Violence in society has spilled over into sport, not for the first time.
Wentworthville Magpies and Penrith Brothers under-20s played and an argument ensued in the car park, a knife was introduced and several people were stabbed. These are the reported facts.
Sport, in this case rugby league, should represent all that is good about us.
Players spending hours preparing to compete against other like-minded players. Coaches instilling all the good virtues of being controlled in an aggressive environment. Play hard, play fair and may the best man or woman prevail. And what happens on the field stays on the field. So good so far.
But when emotions spill over and self-control gives way to actions that have no control, it’s inevitable that someone gets hurt.
Not because of an injury while playing – that will happen, we know that going in – but because society has clashed with the sport.
I am afraid to say that while society does not condone violence, it has allowed it to invade our way of life. It has become too much the norm.
I find any form of violence abhorrent. I am not a fighter, never have been. Scared of being hurt, sure. Worried about the possible consequences of injury, sure.
I had my one and only fight at school. I don’t recall what it was about. We met up after school behind the hall. He was with his mates and I was with mine. We faced off and he punched me first, to my astonishment I hit him in the nose and blood started streaming everywhere.
I backed away and well that was the end. I felt so bad that it had come to this. I said I was sorry and while we didn’t exactly embrace we did go on to become friends.
My point is that if nothing else, it was civilised. No knives. No guns. No weapons of any kind. No kicking him when he went down.
That’s what used to happen and if you must fight, at least it was civilised. When one combatant had had enough it was over. Even if he didn’t want to stop, he had mates that stepped in and said “enough”, protecting him from further damage.
Sport should represent all that is good about us. Sport is about many things but it should never be about violence. An argument started, a perpetrator was out of control and couldn’t leave it on the field, and it spilled over into society and a knife too easily became the natural extension of the argument.
Too easily and too often in today’s society, words translate into violence and into life-threatening consequences. Weapons are the tools of cowards.
If fighting is the only solution then let the two fight each other knowing that if beaten they will emerge with a limited injury because the duty of care of others should protect them. There is no shame in defeat if all that is injured is your pride.
It is a very sad indictment of a society that deadly weapons are so easily the answer. Let’s include coward punches in that weaponry. Please protect sport as a rewarding and fulfilling and enjoyable part of our life and discourage violence.
Rugby league is a great sport.
TIGER
Roar Rookie
Interesting take Nat. Fighting with any weapon is a major issue. Given the amount of reported violence in the media, I can't quite support your point about "not fully appreciating the damage." Learning self-defence is fine if it is applied with an intention to not use it. Thanks for your response.
TIGER
Roar Rookie
Yes, I agree that all football codes have done well to control on-field violence. My article was intended as a broader statement of violence against the backdrop of sport. I appreciate your comments.
TIGER
Roar Rookie
"Who knows.." Nobody knows, unfortunately. We should be thankful that these incidents don't happen often in sport. I'm glad that you also survived your one and only fight. We have that in common. Thanks for the feedback, Adam.
TIGER
Roar Rookie
Yes, Paul, you are right. Definitely different times. I'm still a little bit locked into the '70s and '80s and happily so for most things. Glad you enjoyed the article.
TIGER
Roar Rookie
Thank you, Barry. Yes, I agree that we will be okay. Unfortunately, unsavoury incidents do attract unwanted attention.
Nat
Roar Rookie
This might sound counterintuitive but teaching kids how to fight to defend themselves can garner respect and discipline around the sport can lead to better people. No one wants to get beat up but that fear is out there so they turn to weapons, most likely not fully appreciating the damage they can do on so may levels. These kids in Sydney are likely to spend a good amount of time behind bars as well as living with the death of the kid he stabbed. Don't get me wrong, teaching kids to defend themselves won't stop the fighting but they will have less desire to arm themselves when it does happen.
Monorchid
Roar Rookie
TIGER, great sentiments expressed in your article. Sports have traditionally been about demonstrating higher principles of conduct. The practice has always been a problem. There have always been football thugs who think they've left the legal system when they cross the white sideline. Have a look at some of the web sites about this issue. A good example is the USA President Theodore Roosevelt who summoned people from Harvard, Yale, and Princeton universities in 1905 to reform the game of gridiron because of violence. There were suggestions about banning the game. There were even allegations of murder on the field involving the wrenching of the helmet on the neck. I believe that this changed the design of the helmet. I have seen violence on the field as an admittedly low level player, and a spectator. Every one was an act of cowardice when the attacked player had their eye on the passage of play. You may have seen a few cases where RL players have taken attackers to court and have won judgements in their favour. All codes of football in Australia should be congratulated for their sterling efforts to eradicate violence.
farkurnell
Roar Rookie
At least you didn’t bite one another.I assume it was related to a girl
Adam
Roar Guru
I was only ever in one fight as a teenager as well, must have been about 14/15. So about 15 years ago. There were two punches thrown (one each) and only one really landed. Thankfully I was the one that landed and him and I became mates of sort. For some reason these unwritten rules of engagement seem to have died. No longer can guys seem to leave it in the past. But thanks for writing something. The solution to it all? Who knows...
Paul
Roar Guru
You make some excellent points Tiger but the paragraph that sums it up for me is this one; "Too easily and too often in today’s society, words translate into violence and into life-threatening consequences. Weapons are the tools of cowards." If you include social media as a "weapon" which is used as a tool by cowards to make horrible statements, then I think you've nailed the situation perfectly. One of my proudest memories as a young fella was being given my father's pocket knife, which went with me everywhere. I got into my fair share of fights over the years and nearly always had the knife in my pocket. I never once thought about pulling it out, nor did the guys I was having a blue with, who also had pocket knives. Different times, different societies.
Tony
Roar Guru
Some good sentiments there Tiger. Unfortunately, we see often enough that society's problems (racism, domestic violence, religious intolerance, bullying, thuggery, greed, etc) find their way into all aspects of modern life, and sport is no exception. Fortunately, I believe the perpetrators are in the small minority, and as long as the majority and sports administration call it out as unacceptable, we will be okay. Bad things happen when good men do nothing.