As the rule stands at the moment, the man on the mark is not allowed to make sideways movement once they are called to "stand".
If the mark/free is on the wing or half-back area, the player with the ball will often still be allowed to make sideways movements to centre up past the correct line without the man on the mark being able to alter their position.
Until the player with the ball stops on their line, the man on the mark should be able to move sideways. Otherwise any sideways movement should either be play-on or "stand" should not be called.
Overall the rule is a bit of a pain. It's very tough on defenders, applied inconsistently and able to be exploited, but it does do the job of helping speed up the attack.
I know it's been done to death, but anyone got any opinions on how the rule is applied in these cases?
If the mark/free is on the wing or half-back area, the player with the ball will often still be allowed to make sideways movements to centre up past the correct line without the man on the mark being able to alter their position.
Until the player with the ball stops on their line, the man on the mark should be able to move sideways. Otherwise any sideways movement should either be play-on or "stand" should not be called.
Overall the rule is a bit of a pain. It's very tough on defenders, applied inconsistently and able to be exploited, but it does do the job of helping speed up the attack.
I know it's been done to death, but anyone got any opinions on how the rule is applied in these cases?