Let's quantify my statement, I'm a rugby union fan, I've been watching the games since my university days (1991) and have never really been into football, except for the international games.

During the Six Nations this year, I watched most of the games and if I could I watched them in 'rugby pubs' in Twickenham. The games are watched by fans of both teams and I have never seen it 'kick off' due to who supported who (although you will expect the tussle due to the amount of beer drunk)

I don't watch football in pubs as I hate the mentality of some of the fans.

So all of sudden England are in the World Cup Final, most people who don't follow rugby are suprised, anyone watching for the last 4 years would have seen a fantastic team in the making!

So I go to a local pub to watch the cup final with my fiancee (who is probably a bigger rugby fan than me) and our Austrilian friend.

Except for the mentallity of the some of the 'fans' who start booing dueing the Australian national anthem! I'm embarassed to be wearing my England shirt when fans start doing things like that.

Anyway all is forgotten when the game starts. I'm sure I don't need to go into details! :)

Anyway, at the end when the medals were being handed out, there are chants of 'loser' and booing, which is the bit that really annoyed me! Watch the game in a 'rugby pub' and their would have been clapping and mutual respect due the closeness of the game and how so very easily that could have been England!

It pissed my fiancee off to the point where she started clapping, and you could see the ripple of applause take over the pub, to the point where the three guys with what I consider the typical football attitude were silenced and made to look stupid. I'm proud of my fiancee who had the guts to the do that in a pub where we are not locals! :)

Anyway it put a bit of downer on what should have been a fantastic day.

All I'm saying is that if you are going to watch it, please try to know what is or isn't expected!!! :rolleyes: The game was so close, we could have easily been crying in our beers, and how would you have responded to the jeering from Aussies!!! :rolleyes:

Best comment of the day, is when my fiancee was saying to our Aussie friend "It's just not cricket!" at the jeering fans. I piped up, "No it's not, England lost that!" ;) :p

Rant over, we can get on with supporting a winning team! I hope there are some converts to the game now! :)

I thought the fans throughout the whole event showed an incredible degree of decorum...

Did you see the Wales/Russia footie game? Now the booing there was sickening :(

It used to be said that Rugby is a game for thugs played by gentlemen whereas football is a game for gentlemen played by thugs. Add "watched by and" before the "played by" statement and you've got it :D

This reflects the spirit of the game more so than the jeering fans

[Edited by Andy Tang - 11/24/2003 10:55:57 AM]

Well said Andy

My 1st love is football and always will be but 20 years ago when I was at school I played Rugby (no football pah:() and three of my PE teachers actually played for Saracens, back in the amateur days, anyway I used to go to Saracens most Saturdays, sit on a concrete step with a plank of wood nailed to it, if you were luck you'd pay 50p for a cushion!!!. Obviously things have changed the PE teachers of today wouldnt stand a chance and they now play in a proper stadium rather than a field in Southgate!!


You are so right about the attitude by everyone involved with Rugby, considering it has only recently become a professional game it is one of the most professional sports on the planet, the players always have total respect for the Ref even when he is wrong he may be told politely he got it wrong but no bad mouthing unlike footballers, and the supporters are always top class, again unlike football, and none of this going down rolling around like a pussy after being tackled, how may footballers could take a tackle like Rogers took from Lewsey back in the summer or Tindall's dumping of Gregan on Saturday :D

It will be interesting to see if Rugby will now take some of footballs customers, lets hope so because there are a lot of Rugby clubs that could do with the injection of cash and the extra support.


Dave

Guy's,
Agree with your coments whole heartedly, but....
Please remember not all people go to matches with the sole intention of fighting
I, like 1000's of other people around the country take their families to watch the game, yes surprising at it may seem to watch it, why, because its the most popular sport in the world(i think anyway) but, unfortunatly it also attracts the wrong elements, which i believe the police and clubs are doing their damndest to stamp out.

Me and my youngest(scooby adz)watched the game on Saturday with the same vigor as we watch football,jumping up and down when were scored and groaning when the Aussie's equillised(sp) my wife even took the portable into work, so the staff and customers (not that there were many) could also see the event, why because, its ENGLAND in the final, and as said before it's not often we have a team that does so well, but when they do i think most people in ENGLAND want to see them and also get behind them regardless of whether or not they know the game well.

So pls remember its only a MINORITY that spoil it for the genuine football supporters, and i for one hate being tarred with that
brush, as you put me into a class of people i truly dispise.

