Rugby needs an education campaign
Roar Guru By rugbyfuture, 2 Jun 2010 rugbyfuture is a Roar Guru
- Tagged:
- AFL, israel falou, Melbourne Rebels, NRL, Rugby League
It is clear, post-Folau scandal, that in an era where rugby is moving into Melbourne, the Victorian, and South Australian public still have no idea about the differences between League and Rugby.
The reason I say this is because of some of the comments I’ve read, which were in regard to the Folau conversion, and quite blatantly thought of the NRL as from rugby, and the Wallabies as the national side of rugby league.
Of course, this will never happen, but the ARU must regard this is a bad issue for the game, as it turns rugby, which otherwise doesn’t pose as much of a threat to Aussie Rules, into an enemy, and also shows a general lack of knowledge about the game.
This means that rugby is not not gaining the crowds it should, but not having the opportunity to gain these crowds at all.
It is important, whether they are to hate it, not pay attention to it, or enjoy it, that people at least know what the code represents, how it is played, and who represents it. At least then, people will be able to identify what it represents and may be willing to dabble in it.
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- Explore:
- AFL, israel falou, Melbourne Rebels, NRL, Rugby League
June 2nd 2010 @ 3:03pm
Jock M said | June 2nd 2010 @ 3:03pm | Report comment
Since the corporates took over Rugby and made TV appeal the main objective the two codes are basically identical and the true game of Rugby has virtually gone.
I don’t think that AFL people will be conned that there is much difference and nor will they care.
June 2nd 2010 @ 4:10pm
JF said | June 2nd 2010 @ 4:10pm | Report comment
In what way are the codes basically identical?
June 2nd 2010 @ 3:45pm
Bay35Pablo said | June 2nd 2010 @ 3:45pm | Report comment
Folau clearly didn’t go to AFL for the representative opportunities. Rugby – Wallabies. League – Origin & Kangaroos. AFL – …. um.
Not that it was about the coin …
We can educate all the AFL ignoramuses like this – League is the one on green jerseys with yellow Vs played in half a dozen countries more than AFL; Union is the one played in gold jerseys in dozens of countries more than AFL.
Perhaps Israel needs an education campaign too?
June 2nd 2010 @ 4:02pm
BigAl said | June 2nd 2010 @ 4:02pm | Report comment
And all this will be clearly revealed as we watch the game ?
June 2nd 2010 @ 4:17pm
leftarc said | June 2nd 2010 @ 4:17pm | Report comment
I lived in Melbourne from 1998 for several years, and the second question asked was “who do you go for?”. When giving them my answer, the ACT Brumbies, the response was a “awww, they play with the storm don’t they?”.
Whilst I like to think it is ignorance, some people of the AFL can be pretty smug (Andrew Demetriou surprise at a Socceroo’s game being on)!
June 3rd 2010 @ 3:41am
chris said | June 3rd 2010 @ 3:41am | Report comment
Hey yanks will tell you about the NFL but when they are in Australia they don’t know the difference between AFL,Union and Rugby League.
June 3rd 2010 @ 10:50pm
rugbyfuture said | June 3rd 2010 @ 10:50pm | Report comment
beg to differ.
June 3rd 2010 @ 10:05am
Go_the_Wannabe's said | June 3rd 2010 @ 10:05am | Report comment
I wish someone would tell us what the ARU is doing to promote rugby outside the stronghold cities………perhaps nobody except the ARU really knows????? SFA.
June 3rd 2010 @ 4:21pm
Go_the_Wannabe's said | June 3rd 2010 @ 4:21pm | Report comment
And silence was the stern reply…….
BTW has anyone noticed that Sarah Jessica Parker looks more and more like a horse face every day??????
June 3rd 2010 @ 5:09pm
Damo said | June 3rd 2010 @ 5:09pm | Report comment
Yeh back in 2003 someone I knew from Melbourne was completely ignorant of the Rugby World Cup. And proud of it!
Willful myopia is rife down Mexico way. Fed by AFL dominated media. It suits them just fine that NRL scandals are perpetrated by “rugby” players. It doesn’t matter about the facts or the details. The other codes can be simply put into the box called “foreign and irrelevant”.
This is a deliberate development in Victoria. I played rugby there as a kid in the late sixties. It was AFL dominated sure but to keep the punter’s heads in AFL goggles for decades on end must take some serious effort. I think that it suits AFL and its media relations to keep the punters ignorant of any thing other than vertical stick footy.
It’s nothing personal about rugby. AFL also targets soccer with the cold shoulder (with much more justification)
But I’ve been in Victoria in test season and could hardly find a news item on the test the Wallabies were playing.
Rebels in 2011 should help that.