Has Rugby lost its way ?

Has rugby lost its way since the 2012/2013 season began? In the last few weeks I have seen a number of pros making major gestures when they are being obstructed or when they are looking for penalties. This particular phenomena has become a major bug bear for me. I know that people will turn around and say I am going a little bit over board but I just believe that rugby is such a tough game played by what I believe to be some of the world’s best athlete’s. I just feel this needs to be said that rugby needs to stay true to it values of honesty of effort , and being able to leave it all out on the playing field.

Having played other sports I feel that rugby has led the way in terms of the way that players treat match officials and their fellow pros on the field of play. In GAA, we have seen match referees being treated very badly by players, supporters and team officials. And also in football the level of abuse that is directed at referees has gone through the roof. In rugby what the referee says goes and in 99% of cases the players just get on with it and don’t complain. This is one tradition that rugby has begun to lose with players making more out of certain incidents and I urge the IRB to stamp it out before it gets any worse than it is at the moment.

In Thomand Park last Friday during the Munster vs Connacht game, when either JJ Hanrahan or Dan Parks was lining up a kick at goal, a number of kids in one of the terraces and also a few inebriated adults started to heckle either kicker and as we know long has been the tradition down the years of silence in Thomand , for which the supporters have gained a wonderful reputation. So to those few that don’t seem to know the meaning of the word tradition , look it up in a dictionary before you travel and maybe just maybe if this tradition can be restored to its former glory then maybe just maybe we can regain the honest integrity of the game that I know and love !!

By Cian Mc Gibney -30-12-2013.