This debate has raged on everybody’s favourite portal ThePapare.com for many years now, and in the cradle stages the so-electrifying School Rugby league which about to unleash itself on us, a word of caution must be spread through…….
The Passion
There is no event that ignites school passion in this country, like the Rugby does. For some reason (possibly because the male of the species has a natural instinct for combat) throngs are drawn to this so-macho sport and set about to contest it most fearsomely. Men of steel barraging past other men of steel, dodging and running like ‘Bolts’ of lightening, lifting and dashing to the ground anything, on the way to place the ball at the other end; the school’s rugby is one such.
Escalation in competition
Battles are drawn long before the season begins; each school will seek and obtain top coaches and inculcate tough training, deliberate on game plans and prepare routines for players, well ahead. A season that is thus prepared is obviously going to be brutally contested. Each year the players come out bigger and stronger and the play becomes more vociferous.
The 2013 season has burst upon us some astounding competition; breathless anticipation, school pride, taste of victory place a premium on this school sport. What we have witnessed thus far is a spectacle beyond belief. With teams matching head to head and not much to choose between them; it is anybody’s race to the top.
Igniting violence
While all this augurs brilliantly well for the sport of Rugby in Sri Lanka, what will rear its ugly head is, the passion-ignited disputes. Not that there was any lack of it in the previous years, but with more heightened competition it is safe to imagine the issue will take off. Already reports are seeping in of incidents and accusations of incidents which gives a tiny prologue of things to come.
For years this schools rugby passage has been plagued with allegations, player poaching, court cases, injunctions, falsifying documents, playing overage students with even coaches and principals engaging in the unscrupulous to squeeze out some additional mileage for the school.
All these years’ accusations were levelled at some schools with derogatory comments and brick-bats being flung at random. It must be remembered that there is no fire without smoke (most times) and the factions of these institutions have come on strong in their support that sparks violence or anger all around. There was a recent newspaper report about a certain school alleging that they were targeted out of the school and that hostilities were generated on them. This was found to be nothing more than sensationalism. In letters to the editor, a writer articulated a first-hand experience of supporters of a certain school cajoling their players to attack and ‘kill’ the opposition. In the last season, a rugby committee of an elite school is supposed to have stepped on to the field with threats and more recently supporters of a well-heeled school is said to have got into a scuffle. This list is endless.
What is sauce for the goose…….
A while back the so-called affluent schools holding sway in the rugby, accused other schools of all this violence and bad behaviour, however, now with the tide turning the supporters of these holier-than-thou institutions have started showing their ugly colours. Sadly sometimes these issues get swept under the carpet.
Seed of hooliganism
The escalating trend of hooliganism in rugby has to be dealt with more severely. It is not about which school perpetrates on which. It simply must be analyzed more open mindedly and solutions found. Schools are blamed for spectator’s actions but they cannot be held accountable for persons out of school.
If one were to examine the seeds of such abuse they would find several contributing factors. Firstly the world is a dog-eat-dog one; forging to the top at any cost, so how do we still in our school children to play rugby and be gracious at the same timet? Watch rugby and not abuse or beat up others…
Referees and administration don’t help matters and their bungling of different forms, cause further mayhem among these warring parties. But yet again, it must be taught at a young age that life will keep coming at you with unfairness, bias and even wrong accusations and at each of these times, however heated you may feel, reaction is not allowed. It is imperative in these times, that schools inculcate this as part of its education. At every injustice we are NOT going to be able to turn violent or get even.
Parents, coaches, teachers are sometimes instrumental kindling more combat than the students themselves. The well- meaning old boys who seem to relive these glory days, despite being an immeasurable cog in the wheel of school rugby, tilt over to over-exuberant lust for victories.
Contention could be made that to stay on top of the pile all of these energies have to be harnessed. An example could be drawn by a head of a school sending ‘down the drain’ the rugby heritage of that school by dis-allowing highly competitive strategies and relegating it to a mere ‘school sport’.
For a bystander, it is apparent that all schools in their zeal and desire are guilty of infusing hooliganism. We discuss most stridently the reported incidents but do not look within to see the occurrences and sources in your own backyard.
The Future
The bottom-line is, the rugby is beautiful, the boys are playing out of their skins, all schools and administrations have put their best efforts forward, it’s a massive boost to the national rugby grid, but fans must not get carried away……
Sri Lanka on the whole at the moment is violently inclined with cost of living pushing them to the limit, US passing resolutions, Jayalalitha screaming her lungs out, Halal and Bodu Bala going head to head, ‘the school’ of all institutions need to actively protect the young from violent instincts. Education and awareness almost always enlightens. It must be inculcated that passion and anger must be curbed and that ‘class’ is not just in beating the hell out of the opponent but is in accepting the most unfair defeat and remaining gentlemen. Why is the genial Sachin Tendulkar a most adored icon? Acts of domination and abuse should be frowned upon and exposed and most vehemently dealt with.
This scribe ran into a bunch of gentlemen from a school constantly accused of unruly behaviour and was amazed at the style and decorum in which allegations landed on them were dealt with. Kudos to you guys!!
The call of ‘bias’ which is attached to almost every ThePapare.com article /photo/info (will probably be added here) is ample proof of sense of indignation felt by all parties.
There are and will be many reported, not-reported incidents of viciousness and in this marauding showdown we are beginning to expect this year, it would do well for all quarters to wear calm, broadcast calm and infuse calm.
