Old School Ties Bind Too Tight

Sydney Morning Herald

Wednesday August 20, 2008

ONE OF the first things a visitor sees when entering Sydney Boys' High School's main building is a display of the insignia of its Great Public Schools Association rivals, set out on each side of a facing archway. The school, the only government school with GPS affiliation, takes great pride in its membership of the association, to which it was admitted in 1906, and which has been an incubator of Australian rugby talent. It is a matter of concern, then, for the school and the association, that High has decided to forfeit all further matches in the GPS rugby competition this season. The issue goes beyond the management of a schools rugby competition: it raises the question of how far reality and common sense should give way to history and tradition.

The school rightly decided to withdraw after a landslide loss to St Joseph's College in June gave rise to fear of injury in one-sided contests. Demographic change in High's student population has caused interest in rugby to fall away in recent years. It fields fewer teams, and of lesser ability than its rivals. In this, High is not alone but the trend is clearest there. At schools that emphasise the game, by contrast, training or games take place six days a week, and the best players are near representative level. Neither they nor those at High who still want to play rugby are well served by a lopsided competition. Can it be reshaped to suit changing circumstances?

One worthwhile suggestion is a combination of the GPS and Combined Associated Schools' competitions, grouped in two tiers according to the standard and popularity of rugby at the various schools. Opposition to such a common-sense move, however, is entrenched in old boys' organisations and some school councils. Change would end a century-old tradition. For some private schools it undermines an essential marketing advantage - GPS rugby builds networks which some parents seek for their children. Lost in all the harping on history and tradition, however, is any concern for the interests of today's boys - those at strong rugby schools as much as those at schools such as Sydney High, who would just like a fair game to play.

© 2008 Sydney Morning Herald

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