The Role of Private Schools in Australian Rugby

[Finland Fella]

Not sure if I have read these posts correctly, but it sounds like you have school boys playing two games of rugby a week? How does that work out for the boys?
30 minutes each way of full contact rugby once a week is enough for growing youngsters. training tues/thurs on top of that, maybe an extra if there is an important interschool or tournament coming up.

Ha ! that reminds me of a conversation I had with a headmaster of a prominent rugby league school back in the 90s.
He was bemoaning the fact his star players played for the school on Thursday, played Commo Bank Cup (channel 9) on Friday, played junior reps (matthews or sg ball cup) on Saturdays and then backed up for their junior district clubs on Sunday ... and all this in HSC years etc.

Two games in a week .... breeze

 

[Inside Shoulder]

Ha ! that reminds me of a conversation I had with a headmaster of a prominent rugby league school back in the 90s.
He was bemoaning the fact his star players played for the school on Thursday, played Commo Bank Cup (channel 9) on Friday, played junior reps (matthews or sg ball cup) on Saturdays and then backed up for their junior district clubs on Sunday ... and all this in HSC years etc.

Two games in a week .... breeze

but they only handled the ball once every 2 or 3 sets of 6 and all the tackling was gang tackling:fishing

 

[PaarlBok]

Do NZ and RSA play rugby in every school pretty much be it Private or State

Nope. Rugby culture is pretty deep in SA afrikaans schools and a few english schools.

 

[PaarlBok]

The secret for rugby in schools is to go to your 6 years old and ask them if its cool to play rugby. The school have to drive the sport for the young ones. Every single one that get hooked on rugby will draw his supporting family with him to the sport.

 

[Finland Fella]

Seriously the private schools have the ARU over a barrell.
Because sadly Aussie rugby is still way too class based.
Not many hung over bogans in Campbelltown are waking up to find little snotty nosed Wayne is dreaming of emulating Ben Alexander.
F**k dad I just wanna f**kin pinch a tight head orf the F**kin All blacks
No they all want to be the next benji or Billy or just chrome emselves into oblivion.

Private schools chuck a future at some of the talented ones but they're natural instinct is league ... (was going to throw in an example or twenty here but f**K it'd be rank libelous, I guess

 

[PaarlBok]

Understand cricket is the popular one in Aus. Perfect example for rugby to try and copy. In SA our lot have the same structures in rugby schools (winter) as for cricket (summer). You'll find many a Springbok (Schalk Burger) that was more then a usefull cricketer in school or cricketers that are more then usefull on the rugby field (Herschell Gibbs, Jac Kallis).

 

[Finland Fella]

Understand cricket is the popular one in Aus. Perfect example for rugby to try and copy. In SA our lot have the same structures in rugby schools (winter) as for cricket (summer). You'll find many a Springbok (Schalk Burger) that was more then a usefull cricketer in school or cricketers that are more then usefull on the rugby field (Herschell Gibbs, Jac Kallis).

That's interesting. Who was the last guy to play both first grade cricket and first grade rugby In the Aussie system ?
Phil Emery (Gordon rugby - NSW cricket), anyone since ?

 

[PaarlBok]

That's interesting. Who was the last guy to play both first grade cricket and first grade rugby In the Aussie system ?
Phil Emery (Gordon rugby - NSW cricket), anyone since ?

Dunno your lot. Marais Erasmus (ampire) played rugby and cricket for Boland. Marnus Hugo, Griqua scrummy also. In the past I know Peter Kirsten was an excellent flyhalf,

 

[Hugh Jarse]

Jeff Wilson (Goldie) from That Tackle at the SFS played for the Darkness (NZRT) and the Whiteness (cricket) although he was only in the 50 over Whiteness team.
Off topic.

I have heard of kids playing village club footy, district rep rugby, and school rugby. Some have even managed to fit club mungoball games as well. Parents have basically been taxi drivers.

 

[PaarlBok]

Jeff Wilson (Goldie) from That Tackle at the SFS played for the Darkness (NZRT) and the Whiteness (cricket) although he was only in the 50 over Whiteness team.
Off topic.

I have heard of kids playing village club footy, district rep rugby, and school rugby. Some have even managed to fit club mungoball games as well. Parents have basically been taxi drivers.

Well I belong to that club, enjoy it.

The important thing about schools is that the kids starts at the age of 6 with his/her sport. Club poofball in SA they are only starting at clubs at 14 years old. Thats where rugby have a huge advantage over poofball in SA.

 

[Patto.]

