Woods99 said:
kids play rugby union because their mates play rugby union, or they go to rugby union schools, and their parents want them to play the game.
Orrrrrr - simply because
there is no other option at their school!! I played Yawnion for 4 long years in High school - from Years 8-11 - simply because myself and my mates had no other option. Our school did not have a League side - only Union. And we wanted to play SOME kind of footy for sport, to stay in touch for our weekend Rugby league teams (Our real love)
I did not go to a private school - and my parents most assuredly did not care what game I played - they just wanted me to enjoy whatever it was i chose to do.
And being a pretty prominent member of that side (Certainly not throwing this fact up to blow my own trumpet or anyhting...but I was consistently amongst the school's monthly sports awards winners for Rugby) I cannot TELL you the pressure I got from the coach and other staff at the school, early on - to ditch my Rugby League team on the weekend - and play union for their 'associate club' instead.
But I told them to get knotted every single time - because it was League that I truly loved! But I was aware of quite a few blokes that DID cave to that pressure - And that made me really angry at the time!
Now I ended up being fortunate enough to play both Harold Matthews and SG Ball for the Bulldogs in League in this time (for whichi got threatened with being dropped from the school's first XV for - I just LAUGHED at them and said "Fine - go ahead!"...but they never made good on their pathetic threats!) - myself and another mate from the First XV of that school - but neither of us ever made it past that to Premier League or First grade - and another bloke from that side got graded by Wests (Not sure what happened to him though as he left school in Year 11...Never heard of him in first G though) but if any of us HAD - then we would have been one of those players 'with Rugby Union Background' that you speak of....and through NO fault of our own!
I HATED the friggin' game, I can tell you - and so did my mate that came to the Dogs with me. And I still do!...Yawnion doesn't hold a candle to league in terms of skills or excitement. The number of players with PURE League skills that could succeed in Union - would outnumber the ones that could go the other way 15 or 20 to 1, without a word of exaggeration!
And having played both codes extensively - I know what I am bloody talking about here.