Mixed opinions on Schools Rugby by experts
Persistent issues in the set-up of the Schools Rugby League continue to raise questions on the competence of the Sri Lanka Schools Rugby Football Association to handle the sport by themselves. The structure and hierarchy of the Schools Association has come under fire from certain sections, so has the lack of professionalism.
The continuing strains between them and Sri Lanka Rugby (SLR) have not helped the growth of the game. No SLR representative is invited to the Schools Association board for their meetings. This has led to rash decisions being taken based on the interests of selected parties. But perhaps the biggest concern is the growing competitiveness, and with it, the need to ‘win at any cost’.
The alleged fat salaries of coaches raise concerns over the pressure they exert on their players to win, in order to continue being ‘marketable’ and maintain value. This culminated on the final match day of this season in an ugly incident that was unbecoming of the sport. Compared to football, where showing dissent and arguing with referees is common the world over, international rugby players rarely ever protest a decision, let alone assault a referee. And spectators should control their emotions as much as the players on the field. Certain coaches impart a bad influence on the players by their repulsive conduct during a game.
The writer noted one particular coach, who was found guilty of similar behaviour last season and was sent off the field as a result, continue to do the same this year. He attempted to ‘correct referees mistakes,’ provoked his players against the opposition team and carried an unprofessional and disgusting attitude in general.
However, the ugly incidents on the field compared to last season, which reached a high point and prompted the then sports minister to intervene, were less this year. Off the field there was a lot of suspicion between schools and some of them called the other out for ‘fixing matches,’ in order to clinch the title.
They cast scrutiny on the administration of the Schools Association and alleged that certain parties inside influenced decisions for the benefit of their school. The fact that none of these allegations has been officially filed as cases with evidence, shows how reputed schools bring shame to their own name by getting carried away by the desire to win. Nonetheless, this raises concern over the ability of the Schools Association to conduct affairs professionally.
“Interest in the Schools League is much higher than in the club tournaments and so it should be handled professionally by authorities proficient in World Rugby rules,” said Lasitha ‘Bonza’ Gunaratne, President of Sri Lanka Rugby.
“Discipline is going out of hand and this is bad for the students growing up both as sportsmen and citizens,” Gunaratne opined the need for the Schools Association to work more close with SLR.
“We sanctioned the tournament under certain guidelines and the World Rugby rules, but these are sometimes ignored,” he remarked.
“Implementation is important and so is a close relationship. I would say our relationship has improved but we are still not invited to their meetings, whereas we have three members from their association on our board.”
However, President of Schools Rugby Ranjith Chandrasekara defended this decision saying it was in line with their constitution.
“We are a member of Sri Lanka Rugby but they aren’t a member of ours and therefore we have no provision to invite them,” he said.
“But I have personally decided to start inviting one member for our meetings in the near future.”Commenting on the conduct of the league, Chandrasekara said that he was “fully satisfied”.
“Yes there were a few serious incidents but we have taken stern disciplinary action in this regard,” he said.
He divulged plans to train the masters-in-charge of the schools in sports education as most of them are just teachers without much background in sports. Gunaratne spoke of how spectator knowledge in the game has generally risen with exposure to international matches on TV and so the expectations are high. Referees have to be competent to handle the pace and pressure of the game, as do the administrative authorities. He also expressed the need to bring all School Sports under the Sports Ministry due to the lack of support and knowledge on the part of the Education Ministry. Gunaratne lambasted the pressure put on players by schools, coaches and even some parents, which leads to mental stress.
Nizam Jamaldeen, the President of Sri Lanka Rugby Referees’ Society concurred with this opinion and added that some players were pushed to such an extent that on leaving school they lost interest in playing the game and this was the country’s loss.
“As for the league, our referees had a very good season despite the last incident which was unfortunate, “said Jamaldeen. “Everyone should be disciplined. Boys should be taught how to enjoy the game. Losing is not the end of the world. They get carried away when the pressure is too much.” He defended the criticism of the referees by saying; “Our referees are not perfect and make mistakes, but it is easy to point fingers at the refereeing and wash their hands off their mistakes.”Jamaldeen drew comparison with the exemplary conduct of the New Zealand Cricket team after their World Cup final loss, despite the error of the umpire and the emotions running inside.
“This is how you should behave,” he said.
He also refuted claims that the referees lacked the ability to keep up with the pace of the schools game and said they had passed fitness tests that players couldn’t either. All in all, the league does have areas that need to be improved by next season. And schools should understand the chief purpose is to uplift the spirit of the game, and conduct their matters accordingly.