Wynne Gray: IRB's turn of speed on ELVs is truly impressive

It gives you some insight into how the International Rugby Board operates.

There they were this week, about 60 delegates from around the world, gathered under the IRB umbrella at the Lensbury Club in Teddington where they were to thrash out some resolution about the experimental law variations.

Now we know things don't move too fast with the IRB, not unless there is something like a multimillion-dollar profit in it for them at a World Cup tournament, but they have surpassed themselves with their speed in tackling the ELVs.

It has been only a shade over five years since the IRB decided they should poke into rugby's entrails and started their amendments on the game.

They urged all members to trial the concepts before presenting their decisions this week at the posh club on the banks of the River Thames.

Only some of the members did not play ball.

There was the farcical situation of the Six Nations delegates rejecting the ELVs even though they had barely trialled them.

Who says the IRB runs this game and has global jurisdiction on what happens?

When it comes to evaluating the ELVs my sympathy lies with the Six Nations, although they should have committed to a global research project.

They may have found the ELVs suited them - though that is unlikely for a sport which favours the team without the ball, the side which kicks it downfield and feeds from mistakes.

Rugby's greatest problem remains the breakdown, its greatest burden the outlawing of rucking.

Suggestions are widespread. Appease the mothers, one of me old chinas suggested, and bring in laws so players have only rubber sprigs in their boots.

Another said rugby without rucking was like sex and drugs without rock 'n' roll. It was a rite of passage. Another correspondent reckoned Vic Cavanagh would be turning in his grave at the dearth of rucking, while all lineout lifting should be banned.

There were laments about the use of substitutes and perhaps, more disturbingly, mourning from those who used to watch rugby but have given it away.

They find the rules impossible to follow and do not like a Super 14 where players are learning the trade before taking flight for overseas deals.