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The article- Have rugby players reached their limit

This article was written by David Rhodes and discusses how rugby players have been getting bigger over the past 20 years but now have reached their peak. Rugby players have been getting bigger ever since 1987. I believe that rugby players have been getting bigger because the sport requires weight and size to achieve its goals. For example if you had the heavier team you would win most of the line-outs, scrums, rucks and mauls therefore scorning more tries.

A recent study from the national institute of sport and physical education in France shows that between 1987 and 2011 the weight of rugby players did increase at each world cup but the weight and size slowed as it reached the end. 

This show that the average weight of a forward between 1987 and 1999 increased by 5Kg, while the average weight of a back increased by 5.6Kg. Yet the weight of a forward after 1999 only increased by 3.9Kg and the weight of a back after 1999 only increased by 2.9Kg. The reason because of this is because the professionalization of rugby players in 1980 caused more players to train much more frequently. That is the cause of why players grew in weight and size so fast from 1987 to 1999. But the reason why the weight and size of the players has slowed down is because the nature of the game is changing. Such as the games are becoming much more stratergized and structured instead of using just brute force.

In my opinion I believe that rugby players have become as big as they need to be. I believe that there is a limit that they have reached. If they were to go over that limit the game would just turn into a brawl of giants and lose the aim of game. By reaching the limit they are at now I believe that the games aims can still be achievable.