Rugby, Do we need it?

Yeah definitely. If we ignore all the ways it's important, then it's completely pointless.

You know absolutely nobody who took up rugby in their late 20's or early 30's and played to a reasonable level so stop talking shít.

I'm friends with a guy who was on a Leinster development contract and has played in Japan with Damien de Allende (Google him). This guy is playing AIL and having seen him play , he doesn't stand out at all and I'd say he's "a reasonable level".

Nobody started playing rugby in their late 20's and are playing at a reasonable level, unless reasonable is a clubs 4th team.

Different people like different things, it's not hard to understand. If a person doesn't like something change the channel or do something else, no need for people to whinge about something because they dislike it

Seriously, stop talking absolute rubbish about something you clearly know nothing about.

Like I've said repeatedly, go down to your local club and try and tackle someone, see how well you do

Otherwise, just grow up a bit and try and get rid of that massive chip on your shoulder.

Errr have u ever been to Asia?? See the fanatic supports there for your Liverpool, ManUre, Barcelona’s. The only rugby is Asia is the time the bunch of Blackrock twats went to Thailand and had the greatest horseplay ever in a swimming pool. Even in Africa street people are wearing football jerseys and nobody outside South Africa watch rugby.

Its fans? Youre tarring all fans in the country when you have a completely wrong perception of most people who support rugby based on a small proportion of fans. Its one of the largest sports in the country. most supported.

as for your descriptions of the fan bases. well its clear youre trolling or havent a clue. as if you went to provincial games you would know that none of those descriptions of the core support is anywhere near true.

You hate rugby because it gets more coverage than you think it ought to get?

Thar doesn't make any sense to me. I think soccer gets more coverage than it ought to get, but I just don't watch it. From listening tonsoccer fans argue, I could make an argument that most people don't actually have a clue about soccer tactics or the nuances of the game, and only follow it as a soap opera, picking a team based on the socer jersey their uncle brought home from England in the 80s and now they're LFC For Life. Which premiership manager is going to be sacked and how "we" beat "ye" with absolutely no honesty no objectivity about what was or wasn't a hand ball or foul or whatever. Opinions on whether VAR is a great invention or a travesty that's killing the game seems to be based on whether the last VAR decision suited their team or not. Hut as long as they're enjoying themselves, who cares?

But why bother making a case against a sport? As long as the followers are enjoying themselves, who cares? I just don't tend to watch soccer on tv. And i even go to a few local games a year with the lads because I have fun with the lads.

I hate rugby because I find it absolutely terrible to watch.

It's a pathetic spectacle.

The fact that it's gets more coverage than it deserves is secondary.

Soccer is the most popular sport in the world, in Ireland people play it all sorts of levels from kids to pros to fat 50 year olds on astro on a Thursday night.

And even though I think Irish people getting excited about teams from places they never have been to their lives or have zero connection to is also pathetic and stupid, the coverage of soccer is warranted based on the interest there is for it.

So what? People enjoy soccer however rhe follow it. I find it boring but that's grand. Other people enjoying and theybgetbrhe community and comradery thst they want from it. Beat of luck to them however invested they are and however deeply they undertake the game.

I encourage people to take whatever joy they can get from life. Sports can be low cost and high enjoyment for people to get a bit of craic and a brake from real life. Best of luck to them and if I don't enjoy it, I don't watch it. Everyone's a winner, right?

OK. Glad you're not in charge of anything 'cos I love the rugby. Six nations and a few URC games are all that's free to air. Is that seriously enough to make you this cross?

Not sure how it would work out because the more popular a sport the more likely it is to be on subscription channels. Not much English soccer premiership on free to air TV. Are you sure you've thought this system through?

It very easy.

Top rugby games are very popular, the big internationals, the big European games.

But go beyond that and the interest falls off a cliff.

Interest in the GAA goes deep, very deep, interest in soccer is wide ranging, interest in rugby is shallow and narrow, lots of whoppin and a hollerin for the big games but feck all interest after that.

Happy ?

My logic makes perfect sense.

Just because rugby gets high ratings for big games does not mean that it's popular.

It gets the bandwagon crowd that love an event.

Few that watch would even know what the AIL is, actually few would even know what Zebre are.

Rugby gets more viewers in Ireland. Ice Hockey gets more viewers in Finland. Basketball gets more viewers in Lithuania. Cricket gets more viewers in India and Pakistan.

Also, if something is free to air of course it's going to get more viewers than a subscribption or PPV event...!!

Doesn't manke them better or worse sports.

But look at the overall support and interest in soccer, don't narrow it to LOI or lower premier league teams to try and suit your point.

Look at all the people interested in soccer, that follow big UK teams, that follow European teams, that go to the UK for games, that go to LOI, that you see wearing merchandise etc

It's multitudes more than follow rugby in any shape or form.

At the same for GAA.

So what if less than 10k watched Dublin v Laois on Sky ?

I'm sure at the same weekend hundreds of thousands were attending other GAA games but high profile and not all over the country.

You don't get that with rugby.

That was the reason why I bumped this thread a few weeks back.

Munster v Leinster in Limerick, the biggest game in domestic rugby, with internationals back, first unrestricted attendance for over two years, and it still only attracted 20k odd.