nav[aria-label="Primary Navigation"] { padding: 0; & ul { list-style: none; width: 100%; display: flex; flex-direction: row; justify-content: start; align-items: start; gap: 30px; padding: 0; & li { margin: 0; } & ul li { list-style: none; } } }

Child Item

Why is rugby/the Irish rugby team so popular?

spot555

Hi all

I’m keen to hear peoples views/opinions on this:

I’m just wondering why is rugby / the Irish rugby team so popular? I ask this because there are a number of things that just sort of put me off the game;

The damage being done to peoples heads. Having read and watched different news reports, articles and movies like eg Concussion, I just wonder how can people be attracted to the game when the amount of constant hits to the head (moreso at Senior/adult level) will likely affect / damage your brain - surely this is not good for current / former players health/wellbeing?
Looking at the mens senior Irish rugby team, the majority of players (indeed for the last twenty if not more years) seem to have come from private / fee-paying schools - (I want to state this is not a dig at anyone who has attended a private school) but I just find when this is considered especially for a ‘national’ team, it’s not really representative of the population, moreso just representing a tiny subset of the Irish population that have attended private schools?
When I see players from abroad that have moved to Ireland and almost immediately got playing on the Irish national team e.g CJ Stander & Bundee Aki basically moving to Ireland from their home country abroad and almost immediately (or maybe after 6months/a year) getting to play on the national team, it feels wrong imo, it would be different if they had moved to Ireland and have been living/playing/working here for like 5years etc/became a citizen or something similar, but it seems the reality is these lads just moved and after a very short while got playing for our national team, getting places ahead of people who are ACTUAL Irish citizens e.g Simon Zebo etc. This also again, in my opinion, results in the Irish national team not really being representative of the Irish nation / makes the team feel a bit fake to me. It is especially sickening imo when you see Stander’s/Aki’s faces plastered everywhere in advertising etc. (This is not to trash Stander or Aki, they are brilliant athletes)

Am keen though to hear peoples thoughts/views on rugby in general/the Irish mens rugby team!

Find more posts tagged with

Quick Links

Comments

Montage of Feck

Never played rugby, hell don't think if even held a rugby ball, but as entertainment for me rugby is the best sport. For those with only a passing interest in sport its great, most of the games are on over the autumn and winter with a nice annual international competition that doesn't out stay its welcome. I never get into GAA conversations as that is taken far too seriously for me and the season is far too long for my short attention span and soccer is a bit meh outside of the Euros and WC.

[Deleted User]

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118165261#Comment_118165261

And the range of cranky issues, sectarianism in Scotland, reverse snobbery, actually snobbery, Irishness, elitism, my sport is better than yours, just don't like the look of them, and that's just for starters.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118165575#Comment_118165575

gormdubhgorm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118165373#Comment_118165373

Interesting, I have tried to get into watching Rugby properly not just the big 'event' games. It has never clicked for me. I always assumed it was because you have to have played it to appreciate it's technicalities. And a lot of times for me it seems to be very 'stop start' and can get bogged down. I suppose everyone can't have an interest in everything when it comes down to it. But you turn my logic on the head and find great entertainment in Rugby. I do appreciate the amount of physical effort the players have to put in to play the sport. Plus everything around Rugby seems to be run spot on. Even getting tickets the IRFU was miles ahead of the GAA (for example) in its level of organisation for ages.

The line about 'GAA conversations' made me laugh. I have nearly had rows with my father discussing games.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118165257#Comment_118165257

Haha quiet, you'll rile them lads up!

tastyt

The real question is why can’t Irish soccer fans support their local teams as well as GAA and rugby fans do and see what could be achieved

im a soccer fan myself, and have an interest in an English team but go to as many games to my local club as possible. It’s embarrassing the state of the game here and the money spent by Irish people on English clubs match tickets , supporters clubs and merchandise.

Larbre34

Agree with that. Soccer *IN* Ireland is just not supported by the people in the way GAA is and to a lesser extent, provincial Rugby.

Soccer is almost like two islands within a sport. Yes hundreds of thousands play it every week, from the kids on the local green to the Astro after work and the fantastic amateur leagues and schoolkids divisions, but nobody goes home and dreams of Athlone Town or Drogheda United, its all about Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Juventus.