I am a little confused. Why has Rugby gone backwards in the NSW State school system. In the 60's and 70's Rugby was a dominant winter code in the CHS system. Dominant to the point that GPS refused to play CHS because it could not compete. Yes that is true . It only lasted 2 or 3 years but it happened. I went to James Ruse and in our zone were Hurlstone, Granville, Liverpool, Fairfield, Parramatta, MacQuarrie....all strong Rugby areas yeah right. What about Birrong, East Hills, Narwee, Punchbowl, Homebush, Canterbury, Fort Street, Crows Nest, Epping, Normanhurst. Too many drinks in the last 40 years to remember them all but I recall the strongest rugby principled fanatics I know came from these schools not GPS.

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

Ha ! that reminds me of a conversation I had with a headmaster of a prominent rugby league school back in the 90s.
He was bemoaning the fact his star players played for the school on Thursday, played Commo Bank Cup (channel 9) on Friday, played junior reps (matthews or sg ball cup) on Saturdays and then backed up for their junior district clubs on Sunday ... and all this in HSC years etc.

Two games in a week .... breeze

This wouldn't have been St Greg's would it? Because if it is then I can tell you as an old boy myself that most of the 1st XIII if not all of them only played two games a week. On Thursdays and Saturdays for Reps. Arrive Alive (as it was known while I was there) only featured sporadically at best. In fact, for many of the guys who were borders only played one game a week. They were routinely cottoned woolled.

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

I am a little confused. Why has Rugby gone backwards in the NSW State school system. In the 60's and 70's Rugby was a dominant winter code in the CHS system. Dominant to the point that GPS refused to play CHS because it could not compete. Yes that is true . It only lasted 2 or 3 years but it happened. I went to James Ruse and in our zone were Hurlstone, Granville, Liverpool, Fairfield, Parramatta, MacQuarrie....all strong Rugby areas yeah right. What about Birrong, East Hills, Narwee, Punchbowl, Homebush, Canterbury, Fort Street, Crows Nest, Epping, Normanhurst. Too many drinks in the last 40 years to remember them all but I recall the strongest rugby principled fanatics I know came from these schools not GPS.

From memory most of them still participate in knockout competition but in most cases nothing regular. More investment is needed to bring that back but it's very doable.

 

[Patto.]

Hey Work Class, If you added a few inches to the waist and some grey to the hair I could be your avatar

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

Hey Work Class, If you added a few inches to the waist and some grey to the hair I could be your avatar

:lmao:

Hit the gym mate, that's not good.

 

[Patto.]

:lmao:

Hit the gym mate, that's not good.

If I hit the gym I would knock myself out.

 

[Lee Grant]

Patto - but you're not as good looking, I heard .

The diminishing of the rugby presence in those parts you mention is appalling, isn't it?

There are many reasons for it including poor missionary work but one of the main reasons in the last 40 years has been the influence of television getting the hearts and minds of the youngsters in rugby league, a sport that is frankly better suited for TV watching to those Aussies who have a short attention span when it comes to sport. The simplicity of the rules and the lack of real set pieces with their attendant sanctions, and 2 fewer defenders on the field makes for a better experience for the couch potato.

The deterioration of the sport will become worse in Sydney. The AFL has already begun its long run in the west.

The malign influence of private schools recruiting players is deplored but the absence of star players compared to the total is not that significant compared to the effect of TV in the last 40 years.

Recruitment is not going to be stopped because there will be no enforcement and when old boys club together to pay school fees sometimes the schools don't even know; not that they want to.

What rugby union has to do in the two main rugby states is to suck it up. Let the private schools churn out the teams every week and keep the boys in the sport until they are 18 - but do the missionary work and development in the non-private schools area.

I'm no expert in the development of the sport in state schools, but it must be miniscule. I don't think we will be saying that in the near future about the AFL.

 

[nugget]

The biggest threat to rugby in schools isn't league, it's bloody afl. Seriously, while union and league battle out their age old turf wars, AFL is slowly creeping in, unnoticed, like the cancer that it is.

League and Union should be taking it on together, cause it is spending huge $ in junior schools within rugby and league heartland. And because it's not a contact sport it appeals to more parents.

 

[Melbourne Terrace]

The biggest threat to rugby in schools isn't league, it's bloody afl. Seriously, while union and league battle out their age old turf wars, AFL is slowly creeping in, unnoticed, like the cancer that it is.

League and Union should be taking it on together, cause it is spending huge $ in junior schools within rugby and league heartland. And because it's not a contact sport it appeals to more parents.

all the codes of the land should band together to eliminate this scourge that blights us.

 

[Slim 293]

Meh, AFL is definitely not our concern...

Trust me, rugby is not on their radar, and they know they already have the mungos beaten nationally...