Shaw 'gym monkey' stance bang on
Saturday October 24 2009
Hats off to England and Lions lock Simon Shaw for honesty. His statement condemning the professional game for turning rugby players into "gym monkeys" was as honest as it is true.
The increasing emphasis on power over skill is a modern-day bugbear. The game is brutal now in its intensity and I shudder to think what awaits today's players and this generation in terms of physical welfare down the road.
The message to young players coming through that they need to be bigger, stronger, faster is warped. It is all too easy for a pro player to opt for (and in some way justify) the cosiness of the gym over individual skill development on the training paddock, particularly on cold and miserable winter days.
Give me ball-handling ability allied to pace and spatial awareness over brute force any day of the week.
Yes, the nature of the game demands both, but as of now it is the over-sized brutes winning out.
Shaw is no shrinking violet, but on this impressive stance he can take a well-deserved bow.
Irish Independent
