A long time ago Shaun gave me a log-in to contribute at Sidelined, but I have confined myself to comments box sniping. He’s probably forgotten he gave me the keys so I hope he doesn’t mind when he sees I’ve taken him up. I was moved to action by this op-ed in the SMH by sports journo Phil Derriman on the supposedly good reasons rugbies league and union should amalgamate.
While the relative trade offs of broader support and more international competition seem reasonable from a rational point of view (although they are now quite different games in many ways and no co-mingling of rules could satisfy all) he completely fails to mention the class and cultural issues which are the real reason for the antipathy between the two. They are the reason the rah rahs are continually dog-whistling on the virtues of their game being beyond the grasp of working class trash “Mungos” and why I would not cross the road to spit on the Joey’s Firsts if they were on fire. Sorry, Phil. Go spread the love in Sadr City if you want a schism you can actually solve.
The relative lack of international competitiveness in League is also overblown as an issue. It certainly hasn’t dented domestic fervour for AFL, say. I love the international aspect of the round ball game and cricket, but the tribal narratives of local competitions more than compensate in emotional pay offs. If the Bunnies v Doggies match tomorrow lives up to its potential as an emotion charged thriller, will anyone be sitting back and saying, “Yeah, that was OK but I could have enjoyed it more if only Great Britain had a bigger pack”? Will it be a lesser event for the fan than Australia playing the Netherlands in the cricket? Sport is a wonderful mix of the objective (wins and losses, stats and facts) and the subjective (love, hate, stories, histories, hope), league’s proud and long community traditions are nothing to be ashamed of.
4 responses so far ↓
Five // Apr 5, 2007 at 11:35 am
I’m with ya sister!! Good to have you on board.
What is any game without tribal affinities, I say? Except for Phil’s utterly legitimate objection to soccer hooligans, of course.
dj // Apr 5, 2007 at 12:45 pm
They will only even consider merging if one of them starts losing money.
Shaun // Apr 5, 2007 at 10:41 pm
About time Amanda! Hope there is more to come.
In international terms, league is showing signs of a future. The Kiwis are a threat now and the Poms are not to be underestimated after last season. Not sure if France can ever get back to their league glory days but having Catalans in the English comp will help.
Mungo Amanda // Apr 6, 2007 at 6:13 am
Oh do not get me started about France. I shall be forced to mention the union establishment collaborating with the Nazis to wipe out the league — no apology issued yet afaik and they are hosting the World Cup!