to think allowing our sons to play rugby is irresponsible parenting?

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There's another article in the Times today about Professor Allyson Pollock's attempt to get people to understand how dangerous school rugby is. She's been abused on Twitter, stonewalled by other parents, ignored by Rugby's professional bodies. (Link here but behind paywall)

Basically, a combination of parental peer pressure and the Establishment mean people won't listen to what she has to say. Rugby as it is played at school at present is not safe.

AIBU to think we aren't protecting our sons? Why are we allowing this compulsory sport to put at risk so much for our boys?

I have this feeling that rugby is probably a more dangerous contact sport than football. I haven't looked at any data - purely by looking at the sport and what's involved.

If you were to look at hours played (and that includes normal practise at school),it would be interesting to look at the injuries

100 people play for 100 hours - 10,000 people hours.

Which sport would have the most injuries per 10,000 people hours?

Then look at the data and break it down further.

The one thing I am not sure happens is if injuries are recorded. I know that primary schools record every little incident that happens at school.

There should be school data available showing the incidents that occur during sports. Maybe that should be put on the school website.

I think teaching children to play rugby is good, as is any game, but it needs to be taught by properly qualified teachers, as it has the potential to be dangerous. Despite expressing serious concerns about my total lack of training or experience I was forced to take rugby classes in my last few years of teaching (primary); fortunately no-one was was injured, but I don't think they learned much rugby either. It would be good if parents demanded properly qualified instructors; they have to be provided for swimming.
Of course, the Head could have removed his backside from the office radiator and done it for me...

Totally agree with you OP and very relieved that my ds has no interest in rugby. Not least because as a family friend's son died during a game, age 15, and there is a constant trickle of reports of serious head and neck injuries during rugby season.

Size grading is a good idea kew .

At the one tournament I watched there was a boy on the opposing side that was a good foot and couple of stone bigger than the rest of the boys. Naturally our team were fairly reluctant to tackle him, so no serious injuries.

Also I've noticed at the tournament that whilst our teams resolutely refuse to split teams based on ability - they've stuck to the same teams for the last two years - the other schools clearly do stream, so we have the dangerous situation where the opposing teams are very mismatched.

Shouldn't have got involved in this thread, am progressively more happy with each post that it's cricket season ( with soft balls) starting tonight !

This article - you can see the author is familiar - asks the key question.

Where is the data?

www.spectator.co.uk/health/features-health/9370702/what-schools-dont-want-you-to-know-about-rugby/

In my primary school,they record every single injury a child which gets first aid.

I would expect data to be collected about sports injuries in school. I would expect it to be available so parents can make an informed choice and any possible causes identified to reduce risk.

I don't think it should be compulsory and they should have a choice between rugby, football and hockey.
Mine enjoyed a combination of these, but one didn't like rugby.

I think irresponsible parenting is talking bs actually. all sports have risks.

Kewcumber: best search I could find (and not sure if it will keep all the data) but ACC info suggests over 1,000 spinal injury claims in children playing RU per year , and that figure is rising.

I can't search on paralysis as that's not an option, and claims can be for very small things, but that's a large number for a small population.

www.acc.co.nz/about-acc/statistics/injury-statistics/index.htm#results

Ah. It didn't keep the data choices I selected.

I looked up all spine/back related injury claims in people aged 5-19 playing RU.

There's this article from 2013. www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11292515

(I agree, btw, that the weighting class system is MUCH better than doing it by age - and it's probably one reason for our national team doing so well.)

I think what they do at my Ds school is good - the boys choose if they want to do contact or non contact and those who are particularly adverse don't have to play at all.

Ds first played non contact as he was unsure about it but with more experience has enjoyed it (I gather he doesn't get tackled much as he runs faster than the other kids!!)

Why don't we just wrap them in cotton fucking wool while were about it? Jesus!. There's risk in most things. As someone rightly pointed out far more children are maimed and even killed in cars on the school run! If you look at anything long and hard enough you'll find reasons not to do it / advocating no one else does..

I felt sorry for a lot of rugby players - especially the smaller and lighter ones when this guy charged towards them.

Some things you have to take a necessary risk, such as travelling in a car. Sport isn't a necessary risk. It's a choice, or should be.

DS hates Rugby, loads of his mates live for it. Choices.

