DIEHARD
----
- Messages
- 7,037
DIEHARD runs on for his State of Origin debut for Queensland.
In the dying seconds of the game he dives over for what looks to be a match winning try.
The ref has his doubts, he sends it to the video ref...the fate of the match and the series rests in the hands of the video ref...who will win?
____________________________________________
Rugby League: The Essence of Rugby
One thing that annoys me is when people continually refer to rugby union as rugby and rugby league as league. It makes rugby union sound like some sort of blue blooded pure bred form of rugby and leaves rugby league looking like a poor mongrel cousin that is hidden in the closet during the rugby family reunions. Even our own officials, players, coaches and rugby league aligned journalists are major offenders.
I believe we can trace the origin of the 'rugby' syndrome to private schools which totally shun the existence of the other rugby code. They arrogantly call themselves rugby which only spreads confusion among other sports fans. If you attend a private school that plays rugby union you can expect to be stuck in a time warp set to the year 1894, the year before northern rugby clubs broke away from the Rugby Football Union. The nasty habit of calling rugby union rugby follows the student through life spreading the disease of 'rugby' syndrome to other fans, friends and colleagues and even to the greater masses if they become journalists!
The fact is rugby league has just as much claim to the title of rugby as rugby union. Just because we broke away from the corrupt and oppressive administration of the Rugby Football League dominated by the upper classes and founded the Northern Rugby Union later to become the Rugby Football League does not signal a forfeit of our birthright to the name rugby.
In the popular myth created by rugby union, of how William Webb Ellis, a student at the Rugby School, with "a fine disregard for the rules" picked up the ball and ran during a game of soccer and thus created the game that would become rugby. And when other people saw this they wanted to be a part of it as well. The fundamental beauties of rugby, the running, passing, ball handling and footwork, the essence of rugby, it was these aspects that captured the hearts of players and spectators.
Surely when William was running with the ball in his hands, stepping and swerving away from opponents, things the code of rugby league boldly exhibits, the last thing on his mind would be kicking the ball out of the field of play, packing into a scrum or lining up yet another penalty kick at goal. Aspects cherished by our rugby union counterparts making it an uninspiring and dire spectacle. Rugby league celebrates the essence of rugby, rugby union shuns it.
We should never surrender our claim to rugby, we would be writing our surrender terms in the rugby war that has waged for over 100 years. We must fight on to the eternal infuriation of rugby union.
Some people believe we should change the name of our sport because we get confused with union who push themselves as the sole rugby. Many uninspiring names have been suggested over the years, ones that would bring much laughter to the offices of the Australian Rugby Union. We have to understand that we are what rugby is all about. Our game is built upon the facets that have brought player and fan alike to the game for over a century. We have to stick to our guns and show the world what rugby is really all about.
I'd prefer the word rugby to be used in a more generic since, not exclusive to either code of rugby but a term focusing on the fundamentals existing with both codes. Rugby league and casual sports fans have always been good when referring to either code as league or union. But this continual use of the term of rugby in exclusive reference to rugby union riles me and shows total lack of respect for rugby league!
So in future call rugby union, union or rugby union or even use one of the delightful derogatory terms devised by clever rugby league fans over the decades, click and clap, rah rah, yawnion, yawnyawn, or smugby...but don't call them rugby! Because every time you call them rugby, you might as will drive to the head office of the Australian Rugby Union in Sydney and give the CEO Gary Flowers a kiss on the cheek every time you say it.
Rugby league is not only the greatest game it is the very essence of rugby.
726 words including the title.
In the dying seconds of the game he dives over for what looks to be a match winning try.
The ref has his doubts, he sends it to the video ref...the fate of the match and the series rests in the hands of the video ref...who will win?
____________________________________________
Rugby League: The Essence of Rugby
One thing that annoys me is when people continually refer to rugby union as rugby and rugby league as league. It makes rugby union sound like some sort of blue blooded pure bred form of rugby and leaves rugby league looking like a poor mongrel cousin that is hidden in the closet during the rugby family reunions. Even our own officials, players, coaches and rugby league aligned journalists are major offenders.
I believe we can trace the origin of the 'rugby' syndrome to private schools which totally shun the existence of the other rugby code. They arrogantly call themselves rugby which only spreads confusion among other sports fans. If you attend a private school that plays rugby union you can expect to be stuck in a time warp set to the year 1894, the year before northern rugby clubs broke away from the Rugby Football Union. The nasty habit of calling rugby union rugby follows the student through life spreading the disease of 'rugby' syndrome to other fans, friends and colleagues and even to the greater masses if they become journalists!
The fact is rugby league has just as much claim to the title of rugby as rugby union. Just because we broke away from the corrupt and oppressive administration of the Rugby Football League dominated by the upper classes and founded the Northern Rugby Union later to become the Rugby Football League does not signal a forfeit of our birthright to the name rugby.
In the popular myth created by rugby union, of how William Webb Ellis, a student at the Rugby School, with "a fine disregard for the rules" picked up the ball and ran during a game of soccer and thus created the game that would become rugby. And when other people saw this they wanted to be a part of it as well. The fundamental beauties of rugby, the running, passing, ball handling and footwork, the essence of rugby, it was these aspects that captured the hearts of players and spectators.
Surely when William was running with the ball in his hands, stepping and swerving away from opponents, things the code of rugby league boldly exhibits, the last thing on his mind would be kicking the ball out of the field of play, packing into a scrum or lining up yet another penalty kick at goal. Aspects cherished by our rugby union counterparts making it an uninspiring and dire spectacle. Rugby league celebrates the essence of rugby, rugby union shuns it.
We should never surrender our claim to rugby, we would be writing our surrender terms in the rugby war that has waged for over 100 years. We must fight on to the eternal infuriation of rugby union.
Some people believe we should change the name of our sport because we get confused with union who push themselves as the sole rugby. Many uninspiring names have been suggested over the years, ones that would bring much laughter to the offices of the Australian Rugby Union. We have to understand that we are what rugby is all about. Our game is built upon the facets that have brought player and fan alike to the game for over a century. We have to stick to our guns and show the world what rugby is really all about.
I'd prefer the word rugby to be used in a more generic since, not exclusive to either code of rugby but a term focusing on the fundamentals existing with both codes. Rugby league and casual sports fans have always been good when referring to either code as league or union. But this continual use of the term of rugby in exclusive reference to rugby union riles me and shows total lack of respect for rugby league!
So in future call rugby union, union or rugby union or even use one of the delightful derogatory terms devised by clever rugby league fans over the decades, click and clap, rah rah, yawnion, yawnyawn, or smugby...but don't call them rugby! Because every time you call them rugby, you might as will drive to the head office of the Australian Rugby Union in Sydney and give the CEO Gary Flowers a kiss on the cheek every time you say it.
Rugby league is not only the greatest game it is the very essence of rugby.
726 words including the title.
