The smaller rivulets of Rugby
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All what happens bad stays inside the field - Pic by Anuradha Bandara
Reading through the social media, I came across a quote by Nimal Gunatilleke who styles himself as a curious economist. He is a former adviser at the Ministry of Education.
“Sponsoring Sports has its place in the education of the young. I would agree that re-balancing is needed and more attention to other skills that enable people to gain and keep livelihoods. One might think of getting the attention of sponsors for specific skill development and education enhancing programmes; scholarships to enable good Sportspersons to continue with their education. Find small rivulets, as if it were, from the large streams of funds going to Sports: not a simple ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ solution.” This was a response to a social media exchange on Sports and Sports funding.
The emphasis in making professionals of schoolchildren is often to satisfy a kinky demand within those who take a lead in funding. Whether this is good for a young student, is another argument. It is within the expanding of sports funding, more by alumni, that we have to take a fresh look. The funding of Sports by alumni is not confined to Sri Lanka. The fall out, as it is, may be Sri Lankan.
We know that budgets for Sports such as Cricket and Rugby are huge. A top 10 school probably spends a combined sum of over Rs 75 million annually. The funding is the efforts of old boys and this has its bad side as well as good side. How many students, at all age groups, are involved in the 2 Sports, at all age levels, in schools? May be, around 300. That is 6 age groups of 50 each. Funding and glory seeking is something you cannot stop, as a school gets more mileage from a Rugby match, than it does from students getting all ‘A’s at OLs or ALs. That is fashioned by thinking on the surface. A Sports win is news and is talked about by a handful that is the products of their creation. Academic results, on the other hand, may receive less space but, are talked about by a larger population. Expanding on the initial thoughts and discussion; the Curious Economist explained as follows.
“I think, what I was getting at was that, we might examine and work with the way incentives are set up to fund school Sports, and how businesses and parents might respond. Rather than Education or Sports, we might do better to bring them together a little more. Alumni respond to what they like. The world over, Sports programmes seem to dominate Education support programmes of alumni. We might encourage Sports as a way of enhancing Education, not only representing the school but, playing like 1 takes classes in Languages, Maths and History.”
If Sports spending has come to stay, not only in Sri Lanka, but in other countries too, what is needed is to see how best one can have self regulation. For instance, if you want to offer scholarships to preferred Sports children, why not make it transparent by publishing an advertisement offering the available positions. Sponsors too, must pull out a little of their social responsibility to guide, direct and monitor. Why not cause rivulets from the large stream of funds? Then you will find more satisfaction for many. This will produce more goodwill, than it would using the large stream to buy so called talent, and displace those who may have given 5 to 7 years of commitment. Looking at it another way; you have satisfied the palette of the alumni, probably, with a win, while you may have destroyed the psyche of others. The need than ever before is to Police the environment without letting it grow like a garbage dump.
Recently, there was this public washing of dirty linen about a cricketer labeled “import” in the real sense. Well meaning alumni advice and sealing documents by those in charge, seem to have attracted the attention of the hierarchy, and displeasure expressed. This will only be seen by those who wish to see and be understood by those who have the capacity to do so.
“Simply, not Sports or Studies but, Sports and Studies and the best, will represent the school, while the others will gain life skills and become better aware of their abilities and about the hard work needed to get the body and mind to perform better, be it Cricket, Long Jump or Rugby”. This again, is a piece from the curious economist.
If funding is the pressure point and you bring people just for a win, what life skill are you inculcating in the citizen of tomorrow? The performance and commitment to perform is what is needed from the athlete. Work towards that and the stream of funds will have done a useful job.
Sponsorship has always had a huge attraction for school Rugby. It has helped the Sport run on its own. It has to do so now and into the future. What is needed is to have governance that will make the whole system more viable and acceptable. That is to keep the attraction of the game in tact, at least at school level. This, however, needs a review. These bigger streams can always work with the smaller rivulets of Rugby. Help them in their game and channel some, while keeping the small waterways intact.
Vimal Perera is a former Rugby Referee, coach and Accredited Referees Evaluator IRB