I thought Denis Cometti was going to make a good point in the paper this morning, which is a mistake I sometimes make.
The key rule change that everything has flowed from was the prior opportunity rule. When the player with the ball wasn't at risk of losing the ball if they were tackled, they were able to take on their opponents and keep the game moving. Wingmen were beloved for their ability to transition the ball from defence to attack.
Once the risk of getting caught went up the blind turns and the dummy selling dried up and now players have to get rid of the ball very quickly, often under pressure because the slightest touch could result in losing the ball. Which means two things. Players need much closer support from their team mates to get the ball around the opposition and the opposition are hard to get around if they have the numbers because no one will try and break a tackle.
I understand why they did it. Teams were exploiting it and using it to get a ball up and slow the game down. But that doesn't mean the prior opportunity rule was the best solution.
If they go back to that point and try and work on a better way of dealing with that problem, that solves the problem while still encouraging players to attack and take on their man, I think it would be a better result than swallowing larger and larger animals to solve the fly problem.
