn’t as strong a motivation for the rest who are more focused on playing professional rugby and earning as much from their body as they can. Rugby like cricket created the conundrum it’s constantly fighting a losing battle with.
3 Go to commentsOh wow… “But as La Rochelle proved in winning in Cape Town this season, a cross-continental away assignment need not spell the end of days.” La Rochelle actually proved quite the opposite. After traveling to Cape town and back they (back-to-back and current champs) got mercilessly thumped the next week. If travel is not the reason, why else would a full-strength powerhouse like La Rochelle get dumped on their @r$e$ one week later?
26 Go to commentsYou know he can land a winning conversion after the full time siren is up. (Even if it takes two attempts.)
5 Go to commentsA very insightful article from Jake. I would love to know how South African’s feel about their move to Europe. Do you prefer playing in Europe or want to go back to Super Rugby?
3 Go to commentspure fire
1 Go to commentsA very well thought out summary of all the relevant complications…agree with your ”refer the Cricket Test versus 20/20 comparison”. More also definitely doesn't necessarily mean better!
3 Go to commentsMust be something when you are only 19 y.o and both NZ and France want you. Btw he wasn’t the only new caledonian in french U20 as Robin Couly also lived in Noumea until 17. Hope he’s successful wherever he chooses to play.
13 Go to comments“Several key players in the Stade Rochelais squad are in their thirties” South Africans are going to hate the implications of that comment!
5 Go to commentsI know Leinster did a job on La Roche but shortly after HT Leinster were 30-13 ahead of them and at a similar time Toulouse were trailing Exeter. At 60 mins Leinster were 27 ahead but after 67 mins Toulouse were only 19 ahead before Exeter collapsed. That’s heavier scoring by Leinster against the Champions. I think people are looking at Toulouses total a little too much. I also think Northhampton are in with a real chance, albeit I’d put Leinster as favourites. If Leinster make the final I expect them to win by more than ten and with control.
5 Go to commentsHey Nick, your match analysis is decent but the top and tail not so much, a bit more random. For a start there’s a seismic difference in regenerating any club side over a test team. EJ pretty much had to urinate with the appendage he’d been given at test level whereas club success is impacted hugely by the budget. Look no further than Boudjellal’s Toulon project for a perfect example. The set ups at La Rochelle and Leinster are like chalk and cheese and you are correct that Leinster are ahead. Leinster are not just slightly ahead though, they are light years ahead on their plans, with the next gen champions cup team already blooded, seasoned and developing at speed from their time manning the fort in the URC while the cream play CC and tests. They have engineered a strong talent conveyor belt into their system, supported by private money funnelled into a couple of Leinster private schools. The really smart move from Leinster and the IRFU however is maximising the Irish Revenue tax breaks (tax relief on the best 10 years earnings refunded at retirement) to help keep all of their stars in Ireland and happy, while simultaneously funding marquee players consistently. And of course Barrett is the latest example. But in no way is he a “replacement for Henshaw”, he’s only there for one season!!! As for Rob Baxter, the best advice you can give him is to start lobbying Parliament and HMRC for a similar state subsidy, but don’t hold your breath… One thing Cullen has been very smart with is his coaching team. Very quickly he realised his need to supplement his skills, there was talk of him exiting after his first couple of years but he was extremely shrewd bringing in Lancaster and now Nienaber. That has worked superbly and added a layer that really has made a tangible difference. Apart from that you were bang on the money… 😉😂
5 Go to commentsNot sure exactly what went wrong for him at Glasgow but it’s pretty clear he ain’t Franco’s cup of tea. Suspect he would have been better served heading out of Scotland around the same time as Finn, Hoggy and Jonny!
1 Go to commentsBulls disrespected the Northampton supporters and the competition. Decide quickly, fully in or out.
26 Go to commentsI wonder if Parling was ever on England’s radar as a coach? Obviously Borthwick is a great lineout coach, but I do worry he might be taking on too much as both head coach and forwards coach.
1 Go to commentsJason Jenkins has one cap. When Etzebeth was his age he had over 80 caps. Experience matters. He will never amount to what Etzebeth has because he hasn’t been developed as an international player.
2 Go to commentsSays much about the player picking this gig over the easier and bigger rewards offered to him in Japan. Also says a lot about the state sanctioned tax benefits the Irish Revenue offers pro rugby players, with their ten highest earning years subject to an additional 40% tax relief and paid as a lump sum, in cash, at retirement. Certainly helps Leinster line up the financial ducks in a row to fund marquee signings like this!!! No other union anywhere in world rugby benefits from this kind of lucrative financial sponsorship from their government…
5 Go to comments