I've been a provincial Rugby season ticket holder for 18 straight seasons. Why? Because the product is good. In the early days, success wasn't there, wasn't guaranteed, we were losing to lesser known French towns to Welsh regions and English giants. But the success came because 15,000 people signed up for those tickets, that brought sponsors and broadcasters and increased profile and funding for marquee foreign players and the foundation of excellent academies. That all came from attractive packaging. From aspiration and ambition. And yesterday, a team built in the Irish provinces, 90% born in Irish communities, destroyed the Century long global force in Rugby.

The chance is there for the FAI to revolutionise the League of Ireland in the same fashion, to do the marketing, to attract more bums on seats, to make local football an aspiration. Its already there with the Shamrock Rovers operation. If Ireland had 10 clubs with that level of professionalism, it would the foundation of a brilliant product in this Country and after that, the sky is the limit

tastyt

It’s a self fulfilling prophecy in Irish football , people say the league is not a good enough standard and the grounds aren’t good enough so don’t go to the games . Which means there’s no money and players aren’t given proper coaching academies , contracts , facilities.

it’s a chicken and egg thing , it will never be any better if the thousands and thousands of Irish soccer fans don’t invest in it , time and money wise . If people are waiting for champions league and a league full of international players before they can be bothered then it will never happen .

it just proves what people are saying , most Irish fans aren’t actually real fans , they support English sides because of the success and big show aspect of it when so are every bit as much glory hunting , bandwagoners as the casual rugby fan

Stanley 1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118162250#Comment_118162250

Trevor Brennan from Barnhall RFC would be a good example.

[Deleted User]

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118165109#Comment_118165109

That's it right there in a nutshell folks.

The depth of rugby support in this country is about as deep as a flat screen TV.

[Deleted User]

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118166133#Comment_118166133

A lot of LoI ‘real football fans’ are a pain in the hole with their smug superiority. That keeps people away as well.

B2021M

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118165273#Comment_118165273

So pedantic of me to question that a competition call itself a European Cup with 49 of 55 countries not taking part!

Captain_Crash

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118166277#Comment_118166277

How many counties are represented in this seasons champions league proper? It ain’t 55 and we both know that!

B2021M

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118166319#Comment_118166319

All 55 enter the tournament because it's the European Cup. Do you prefer tournaments that exclude 'crap' teams?

Heineken Cup is a great competition but is not widely known in the vast majority of the continent.

Captain_Crash

So a 32 team tournament has teams representing 55 countries? Is that your statement?

Or would it be more accurate to say teams from 55 countries are eligible to qualify? I think it’s the latter isn’t it

Stanley 1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118166032#Comment_118166032

FAI have little interest in LoI football, no monies to be made, they have allowed a madman dictator run in for the last 16 years, he has landed them in debt approx 65m, enriched himself, sponsors have headed for the hills and the possibility of criminal charges loom large.

FAI only interested in the intl side and how individuals can gain for themselves in status terms and financially.

Five Eighth

The Irish provincial sides have had great success over the past number of years.

The national side has proven relatively successful over the past number of years.

The academies provide young Irish sports people with an opportunity to play professional sport.

There are fifty club teams playing senior rugby on the island of Ireland.

Many clubs are making every effort to involve their local communities.

The clubs provide good facilities for use by members, players and the community.

Attending club, provincial and international games provides for a good day out.

The atmosphere at most games is competitive but friendly.

yaknowski

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118166150#Comment_118166150

Fair enough but I'd hazard that those cases are the exceptions rather than the rule. I worked with Joe Brady, who got a couple of caps in the 70s and Mark Ryan, James Ryan's father in Accenture at the turn of the century. I'd say James Ryan's route to being a professional rugby is more indicative of the route rugby players take.

Now in fairness the rugby lads are excellent athletes and excellent at their craft. I still hold to my belief that it's the tea-station chat in the corporate environment that has driven the wider uptake in support for it as a sport.

[Deleted User]

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118166187#Comment_118166187

Lol. If you’re a soccer ball fan the only time you would see your club “team” ( from a different country) is once a year when you scrounge enough winnings from the gambling to watch Liverpool or United in the Carabao Cup.

[Deleted User]

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118167157#Comment_118167157

Totally missed my point.

