Rugby's ugly face

[p.Tah]

Junior rugby's ugly face
LOCAL NEWS
8 FEB 12 @ 05:08AM BY CARYN METCALFE


Junior rugby players face racial vilification when playing in other parts of Sydney
WHEN the Merrylands Rugby Union Juniors teams arrive on the northern beaches for their Sunday games, they brace themselves for a day of racial insults.

In an age when racial discrimination is no longer tolerated, these teenagers are regularly abused by opposition players, spectators and officials.

Under-14 and under-15 coach and club vice-president John Greville said the problem started when they, and other junior teams from the region, changed into the Sunday competition, putting them in the metropolitan zone.

“We got a number of subjective comments from the richer clubs,” he said.

“There were comments from some coaches saying ‘what are they doing letting those sorts of people into the competition’.

“There were comments from touch judges making rude comments to the boys about their nationality and their background.”

These comments included calling the boys “coconuts” and to “get that black so-and-so”.

Tiger Nguyen, 13, said they should not get picked on because of the colour of their skin. “It’s very hard (not to retaliate), but we’ve got to focus on the game and not worry about it,” he said.

Mr Greville said he wrote many letters to administrators of Sydney Juniors complaining about different actions from different clubs, but got nowhere.

He said Sydney Juniors would only accept an apology from one official, but he and the club did not believe that was good enough.

To make matters worse, Merrylands was not the only club copping it - Blacktown and Liverpool junior rugby clubs were also being targeted, while other clubs encountered small amounts of abuse.

While some clubs would cry about how unfair it is, Merrylands, with the help of the Parramatta Two Blues first-grade side, have a plan to combat it.

General manager Michael Bell said as they were predominantly a multicultural club, they wanted to send a zero-tolerance message to the juniors.

“We want to bring awareness to opposition clubs to know when they’re playing Parramatta to treat them fairly, whether they’re black, blue, pink, grey or orange,” he said.

“We’re getting (Wallaby and Waratah) Tatafu Polota-Nau to record a script about respectful behaviour when you come into the district,” he said.

The recording will be played at all clubs in the district before games.

Mr Bell said the program had the support of Parramatta federal Labor MP (Moana Pasifika) Julie Owens.

The Advertiser asked Sydney Juniors for a comment but did not receive it before going to press on Tuesday afternoon.

if this is true, it's disgraceful. These same people probably cheer the Polynesian and indigenous players who play for their super rugby team or the Wallabies.
If you see this happening in your club or at a game you are watching, stop it. No one deserves that crap. The only way this game will progress if the elitism and snobbery is finally stamped out.

 

[lincoln]

Interesting observations given the considerable Polynesian community involved in northern beaches junior rugby - could have understood more easily if it was Mid North Shore clubs - anyway a very unfortunate state of affairs.

 

[Jnor]

I was a junior at Wests before the system changed (in teams that were always at least 2/3rds Islander) and never came across anything like this. We didn't play against any northern beaches clubs except in reps but I'm surprised and pretty unimpressed if true

 

[spooony]

There is a lot of crap going on in school rugby that is not noticed and sort of over looked. Been happening for years. Here we have player poaching by offering them bursaries. I have no hair for our so called top schools as they got that accolades by illegal means.

 

[Bowside]

There is a lot of crap going on in school rugby that is not noticed and sort of over looked. Been happening for years. Here we have player poaching by offering them bursaries. I have no hair for our so called top schools as they got that accolades by illegal means.

Can. Of. Worms.

 

[spooony]

Can. Of. Worms.

Lets not go there

 

[Army_Gav]

Need this IMO.

 

[Scarfman]

What kind of idiot calls an Islander a coconut when you're playing rugby with them? My life's not worth it.

Maybe this is about a couple of officials and too much is being made of it? Dunno.

 

[redstragic]

I played subbies with a Somoan team in the early 90's. Awesome blokes you really do not want to provoke.

I was pretend captain of the team and one time they were all talking to each other about some thing they were going to do. I did not understand them and asked if they could speak English. The real captain of the team said to me, don't worry about us, you just take care of the ref.

 

[sonny crockett]

Most interesting. 2006 was the year, and there were a couple of pretty ugly racial incidents in one particualr GPS 1st XV rugby match, one of them heard from the sideline by myself. Speaking with a group of the polynesian players involved on Sunday, I queried them as to why they didn't report it and make it an issue. One quite wise young man for his 16 years at the time, currently playing Super Rugby, replied to me quite forthrightly, that they knew what colour they were, and had no problem with it, it was actually the white guys slinging the insults that had the problem. At the time, and to this day, I thought it was an excellent reply, from a very intelligent young man, but still hold my own beliefs that the behaviour needs to be educated against and stamped out of the game.

 

[Jnor]

I played subbies with a Somoan team in the early 90's. Awesome blokes you really do not want to provoke.

I was pretend captain of the team and one time they were all talking to each other about some thing they were going to do. I did not understand them and asked if they could speak English. The real captain of the team said to me, don't worry about us, you just take care of the ref.

Haha awesome story. First time I've heard of the 'pretend captain' strategy - I like it.

