WHY DENY GIRLS THE RIGHT TO PLAY?
I am utterly disappointed with the RFL’s attitude to children’s Rugby League because their decision to stop my daughter playing mixed rugby at Under-12s level is based solely on her sex, not on her technique, ability and Rugby League skill.
My daughter loves Rugby League and has played successfully with a fantastic local club for four years and seven years in total.
The club she played with for the last four years did request an exemption several months ago and followed that request up more than once, that my daughter and two other girls in her team, be allowed to continue to play this present season at Under-12s due to their technique, ability and skill.
In the same email a request was also made to allow two younger boys to play as they also have the technique, ability and skill to play at under-12s level. The result for the two boys has been to permit them to play, however the girls’ request has not been responded to.
I say this because no communication has been made by the RFL to the club about the girls – just ignored. There appears to be a different approach taken by the RFL to girls playing Rugby League compared to boys.
Additionally, I emailed the RFL on their ‘report discrimination’ address about this situation, but eleven days later no response has been received. There appears to be little interest by the RFL in girls rugby.
Having received no response from the RFL I put my daughter’s situation with a video clip demonstrating her technique, ability and RL skill on social media tagging the RFL, Claire Balding the president of the RFL, the Duchess of Cambridge the Patron of RFL, Mark Chapman the regular presenter of Rugby League on the BBC, however even then the RFL and others showed no interest and curtesy by responding.
What was noteworthy was that 24 hours after it was posted, ten thousand views of the post had been made. This is more than most supporters at Super League games. The overwhelming majority supported my daughter and agreed that the stopping of my daughter playing mixed Rugby League at Under-12s level is wrong and discriminatory based on her sex and not her on her technique, ability and skill. The RFL is failing to understand the feelings and thoughts of the Rugby League community and are out of touch on this subject.
Issues of safeguarding were raised and I agree. However, my daughter’s club has dealt with these very successfully over the last four years and I can see no reason why that high standard cannot be continued.
Additionally issues where raised by a couple of people of the potential of accusations of inappropriate contact on the pitch. Similarly, these items have come up in the past and been dealt with in a first-class manner and I see no reason why we should stop playing because of this potential. Otherwise it would also stop gay people from playing Rugby League and can you imagine that happening?
Also, issues of puberty and player strengths increasing was also raised, which I agree with. However, watch the video of my daughter and it’s clear to see this is not an issue now and she and her two friends should be allowed to continue for another year at Under-12s. Safety was also raised, but let’s be honest, Rugby League is not a safe sport. If you want almost total safety in sport, go and play dominoes.
However, we all carry out risk assessments and training to make an informed decision on whether Rugby League should be played. My family did this along with my daughter and we feel there is no unacceptable risk of her playing Rugby League with boys at this time at Under-12s level.
My daughter and the other two girls have attempted to find an alternative girls’ team in our area (we are not in a position to go away from our local environment) and have been involved with the local Championship team. However, insufficient numbers of girls in their age-group are attending to make a team that plays competitive games.
This is going to be a loss to Rugby League of three committed, talented players who love the game. My daughter and one of the other girls are still supporting their team of the last four years, turning up at every training session and game and are involved by being water carriers. The other girl has dropped out disillusioned.
Having watched children’s mixed rugby for four years and seen the technique, ability and skill of other girls around the region, it’s clear to me that these three girls not only have a big future in Rugby League but have the potential to form critical members of the future England female team. However, the apathy shown by the RFL is destroying that.
The RFL likes to present itself as a promoter of inclusivity. My experience, however, is far from that.
Tony Pickering, York
DONCASTER LEGEND
I thought that Richard de la Riviere’s interview with the Doncaster legend, Stewart Piper (4 April), was possibly the best so far in the excellent Rugby League Heroes series.
Stewart’s down-to-earth – and often candid – recollections made for a brilliant read and it is difficult not to greatly admire his lifelong commitment to the sport. This kind of celebration of someone who has played for what might be termed a less fashionable club doesn’t happen anywhere near often enough. Without their participation, we wouldn’t have our sport.
It may be no consolation to Stewart, but once playing at Tattersfield for my Wakefield Sunday League side, during the early 1970s, was a highlight of my RL ‘career’.
We were playing away to Doncaster side, Bentley and had the honour to get changed in the Dons’ changing rooms behind the stand. I think I was first out and excitedly about to go under the stand to run on to the pitch when the groundsman stopped me, saying the match was in fact being played “on the ‘Rec’ up Bentley Road.”
Tattersfield would have been my Wembley that day, but it never happened.
It is great that Stewart remains involved with the Dons and I hope he realises just how much he is respected within the game.
David Hinchliffe, Holmfirth
MADE MY DAY
I sitting here on a Friday morning reading the last few pages of my League Express, I have just got to Richard de la Rivière’s page and his Rugby League Heroes, who this week is Stewart Piper.
I have got to say that this is the best one I’ve read yet and I haven’t stopped laughing all morning.
It definitely made my day and probably my week, too.
Dave Holmes, Halifax
NO MORE CHANGES, PLEASE!
I have been a fan and player of this great game of ours since childhood. For my sins I was born in Halifax, so naturally Thrum Hall was my church.
But this is not to lament the fortunes of my home team. It is, however, to join on the band wagon, to say enough is enough.
