Canberra co-captain Elliott Whitehead has backed the NRL’s plan to tweak the six-again rule, saying the frequency of teams illegally slowing the play-the-ball was out of hand last season.
The only mooted rule change in 2022 will mean a full penalty awarded instead of a six-again for ruck and 10-metre infringements when the attacking team is inside their own 40-metre zone.
NRL head of football Graham Annesley has said the change, which is set to be signed off by the ARL Commission, is hoped to limit blowout scores by discouraging teams from pushing the boundaries to overwhelmingly seize momentum.
“Last year it just got stupid at times,” Whitehead told AAP.
“If teams are holding (other) teams down to slow the play-the-ball and giving the six-again, it doesn’t really give any advantage to the attacking team.
“So I think they had to change that. Changing it the way they’ve done it, I think that’s a good idea.
“I’m really excited about that change and I think it will be beneficial for the attacking team.”
If the six-again alteration results in more of a grind, Elliott believes it could play into the Raiders’ style.
“In 2019 (when Canberra made the grand final) and ’20, we had that bit of grit,” the English second-rower said.
“The rule changes last year, we were probably a little bit slow to react to them.
“Hopefully we’ve done enough in this pre-season to be up to the speed of the game this year.
“But if a rule does change that little bit of momentum, we know we’re capable of having that bit of grittiness.”
Ahead of his second campaign sharing the captaincy with Jarrod Croker, Whitehead is determined to make his mark as a skipper.
“I’ve got to really step up and show that I’m capable of leading the squad around on the field as well as off the field,” the 32-year-old said.
“That’s something I’m really focusing on.”
And while the Raiders are coming off an unexpectedly poor 10th-place finish, Whitehead maintains there is “a lot to get excited about” in the nation’s capital.
“Jamal Fogarty’s going to come in and do a really good job of working with Jacko (Wighton) in the halves,” said Whitehead, who also praised forward recruit Adam Elliott.
“We’ve got some of the best young kids in the league. When they get their chance, they’ll show what they’re capable of doing.
“They’ve been doing that in pre-season and training really hard.
“There’s probably five or six that will get their chance this year.”
Among them could be Trey Mooney, a promising 19-year-old lock.
“He gives everything a go and you can see how much he wants to play NRL,” Whitehead said.
“He’s a big, strong young kid and he’s got good feet and he’s quick off the mark.
“He’s very powerful and he’s going to give you that burst of energy if he comes off the bench or if he starts.”
AAP
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