 

[BPC]

I thought this topic was going to be about something else.

That said, no excuse for racism. It would seem to be about officials rather than players as the original article notes: "He said Sydney Juniors would only accept an apology from one official".

 

[EVERYFWDTHINKTHEYREA6OR7]

I played subbies with a Somoan team in the early 90's. Awesome blokes you really do not want to provoke.

I was pretend captain of the team and one time they were all talking to each other about some thing they were going to do. I did not understand them and asked if they could speak English. The real captain of the team said to me, don't worry about us, you just take care of the ref.

That 2 paragraphs is the basis of what could be a fantastic rugby sitcom. I am sure it would do really well in NZ.

 

[Stands]

The article is a bullsh*t piece, must be a slow news week.

 

[EVERYFWDTHINKTHEYREA6OR7]

On a serious note i had a situation where a player in my team said some similar stuff in a pre game huddle. To be honest i was shocked/offended. Almost to the point where i was about to tell the coach i didn't want to take the field with him in fear that if he said something offensive in earshot to the opposition and cause quite an issue.

In a situation like this what would your advice be to pardon the pun tackle this issue?

 

[suckerforred]

On a serious note i had a situation where a player in my team said some similar stuff in a pre game huddle. To be honest i was shocked/offended. Almost to the point where i was about to tell the coach i didn't want to take the field with him in fear that if he said something offensive in earshot to the opposition and cause quite an issue.

In a situation like this what would your advice be to pardon the pun tackle this issue?

First step - 'Hey mate, what you just said I found offensive.' Or words to that effect. And, although I would not refuse to take the field on the first occurance, I definitely would tell the coach, with the offending player present. If it continues then you need to follow your conscience and if that means not playing with him, so be it. Hopefully though the club will deal with it.

I am a big believer is giving people a chance and since I don't know what has happened previously I don't know if they have been told that their behaviour is inappropiate. A lot of the time, particular if it is a younger member of society, just pulling them up will solve the issue. You may not change the way they think, but you might stop them voicing the thoughts. Once they have been told, and I know they have been told, then their behaviour is inappropiate and it has to be taken to the next level.

Edit - The other option is letting him say it in ear shot of the PI / Maroi oposition and not step in to help when retribution is upon him. Consquences can be a bitch and a great learning experience.

 

[Karl]

I have never seen any racial crap in 5 years of Junior Rugby as a coach or parent attending games. I have seen over enthusiastic parents who need a lesson in sportsmanship and manners and I have once seen some horrendous result engineering from a BJRU ref with close affiliations to the opposition in the final game of last season, but that was u10 and while it knocked us from 1st to 3rd on the ladder, it's u10.

I have never heard any racial cracks, ever. The most I could say was a parent once observed that "that islander kid on the other side is enormous, they better go low on him or they'll get creamed".

I have heard, however, plenty of cracks about rangers. Go figure.

 

[EVERYFWDTHINKTHEYREA6OR7]

First step - 'Hey mate, what you just said I found offensive.' Or words to that effect. And, although I would not refuse to take the field on the first occurance, I definitely would tell the coach, with the offending player present. If it continues then you need to follow your conscience and if that means not playing with him, so be it. Hopefully though the club will deal with it.

I am a big believer is giving people a chance and since I don't know what has happened previously I don't know if they have been told that their behaviour is inappropiate. A lot of the time, particular if it is a younger member of society, just pulling them up will solve the issue. You may not change the way they think, but you might stop them voicing the thoughts. Once they have been told, and I know they have been told, then their behaviour is inappropiate and it has to be taken to the next level.

Edit - The other option is letting him say it in ear shot of the PI / Maroi oposition and not step in to help when retribution is upon him. Consquences can be a bitch and a great learning experience.

I agree with what you are saying in principle. I guess im also a bit of a hypocrite because i tend to racially profile opposition (ie Polynesian teams if you belt them around they will go missing in the game later) however this has been said to fire up blokes who can go missing in defence sometimes. If you are polynesian i apologise if there is any offence taken there. After 17 years of Rugby your people have got your revenge in many many rucks mauls tackles etc.

I am pretty confident that my club would sort that shit out, but that's not a bad advice.

 

[lincoln]

I have never seen any racial crap in 5 years of Junior Rugby as a coach or parent attending games. I have seen over enthusiastic parents who need a lesson in sportsmanship and manners and I have once seen some horrendous result engineering from a BJRU ref with close affiliations to the opposition in the final game of last season, but that was u10 and while it knocked us from 1st to 3rd on the ladder, it's u10.

I have never heard any racial cracks, ever. The most I could say was a parent once observed that "that islander kid on the other side is enormous, they better go low on him or they'll get creamed".

I have heard, however, plenty of cracks about rangers. Go figure.

Yep - spot on - the rang-ers (one for the There Their thread) cop a hiding.

 

[Schadenfreude]

My 10 year old nephew got to play an opening game before the Cowboys in Townsville - he got kneed in the head and called a freckly merkin. Stay classy rugby league.

That said, the cricket crowd in Brisbane can be just as bad.