Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/5/84; site reed.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!cbosgd!cbdkc1!desoto!cord!hudson!bentley!hoxna!houxm!mhuxj!mhuxr!ulysses!allegra!bellcore!decvax!tektronix!reed!wab From: wab@reed.UUCP (Baker) Newsgroups: net.sport.football Subject: Re: A rules question Message-ID: <770@reed.UUCP> Date: Sun, 30-Dec-84 17:20:30 EST Article-I.D.: reed.770 Posted: Sun Dec 30 17:20:30 1984 Date-Received: Tue, 8-Jan-85 03:54:40 EST References: <3811@ucbvax.ARPA> Organization: Reed College, Portland, Oregon Lines: 60 The fair catch is, I believe, yet another leftover rule from the time that American football developed from rugby, thereby degenerating as a sport. In rugby, a player who wishes to catch the ball may call for a "mark". To do this he shouts "mark" and simultaneously plants one foot firmly in the pitch, making a mark. He must hold this mark and catch the ball on the fly. If he does this correctly, then the referee awards him the mark and the player may then free kick from the mark. Since the mark is normally a defensive maneuver, most free kicks from marks are punts, but I believe that the player may also drop-kick or place kick for points just as one can after a fair-catch. Australian rules football is almost totally a game of marks. There, any catch on the fly is a mark and a player may kick for points. Of course, Aussie rules also developed from rugby, thereby degenerating... The real difference between these maneuvers and a fair catch is that play goes on until a referee awards the mark. In Aussie rules the mark is ubiquitous, so play does not proceed very far. In rugby, however, the mark is not used much and the referee may take a few seconds to decide and they often do not award the mark. All the while play goes on. Also, the mark is primarily used to deal with a very high punt into the opposition's half of the field. This means that most times a mark is called the opposition is very close. The fullback calls for a mark, the opposing pack thunders down on him, and the fullback either gets the mark or he doesn't. The result for the fullback is the same either way: Once he has the ball and until the referee, most likely strolling comfortably far behind the play, awards the mark the man is playable...and most often played. This is why rugby has very specific rules regarding which player takes the free kick if the player awarded the mark is unable to take the kick due to injury. Calling a mark is sometimes the last play a player will make, yet if the situation calls for it a rugger will use it and get creamed. This is interesting when compared to football, a game in which the players are padded all over (no pads at all in rugby), which has significant penalties for roughing a player who has called for a fair catch. From a true rugby chauvinist, Bill Baker tektronix!reed!wab