My DS is a tech-loving, sport-hating nerd who I can't imagine ever playing rugby, and he's a skinny string bean, not chubby. He likes the outdoors, just not competitive sport or particularly team sport where his weakness and dyspraxia make it risky (as well as miserable) for him, and not very useful for the team either (thereby risking getting picked on).

People who really do not suit a sport at all shouldn't be made to play it. In my ideal world all PE would involve a range of options, so that those who will never be good a team sports don't have to be on teams or compete, and could do dance, hiking or yoga or whatever instead. Surely that would be better for everyone.

sourdrawers calm down, think of your blood pressure pet. Advocating that children have a choice as to whether to play full contact rugby or not at school is not wrapping them in cotton wool. Also far more children travel in cars on the school run each day than play rugby so the rates really aren't comparable anyway.

Hmm DH was a skinny string bean who spent his youth dodging rugby and team sports generally.

Aged 50 he is running triathlons while many of his schoolmate sporting heroes are overwieght and sedentary.

Not liking team sports does not mean not liking exercise.

Not liking team sports does not mean not liking exercise

That's a concept Gove never got. He pushed for competitive team sports in schools.

I used to go to the local rowing club. I left because they seemed to think you should be going as fast as you can. I was more happy by myself in a rowing boat (or whatever you call them) going up and down the Ouse. The instructor kept shouting at me to go faster.

It's not about winning. It's about taking part, having fun and exercising (and that's why I'm not a team player in sports )

Yes exactly. My DS can happily spend all day walking up a mountain and gets lots and lots of exercise.

I was the same. The bullying, competitive, winner-idolising atmosphere of PE at school put me off sports for life but I've always liked exercise, dancing, walking, weights when I can go at my own pace.

It's so obvious and something I wish more schools/ministers would grasp. Not everyone is a team sport person or a winner, and they need to be included.

I wouldn't be happy about about compulsory school rugby but my DDs have absolutely loved playing rugby, from tag at age 4 to uni teams. there has been the odd injury but they also ride and I find watching them jump fixed obstacles at speed XC far more scary. To be fair, the older ones have mainly played as backs, so not in the scrum.

sourdrawers unfortunately I had a placement on a spinal unit when ds was small and in the unit at the time were three young men with a major life-changing injury via rugby. I absolutely reject any suggestion that using your brain and making a mature judgment about what risks your children are genuinely involved with = wrapping them in cotton wool. Now must go and finish planning my youth group session this week which involves whittling with knives and cooking over fires with wood the kids have sawed themselves. If ds cuts his finger off, so be it but it won't be because I haven't thought about the risks.

DS yr6 has compulsory contact rugby & they have scrums of 5 on each side. He is team sporty but doesn't enjoy rugby. In yr7 it will still be compulsory if your are any good otherwise it's hockey.

It is the only sport he has done where school has sent all parents the info on checking for signs of concussion.

I think rugby is a great sport and certainly wouldn't want it banned in schools, but I do think it needs to be changed. School rugby should be a tag version all the way through.

If children want to play full contact, then they can do this in clubs out of school.

Thinking back to last season, I am shocked that a school thinks it's ok to force boys to play a sport where, most weeks, an ambulance arrives.

Can you imagine if it were a school trip and an ambulance was called? There would be a huge enquiry and would never happen again.

Speaking to 16yo DD, who has played since she was 4, there is no way she would want to be taught rugby by anyone who was not an experienced coach because of the. 'consequences of getting it wrong if you are not taught to tackle correctly'. So if schools rugby is full contract, and taught by non specialists, then I can see why people would be unhappy.

DS2 (18) has a permanently damaged shoulder from an injury he received playing rugby for the school at school. It was his last ever match in Yr11 and they were in the last minute, if the other team had scored the try they would have lost. DS2 stopped it but did major damage to his shoulder.

Both he, DS1 and my brother played rugby from primary school age, they played at clubs and for their schools. DS2's injury was the only injury any of them got and, tbh, I do believe had he have been operated on sooner he'd have a more usable shoulder.

If he was able to play now, he'd love to and is cross that he can't, I wouldn't stop him. My highly respected orthopaedic surgeon's sons both play rugby. I became disabled from being pregnant and giving birth. There's so many risks in life, you can't avoid them all no matter how hard you try.