The sport must progress to flourish but the constant rule changes and the RFL’s flavour of the month enforcement campaigns are making our beloved sport too confusing and inconsistent to watch.
I have always believed that the referee was a god on the field; their word is final and, as a player, you would say “ yes sir “ and take your punishment. If the referee missed something or got it wrong, then that was just bad luck. Karma would often come around and you would get the rub of the green next time.
To be fair, I was never that struck on video referees and the rest but that debate has long passed.
The crux is, if the man or woman in the middle sees something and offers their response, that should be it, but certainly not trial by committee as we are enduring this season.
Being of a certain age, it won’t be surprising that I believe things were so much better in my day, although perhaps not the mud. But the game itself did feel more honest than today. Yes, we got knocks to the head and yes, some of the tragic consequences of those blows did happen, but as has been repeatedly said, we knew what we were signing up for.
I was a hooker, when the game had proper scrums and forwards had to be forwards; you couldn’t have a winger pack down in the second or, god forbid, the front row. You didn’t have to look at the player’s number on his jersey to know where he played; you knew just by looking at the bloke.
Some of those skills have been diluted or taken out of the game for the constant striving to make it faster. But how fast do you want it to be? Rugby League seemed fast enough 40 years ago.
Some of these changes were gradual, but many changes were made season after season, be it changing the playing season to summer, changing the points awarded, or changing the rule, with some good and some just daft.
We have always had the greatest contact sport; it’s perfect as it is. To the RFL, please stop messing with it, unless it’s to bring back competitive scrums. That would be okay by me.
Michael Butterworth, Beverley
WHERE’S BEN?
Can anyone say what has happened to Ben Thaler, who I consider to be one of the best referees in Super League?
He must be an improvement on some of the whistle-happy lot that are used now.
Roger Dicks, Bristol
NEW RULE IDEA
I read Geoff Lee’s submission (Mailbag 4th April) with great interest, and I agree entirely that it seems unfair that the team that has conceded a try has to hand over possession to the scorers at the next kick-off.
In one-sided games this often results in a lack of possession for the defending side and an avalanche of points for the team on the roll.
Many years ago we had an experimental period when the laws were changed and the restart rules were reversed. The team that had conceded a try received possession, but then often became entrenched in their own 20 and inevitably conceded another score.
There may not be any simple solution to avoid one-sided blow-outs, but I have a suggestion that might be worth considering.
We have new rules that allow teams to decide how far infield a scrum takes place. So, why not allow the team that has conceded a try to decide whether they want to restart with a kick-off or receive the ball. Worth trying?
Peter Sutcliffe, Oldham
WHY RUN THE GAME DOWN?
Well now, don’t we supporters love running the game down!
From those running the game to constant attacks on referees to bemoaning crowd figures going down; it is all to do with how the game is been run.
When will we realise that our sport is not massively supported, that we are mainly a smaller sport in the north and that there is nothing wrong with that.
Currently there are issues with people struggling to make ends meet and price rises aren’t helping, certainly in my home.
I am listening to my Chairman bemoaning the fact that we’re struggling financially and, in the next breath, saying player wage demands have nearly doubled. Yeah, we know, it’s been put on our costs to watch the club, which is becoming unaffordable. And he wonders why season-passes are down by a third.
My advice is to ‘cut the cloth, Adam, and live within your means. I’d rather watch a side I can afford to watch than a bunch of players under-performing on good salaries.
Make it more exciting to turn up to a game, with entertainment, rather than just expecting people to pay through the nose for the same one-trick pony.
It pains me to say it, but our neighbours have managed to increase gates and are putting on entertainment that creates a good atmosphere.
The game needs to expand its horizon in these testing times. The fans are miffed with some issues in the game, but we are good at putting it down.
Mike Barrett, Hull
WHO NEEDS A STRATEGIC PARTNER?
It was very encouraging to read that the RFL and Super League are merging.
There should be only one governing body, so it is better late than never to hear that they are putting their differences behind them and pulling together for the good of the whole game.
However, just who and what is a strategic partner, and how much will it cost? Do we not have enough experienced administrators already in our game to run the sport? Why do we need outside help to tell us how to run our game? I’m hoping I have this wrong and the so-called strategic partner is basically a new marketing department, which is just there to promote and advertise; that would make sense. But as for bringing in an equity partner, that sounds like an absolute disaster. I am certain it would be the worst thing ever to hit our game.
Having been a Rugby League supporter since 1968, I think I have a sound understanding of The Greatest Game. We need to stop all these obsessions of expansion into areas where the game will never take off. What is wrong with the game being a northern based sport? We all want bigger crowds watching the matches, but I ask this question.
If all our top-tier teams averaged 15,000 fans, second-tier teams averaged 10,000 fans and third-tier teams averaged 5,000 fans (which will never happen), would our administrators still want to expand?
I think they would. And that is the problem with expansion; the people running the game want to run bigger organisations.
Finally, I think Garry Schofield is totally wrong when he suggests Ellery Hanley as the new Leeds coach.
I have total admiration and respect for both Garry and Ellery, two of the greatest players to have ever pulled on a pair of boots, but Ellery has just been out of the game too long.
The decision by the RFL to appoint him as coach of the Combined Nations All Stars for the mid-season England game is a publicity stunt and gives absolutely no reason to suggest he is ready for a full-time coaching position.
Geoffrey Bagley, Leeds