Programme Notes 2007/8

Bristol Rugby

We all knew our unbeaten run couldn't last, but don't tell me that before the Newcastle game that you weren’t experiencing the same feeling as when you have the first two numbers pulled out in the National Lottery.  Despite our lacklustre display at Kingston Park (preceded by the excitement of Fiji showing against Wales how unpredictable our game can be) I feel it in my bones that today will be a double victory for Quins and England [of course, it could be the onset of gout!]. 

Silence at kicks; are you for or against? During the off-season this very emotive subject again divided opinion on the ComeAllWithin message board. It has always seemed an anachronism for non-rugby supporters that one should show respect to an opposition player in order that he should take a stress-free shot at goal, and I can think of no other sport where partisan fans would not do all they could to give their team every advantage. To be honest though, it’s not really a rugby “thing”, as we know that most of the rugby world does not follow the code of silence; now being limited to England and Ireland.

Indeed, it was a belief that “disrespect” was starting to be shown at the Stoop that generated discussion in the first place. An interesting proposition was that “silence” became customary because until recently, most spectators were either players or ex-players who followed the conventions of gentlemanly behaviour. This certainly sounds a logical explanation, but if so, why is it restricted to these islands? It was also proffered that, actually, silence put more pressure on some kickers, e.g. ex-All Blacks, than the usual boos and whistles they experience. Therefore, we were actually putting greater pressure on those kickers when we held our breath and willed them to hit the corner flag.

Obviously, as professional rugby continues to grow, our seats will be increasingly filled with people who do not understand the traditions, as they’ve probably participated in, or watched, sports where the passion and emotions of fans are worn on their sleeves. They expect to participate in a match as the sixteenth man, and will not accept their neighbours’ complaints that chants are too loud or too disrespectful! Furthermore, if it is the RWC that has awakened their interest in rugby and they bring their family to their local GP club, they will not have learnt those ferociously guarded traditions of silence from the television, as the noise during kicks has been as loud as any heard in the round-ball game.

So what do we do? Do we shrug our shoulders and accept that the price of full stadiums, watching world-class players, is the erosion of certain standards that many hold dear, or do we demand the Club imposes certain rules of behaviour expected within the Stoop. Of course, it may be that those who seek silence are in the minority anyway and that things are bound to change.

Personally, I prefer there to be silence at kicks. Not because I wish to impose order on new supporters, or that I feel some sort of superiority over followers of other ball games; but because there is something warm and fuzzy about the ability of so many people to acknowledge that rugby is not a matter of life or death [with apologies to Bill Shankley], but a sport, and that we can still respect the efforts of a player, whatever the colour of his shirt!

Cliff Funnell
Cliff@quinssa.org.uk

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