you the better, for every fraction of a second is important to the five-eighth, given that the opposition can be on top of him in less than two seconds. I used to insist on having the ball passed to me like a rocket." Ella possessed a distinguishing trait of instantaneously igniting a backline movement. His vision and ability to ‘read the play’ is evidenced by his much-vaunted passing game. Gareth Edwards notes, “Next, he wastes no strides holding the ball he does not want to use, and flips it instantly on its way towards the wide open space down the touchline where danger-men like David Campese prowl...” Continuing his appraisal of Ella in The Scotsman, Mair wrote: “In his deft handling, the ball is often on in a fraction of a second.” The London Observer described Ella as "the detonator which explodes the brilliance of the Australian backs at critical moments." This, however, does not entail Ella passing the ball as fast as possible. The execution of Ella's backline ploys were expertly controlled by the timing and speed of his passes. Ella writes: “Quick passes are often a sign that the five-eighth is not reading the play. He (the five-eighth) is throwing a quick pass automatically, believing this is what he ought to be doing, without making an assessment of the play and of the opportunities that might exist at that moment. By doing so, he is handing the initiative back to the opposition.” Mair concluded his appraisal of Ella's form in the famous 1984 Grand Slam tour in The Scotsman, stating: “Nothing about the football of the likable Ella excels his backing up. His ability to materialise in a given spot is of the spirit world.” The extent to which Ella supported his teammates has been gauged by Gareth Edwards who wrote that, "In rugby the word 'link-man' is almost a cliché, yet it is the term I must choose to sum up Mark's gifts." Edwards continues writing that: Thirdly, it has to be said that there are plenty of stand-off halves in the modern game - some of them internationals - who are content to give their centres possession and let back row forwards do the main support job. Mark Ella could not bear to lose involvement in an attack like that. Having delivered his pass, he invariably, it seems to me, keeps moving, getting himself between centre