Naming conventions

When I was a kid in Ireland back in the days when the wingers used to throw the ball into the lineout and not long after a try had changed from 3 points to 4.

We used to call rugby positions by slightly different names.

The front row has not changed (In name anyway the hookers were little nimble skinny feckers)

But the 2nd rows were always called just that. Never locks. In fact the number 8 was always called the lock.

Flankers were called wing forwards.

Number 8 was always a lock. (I can see the logic here as he locks the 2nd rows together)

Scrum half the same.

But Out half was always called just that. The only people who called them Fly halves were aulfellahs who had played during the war or something.

Welsh people seemed to call them Outside halves, but I never heard anyone not on the telly call them anything but Out half.

The rest of the backs were pretty much the same. Always 1st and 2nd centre never refered to by their numbers.

Wingers were just that. Again the auld relics from another time and place might have called them Wing backs or Wing 3/4s


Anyone remember when the name "Lock" changed from being a number 8 to a 2nd row?

Or when wing forwards became "Flankers"?

I can't put my finger on it. (Ooer missus)

Like how the Number 8 is referred to as the "8 man" in South Africa, America and Canada. More personable innit.

In New Zealand the Number 8 was referred to as exactly that or "Last man Down".

aucklandlaurie wrote:
In New Zealand the Number 8 was referred to as exactly that or "Last man Down".

We called ours Peter. Or sometimes Pete. Never Petey.

When I started following my dad round the Northern rugby pitches the second row were called second row lock forwards, and the number 8 was either exactly that or at times back row lock.

Where we were only fancy dans called the rest of the back row "wing forwards" the more common amongst us called them flankers.

We tended to call the 10 the stand off. But because of the blokes on the telly we also heard Outside half.

Generically the centres and wingers were the threequarters, but only the posh gits called them centre threequarter or wing threequarter.

this was mid 70s and going to grounds in Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Halifax and the like.

 Which country is the Fraction XV from - He's playing 5/8ths; 3/4's etc. Barmy or what - Can you imagine 1/2 penny playing 5/8ths next to 10 Bob - Confusing or what

LondonTiger wrote:When I started following my dad round the Northern rugby pitches the second row were called second row lock forwards, and the number 8 was either exactly that or at times back row lock.

Where we were only fancy dans called the rest of the back row "wing forwards" the more common amongst us called them flankers.

We tended to call the 10 the stand off. But because of the blokes on the telly we also heard Outside half.

Generically the centres and wingers were the threequarters, but only the posh gits called them centre threequarter or wing threequarter.

this was mid 70s and going to grounds in Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Halifax and the like.

Cheers LT. That's the type of stuff I was after.

I started playing 40 years ago as a kid. Never heard of 2nd row lock forward. Bit of a mouthful.

Perhaps Out half (Never outside half) is an Irish thing. We have never called it anything else.

I changed from Lock (number 8) to 2nd row somewhere in the mid 70s. Stopped playing before the end of the decade partly due to injury and partly just to pi$$ off my teachers.

When I was a kid, locks were simply second rows, flankers were breakaways (openside & blindside), No.8 was lock, scrum half was half back, fly half was 5/8 and centres or 12/13 were IC/OC (still called centre 3/4s in Rugby League). It must have changed in the mid-late 80s.

5/8 comes from NZ. 5/8 because it was a fraction between 1/2 and 3/4. It goes back to the very early days of NZ rugby. We had a 7 man pack with a rover and played a lot of attacking rugby.

We have ruck-rover in Aussie Rules - the poor bugger has to be everywhere!

Isn't out half just short for outside half (just looking at the words on paper)?

I've always heard it called fly half in Wales too since very young. There's even pubs called 'The FlyHalf and ...' round this way.

A fella in work, from the English Midlands, in his late 40's, calls the 10 the stand off. First time he said it I thought he was talking about a scrum half.

The whole 1st 5/8ths thing is fine and logical and all that, but it doesn't take into account most people are rubbish with fractions. They should decimalise it. 1st 0.625's, 2nd 0.625 etc. much easier...

Mickado wrote:A fella in work, from the English Midlands, in his late 40's, calls the 10 the stand off. First time he said it I thought he was talking about a scrum half.

The whole 1st 5/8ths thing is fine and logical and all that, but it doesn't take into account most people are rubbish with fractions. They should decimalise it. 1st 0.625's, 2nd 0.625 etc. much easier...

