Contact sports and cotton wool?

mickysf
mickysf Forum Participant Posts: 6,474 ✭✭✭
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edited March 2016 in Sports #1

Given that there is now a call to ban contact rugby being played/taught in school whilst in amateur boxing the authorities are doing away with head guards in men's competitions what do we make of this?

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  • Rocky 2 buckets
    Rocky 2 buckets Forum Participant Posts: 7,101
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    edited March 2016 #2

    Micky Boy, I saw the Rugby piece on the news this morning. I think it can't/shouldn't be banned(not that they said it would be) but I disagree with the point of 'all children' at certain schools expected to play. Any school going down the route of banning
    contact in sports will suffer in the long term. The Boxing head guard thing is a backwards step.

  • cyberyacht
    cyberyacht Forum Participant Posts: 10,218
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    edited March 2016 #3

    Could not the headguard be deployed in school rugby?

  • Jood
    Jood Forum Participant Posts: 120
    edited March 2016 #4

    I feel that if school age children want to play Rugby and join a Club..then fair enough, they ought to be allowed to play contact Rugby. However, I do feel that it is unacceptable to teach it in schools and expect ALL kids to 'have a go.' Some hate it -
    there's plenty of alternatives to teach/play, and maybe all it achieves is putting some kids off sport for life. My son loves football, but quickly realised in Rugby lessons to get rid of the ball ASAP to avoid getting tackled and trampled on. 

  • Boff
    Boff Forum Participant Posts: 1,742
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    edited March 2016 #5

    I used to play rugby at school 35 years I enjoyed it but wasn't any good but one of the players in my team got kicked in the head in a ruck and suffered brain damage he really was never the same again, his personality changed.   So although I love rugby
    I can see the arguments.  

  • JVB66
    JVB66 Forum Participant Posts: 22,892
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    edited March 2016 #6

    If you cannot have tackle ?,does that mean rugby is now only a female sport EmbarassedSurprised

  • tigerfish
    tigerfish Forum Participant Posts: 1,362
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    edited March 2016 #7

    As I said in my acceptedly  misdirected post under general chat, - if this is accepted, then do our children have to play cricket with a soft ball - perhaps a red dyed tennis ball?  And learn to swim in a soft ball pool, instead of dangerous wet water?

    You simply cannot take all danger out of young peoples sport. Life is dangerous anyway and to remove all risk from the learning process can increase the danger later.

    TF

  • JVB66
    JVB66 Forum Participant Posts: 22,892
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    edited March 2016 #8

    As I said in my acceptedly  misdirected post under general chat, - if this is accepted then do our children have to play cricket with a soft ball/ - perhaps a red dyed tennis ball?  And learn to swim in a soft ball pool instead of dangerous wet water?

    You simply cannot take all danger out of young peoples sport. Life is dangerous anyway and to remove all risk from the learning process can increase the danger later.

    TF

    ...Totally agree 

  • mickysf
    mickysf Forum Participant Posts: 6,474 ✭✭✭
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    edited March 2016 #9

    It's my belief that PE is a vital part of education in schools and that children are introduced to as many sports and sports skills as possible in primary and secondary. These should be undertaken with as much of the dangers reduced without significantly
    detracting from the core skills of the games as possible. Then, children can choose sports which they wish to focus on, ones which they just enjoy, or  have a particular skill in. I was never brilliant at rugby, never learnt the game until university but played
    most weekends until retirement from the game at 40+.

    I will add that I worried more about my daughter horse riding than my son who played both school and club rugby.

  • tigerfish
    tigerfish Forum Participant Posts: 1,362
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    edited March 2016 #10

    Mickysf, And you were right to worry. when I was engaged in developing Police Air support in the late 80's and early 90's most of our calls to rural areas were due to riding accidents. Almost all to females.  Sorry slightly off thread.

    TF

  • cariadon
    cariadon Forum Participant Posts: 861
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    edited March 2016 #11

    My son played and loved Rugby from a young age and apart from a broken bone, suffered no major injuries, being on the wing helped, but if they are taught how to tackle properly and that all regional and country players are heavily penalised for bad tackling
    then hopefully this dangerous practise will stop and younsters can play the game as it should be played. Before long children will not be allowed to do anything unless they are wrapped in bubblewrap.

  • Bugs
    Bugs Forum Participant Posts: 480
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    edited March 2016 #12

    ...and then somebody would want to discuss specifications and standards for the bubble wrap, how many layers should be applied to which areas, how big the bubbles should be......Wink

  • Unknown
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  • Takethedogalong
    Takethedogalong Forum Participant Posts: 17,036 ✭✭✭
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    edited March 2016 #14

    I trained as a PE Teacher. Some sports are inherently dangerous, and carry a significant risk, especially if a contact sport. I don't agree with a ban on rugby, but I do think children, (and their parents), should be given the choice to take part, rather
    than it being compulsory. There are far more dangerous activities, but many of these are not taught in schools and are undertaken by choice (e.g equestrian sports). 

    I played hockey, lacrosse, netball, cricket, athletics, rounders, gymnastics at school, and was considered "hard, able to take care of myself during a game" I both received and gave some hard knocks, and had a couple of serious injuries. But I would never
    have played rugby at school, the potential for life threatening/changing injuries is just too great. Taking it up as a hobby sport is different, that is choice. Just my personal view of course. 