The people who follow Liverpool and United, or any soccer team have had more exposure than just watching soccer on TV.

Many would have played as kids in their front gardens or fields or the greens of their housing estates.

Many would have had the chance to play in primary school and secondary school.

Many would play some sort of soccer during break at school.

Many would have played with their local club.

Many would play 5 a side under lights on their local astro, or indoors in the local community center.

Rugby has none of that.

Kids do not play rugby in the front gardens, fields or green areas of housing estates.

Very few get to play at secondary school, never mind primary.

None play rugby during break at school.

Very few play with clubs

And there is no such thing as 5 aside, with the exception of tag, which seems to have wained since it's high point about a decade ago, actually it was waining pre COVID.

So as I said the depth of rugby exposure in this country is that of a flat screen TV.

Arghus

They are popular because they are relatively successful.

HerrKuehn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118167326#Comment_118167326

People following rugby tend to follow their local team or the national team though. Football fans in Ireland generally pick an English team with a good chance of winning trophies. They have about as much connection to the club as someone in Thailand or China has.

It is true that more people play football, but then other sports like boxing or MMA have a lot of support despite people not taking part.

Madeoface

I grew up in a household where rugby was always a feature so it's news to me that the Ireland team may not be popular. One side of the family are CoI so maybe that's one factor but we're all far from private school educated.

The international games have always attracted day trippers and corporate goons and their wives but I'd still rather bring my kids to that or the rds / thomond than the soccer internationals. Far more unsavoury knuckle draggers in the soccer crowd.

Some confused haters posting here too. You don't have to like a game but no need to get so riled up about it, it's like getting mad at tennis or cricket. It must be an envy issue of some kind rather than a hatred of a sport surely?

I think the marketing dream / manufacture of the Munster Leinster thing has helped the game but the general public perhaps don't realise that rugby professionalism is a relatively new concept. It'll only get bigger as it's a well run association.

My concern is that where there used to be room for all body types, it may have moved towards gym bodies and too much physicality, strength and conditioning. That's why I have my kids playing gaa and soccer instead.

[Deleted User]

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118167824#Comment_118167824

Your right.

Rugby is like MMA and boxing.

Most of the interest and interaction is at a distance via the media rather than any participation or local culb activity.

melekalikimaka

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118168004#Comment_118168004

you're never gonna fit into a scrum with that chip on your shoulder

HerrKuehn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118168004#Comment_118168004

In that sense it is more like MMA and boxing. It is more like GAA in the sense that people support their local teams. You don't get many people from Cavan supporting the Dublin football team.

Soccer/Football fans picking an EPL is ridiculous in my opinion. Especially the whole "We" beat "you" thing. It is the ultimate bandwagon jumping. I would love to see real fans support their local LOI side and maybe they would get a bit more competitive.

bennyl10

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118162416#Comment_118162416

what do you count Earls as? A very easy example of someone who is and has been prominent in Irish rugby for close to a decade

plenty more alongside him outside of Leinster too

DarkJager21

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118168070#Comment_118168070

Remind us of how well the football team are doing in terms of tournaments....

melekalikimaka

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118168070#Comment_118168070

when its the fourth most popular sport for a population of whatever 6 mill, its pretty decent

Blue4u

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118168070#Comment_118168070

It was already mentioned on here what position rugby sits at in Ireland. You have a limited number of rugby clubs in Ireland compared to GAA and soccer clubs. You have a limited number of players as other are playing sports and a huge amount of people in Ireland give up sport very early.

You are up against countries like Wales(primary sport), NZ(religion), England(population), SA(population plus top sport), France(huge sport and probably primary) for those semi spots.

For Ireland to win 6 nations over the last few years is a huge achievement. For the Irish clubs to win in Europe against the French and English teams who have 3-4 times the budget is incredible, plus winning with 95% + home grown players.

generic_throwaway

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118168038#Comment_118168038

Longer than a decade. Earls toured South Africa with the B&I Lions in 2009.

I love the logic of the haters:

"I can't support the team because they all went to private schools." They didn't.

"I can't support the team because they are all middle class." They aren't.

"I can't support the team because they aren't all Irish". Tony Cascarino.

It's fair enough to dislike something. But I don't understand the mentality of disparaging an Irish success story out of sheer begrudgery.