You evil evil bastidge.

That's nearly as bad as taking years to work out that Outhalf is short for Outside half.

I remember 10's as "Stand Off", second rows were "second rows", flankers were "wing forwards", eight was the "lock forward" and the whole dark arts of the scrum and hooking were really only the business of the "tight five" the other three were there only to hold it together and to lamp the opposing scrum half if the opportunity presented itself.

We just called all our backs either rubbish, homos or the reason why we had to scrum so often
I must confess that I thought only the Irish called the number 10 an out half. I've only ever called them stand off or fly half (or any of the three names in the first paragraph)
Can't be bothered with this first and second 5/8th nonsense. I think it was the Kiwis who started that
I'm with Jennifer about "wing forwards" too. Always called them that

Yeah. Out half eh? Must be an Irish thing. Because in 40 years I have rarely heard a fellow Irish Person (Younger than George Hook anyway) call a 10 anything else.

We all seem to agree on most of the rest. the 5/8th thing is something I only noticed about 10 years ago when I started watching Super Rugby etc.

Logical but a bit odd. (Heh Heh odd geddit)

The great thing about Rugby (as we all know) is the different shapes and sizes that can contribute.

But also, they can all claim to be the best/coolest/most macho etc.

In the previous post we get the forwards view of backs. i.e Girls/Homos/people who lose territory/the ball and force us to have set pieces. (No offence to women or gay people intended of course)

While the Backs view of forwards is lumbering numbsculls who couldn't score in a brothel (either a try or a woman)

Personally I always favoured playing 8. (Best of both worlds) Tough enough to put manners on the forwards. Fast enough to run with the backs. (and still undamaged enough to chat up women)

The great thing is all positions can claim to be the best. Props can claim to be the strongest. 2nd rows the tallest. Wingers the fastest. Outhalves and centres the brainiest with the best skills. Full backs the best catchers/tacklers (Some of them) And of course Scrum halves the most annoying.

Hookers? Well they went from being skilful spindly creatures who got carried round by the rest of the tight 5. (They didn't even throw in ffs) To being a slightly smaller and faster extra prop who DID throw in at the lineout.

We used to have a scrum call in school for an 8 man push (rather that the hooker trying to strike against the head) You would hardly notice the difference.

I also remember wingers running up and joining in on a certain call when a pushover try was required. Not sure how we got round the rules for that one..... Can't remember.

Ah, Jennifer- we are from the same generation. I remember our front row at school. When the props stood up, the hooker's skinny wee legs dangled about 3 or 4 inches off the ground. Nowadays your average hooker will weigh 16/17 stone and be a kick in the nuts off 6 feet tall
Half time consisted of oranges and not isotonic drinks while listening to your coach tell you how Shiite you are and not worthy if the jersey etc

When did people start differentiating between the second rows?

I see comments on the board about a particular player "not big enough for a 4", or "too thick to play 5". I come from the oft-referenced era above, and the second rows were just the tallest blokes you could find. Often proper lanky with it, too.

Back in the day at ARFC we always referred to the 9 as "the fecker that has just pointlessly thrown away the ball after we have spent the last five minutes fighting & bleeding to win it"

The 10 was "the fecker that keeps pointlessly kicking it away"

The Wingers were "cold & lonely"

The Fullback was having a cigerette leaning on the posts (on this bit I kid you not... I once observed the Legend that was Andy Patrick take a high ball and call mark with a lit pipe still in his chops. The good old am days!!).

It was kind of surprising how many games we used to win.

Metal Tiger wrote: I once observed the Legend that was Andy Patrick take a high ball and call mark with a lit pipe still in his chops.

Now that's impressive.

The man is a god. (whoever he is)

Did you call the right wing cold and the left wing lonely?

Jenifer McLadyboy wrote:

Metal Tiger wrote: I once observed the Legend that was Andy Patrick take a high ball and call mark with a lit pipe still in his chops.

Now that's impressive.

The man is a god. (whoever he is)

Did you call the right wing cold and the left wing lonely?

No one knew their names... we never passed to them never mind spoke to them

20 odd years ago in the 3rd XV. God how things have changed.

Fly half is still commonly used.
In fact, I'd say the most commonly used in England and its media.