[Edited by Dazza01 - 11/24/2003 11:52:49 AM]

I'm not suggesting people who go to matches will start fights, and I'm sorry if I implied that! :o

My problem was with people who have the 'typical' (media perceived) image of a football supporter! It's very hard to put into words!

I appricate that it's a very small minority that go for a fight, but I'm talking abouts sportsmanship. Being good winners and not being a sore loser!

I'm gutted if England lose a rugby union game, but I don't jeer other teams for winning or losing. It's just not the done thing! Yes there will be jokes, but at the end of the game win or lose, you can carry on drinking with the opposing fans with no issues!

It's very hard to describe, but if you go to a pub in Twickenham when a England rugby union game is on, you will see exactly what I mean! :)

Indeed, and therein lies the difference. And I have no clue why it is a difference, it just does seem to be one.

Agree with you Andy, me and my mates were discussing this yesterday in the local..we watch Wasps week in week out, share a drink with the opposition fans before and during the game :D.. last thing the sport needs is the following being diluted by tribalism as found in football..and the lack of respect that goes with it

Cheers

Jim

I think it has to do with the game being more aggresive on the pitch (in the best possible way ;)). Somehow it seems to encourage respect to see two teams slug it out in a very physical contest then shake hands afterwards.

Bickering between supporters just seems so childish after that :o

Witness the attitude to the ref aswell. Some truly sh*te decisions being made - is anyone facing up to him With the team crwoding round- No. They get on with it. I just dont think "Professional" footballers understand that you can be passionate about winning without losing your rag and that filters down to supporters.

Deano

Deano - good point, I'd not thought of that...

Well said Deano, it's a pity some of the so called "PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALLERS" can't do the same,ie, the disgraceful attack by the Arsenal players on Van Nistelroy(sp)

A top rugby player is on around 200K per year unlike the top football players who get 200K a game to practice their DIVING moves :rolleyes:

The people in football need to look at themselves and take a leaf out of The TRUE england players from the rubgy world cup ;)

Putting your body on the line for peanuts IMO ;)

I tried to sing along to the Aussie anthem,but i didn't know the words,sorry Andy :rolleyes:

Get real mate,the old song goes 'they don't like us who gives a sh!t' so if theres no mutual respect (read the Aussie papers) why the f*ck should i have respect for them.

They the Aussies went down in my estimation after they put Jonny,Clive and the team through the wringer with their so called 'pommie bashing':rolleyes: so i for one will be booing the Aussie anthem next time i hear it,OK!.

BTW before this RWC i really didn't have any thoughts to the Aussies,i could take them or leave them,but this cup has changed my attitude to wards them and thats sadly down to how they behaved.We might have a minority hooligan element in football,but the Aussies have got them in their media bigtime IMHO.

I know some of the press coverage has been bad!

Can we honestly say that the British press are perfect?

The statement I made was about English 'fans' in an English pub!

If we were to judge a nation on what the media say, do the English get judged as German hating, animal loving, Beckham worshipping, scandal seeking nation??

British Press - Didnt the Sun carry a banner like Lets do the Hun or Blitz the krauts boys.

We are just as bad but some of the aussies articles were borderline slanderous and they stirred it up the best they could when we had 16 players on the pitch, the players stuffed it right up them by winning, they must be fuming now LOL:D

The Australian thing isn't restricted to rugby, I was listening to Terry Wogan the Friday before the Final and he was saying that he would hate to see Australia win, because 'they may have some of the worlds greatest sportsman, but what they know about sportsmanship can be written on the head of a pin'.

Come on guys...I really dont see how we can adopt a holier-than-though attitude. The British press have been sitting down on Oz, with nothing to do, nothing to write about for ages...of course they will find some "Pom bashing" stories...in fact nothing like the sh1te that we gave the Germans in our press before the last time England played them. It never fails to astonish me how much we believe our own press, yet conveniently forget to criticise them when they appear to be "getting their own back"..probably says more about our education system in this country than anything else.

I know 5 people who have come back from the World Cup, they all said what a wonderful time they had, how welcoming the Aussies were, and how mangnanimous they were in defeat...congratulating us on being worthy winners. I saw exactly similar reports from the people interviewed at Heathrow as they returned at the beginning of the week.

Triple top...if you wish to boo another countries anthem then I really hope you stick to football grounds where you will feel perfectly at home...try that at Twickenham, or in a rugby club, and you would see just how well that would go down

Scumbag,i was replying to andy tang and hes comment on how some people behaved in the pub.

Perhaps they booed due to the OZ press coverage of our team and even our country :rolleyes:

Its amazing how the press can stir up emotions in people.

[Edited by triple top - 11/29/2003 11:43:57 PM]