  • mickysf
    mickysf Forum Participant Posts: 6,474 ✭✭✭
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    edited March 2016 #15

    Maybe we should do as they did in New Zealand where they had different versions/rules of the game according to child's weight and size.

    The more advanced contact skills are introduced very slowly and appropriately.

    In veteran's competitions they even have coloured shorts with the oldest 70+ group having purple shorts, if my memory serves me right. These players can only be lightly held and supported in the 'tackle'. 

  • tigerfish
    tigerfish Forum Participant Posts: 1,362
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    edited March 2016 #16

    TTDA, I fully accept and agree,  that extreem contact sports such as Rugby should never be compulsory in schools, but banned? - Never!

    TF

  • Unknown
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  • mickysf
    mickysf Forum Participant Posts: 6,474 ✭✭✭
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    edited March 2016 #18

    TF

    How voluntary would participation be at those schools can you see PE teachers happily being short of players or imagine the reaction of the bullies towards those who didnt want to play.

    ...but that can apply to all games and sports. My experience of bullies is that they didn't last too long in rugby, just totally against its core values! Must say that in all the sports I played the such as support, camourardary and respect was never found
    like that in rugby. 

  • Takethedogalong
    Takethedogalong Forum Participant Posts: 17,036 ✭✭✭
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    edited March 2016 #19

    Appreciate the thoughts of others, and differing views, but no decent PE teacher would attempt to intimidate or use a child to make a team up, and usually teams are over subscribed. Same with bullying. Even if a child didn't want to participate in a given
    sport, there would be some other achievement that would put them beyond the bullies hopefully. Sport shouldn't be the be all and end all. Bullies are usually poor at sport and don't get chosen very often as they tend not to be good in a team. Besides which,
    as most are cowards, the chances of revenging oneself on the sports field are infinite!  They are more likely to be in danger of "pushy" parents, over eager for their child to achieve. As a sports coach, I never had to deal with bullying, but did have to calm
    down a few over enthusiastic parents!Happy

  • Unknown
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  • paul56
    paul56 Forum Participant Posts: 937
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    edited March 2016 #21

    There is a version of rugby played by school children called 'Tag Rugby'. Instead of physically tackling which is inherently dangerous all players wear a belt to which 'tags' are velcroed on. A tackle is completed when the player with the ball has a tag
    pulled/ripped off by an opponent. The player then has to stop and pass the ball, retrieve his/her tag and carry on. Much safer and you can teach skills rather than worry of consequences of 'bad' tackling.

  • Takethedogalong
    Takethedogalong Forum Participant Posts: 17,036 ✭✭✭
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    edited March 2016 #22

    That is a shame AD, can put of children for life. I was very lucky and had inspirational sports teachers. Wasn't too fond of the music teacher though, hence I just used to hop through the window and do a double games lesson! I think it made sense to both
    staff, I was good at sport, but detested music, at least what they were trying to teach me! My sister is the other extreme, very good musician, hopeless at most sports!

    Tag rugby sounds a great idea. I lost touch with Rugby teaching/coaching when I left school, but male PE Students at my college (all four of them!) used to go off to another campus to hone their teaching skills.

  • Unknown
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  • moulesy
    moulesy Forum Participant Posts: 9,402 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    edited March 2016 #24

    My memories of PE and the teachers are exactly like that portrayed by Brian Glover in Kes . 

    Wasn't Kes based on a novel (A Kestrel For A Knave)? It's about as similar to modern school PE teachers as Emmerdale is to agriculture. 

    No PE teacher would dare to force unwilling students into playing rugby in these "sue first, ask questions later" days! Wink

  • Takethedogalong
    Takethedogalong Forum Participant Posts: 17,036 ✭✭✭
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    edited March 2016 #25

    I think the only voluntary bit is being a member of the teams that compete, children either want to or not. I remember some girls good at certain sports who were just not interested enough to want to be in a school team. They had to take part in the lessons,
    but I don't recall anyone having to do anything dangerous, at least unless they were fooling about! It was a very sporty school I went to, so most girls did something, even if it was just cheering on from sides! It was all girls by the way, hence Rugby is
    something I have never taken part in, but it certainly looks a dangerous team sport at times. Contested scrums seem to be a major hazard!

  • brue
    brue Forum Participant Posts: 21,176 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    edited March 2016 #26

    One of our daughters was good at gymnastics, seeing her doing somersaults along a narrow beam used to be a bit heart stopping. So many sports have an element of danger, I can't see why anyone should single rugby out, hopefully it's their moment of fame till
    commonsense comes to the surface.

  • ABM
    ABM Forum Participant Posts: 14,578
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    edited March 2016 #27

    Its  the  usual  problem  with  children  of  school  age,  I  guess !Undecided  You  can  take  any  year  at  any  reasonably  sized 
    school  and  you  will  get  children  able  to  substitute  for  the  Christmas  Fairy  along  side  others  who  could   mimic  the  Incredible  Hulk !

    And  thats  the  major  problem  with  Schools  Sport  --  the  talent  may  be  there  but  the  discrepancy  in  size  is  all  !!  To  misquote  somebody  or  other  ==>  The  Bigger  They  Are  The  Harder  They  Fall  On  You  !