Since 1991, the average weight of the players in England's World Cup rugby squad has increased by over 10%. What dangers does this pose?
English rugby fans will crowd into pubs early on November 2nd, hoping for a repeat of the fabled World Cup victory in 2003. Against expectations, the men’s national team has already beaten mighty New Zealand at this year’s tournament in Japan. Only South Africa remains. Eddie Jones, the coach, has rewarded youth over experience and selected England’s most ethnically diverse team of any World Cup.
The legend goes that rugby was invented in 1823 when William Webb Ellis, a pupil at the fancy Rugby School, picked up the ball during a football match. This is a myth concocted to shore up the upper classes’ claim over the sport, according to Tony Collins, a rugby historian. As the game grew in popularity in northern industrial towns, wealthy teams linked to posh schools outlawed payments to players, to disadvantage teams from poor areas, whose players needed to earn money.
The path to professionalism is still dominated by private schools. The annual St Joseph’s College rugby festival, held at the Suffolk school which charges £36,000 a year, is described by the, English rugby’s governing body, as “one of the most prestigious titles in schoolboy rugby”. This year three-quarters of the teams competing were from private schools. The best young players may find their way into the academy of a top-flight club, and eventually go professional.
England’s rugby World Cup team is less white than ever, and may be less upper-class, too. Elite schools’ grip on the sport, however, makes its reputation as a posh pursuit harder to tackle."Nice try"
France Dernières Nouvelles, France Actualités
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