My Pointless Opinion

[..::ERIC::..]

SA teams are not going to come close to the Super 14 playoff's with the stupid quota system rules they have to adhear to.

From another forum:

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div>

1. Every team to have a minimum of 8 players of colour in their 30 man squad

2. All of these 8 players must be given reasonable game time - monitored weekly by the national selectors

3. The status quo of two black wingers is no longer acceptable

4. A minimum of 4 players of colour must be in every match 22

5. At all times, 2 players of colour must be on the field[/b]

I am all in favour of encouraging blacks (sorry, "previously disadvantaged") play at the lower level but at this level these rules are pure crap. They create doubt in players minds on weather they should be there or not, and disadvantages white players who may be better than one of the black players but isn't selected because of the colour of his skin.

This will not get SA anywhere.

I don't even see how they could think it could work.

 

[QKXV]

Aaaggghhgg. I'm so upset by what I am reading here. Sport and politics is a deadly cocktail. Sport should be closing the gaps that politics create not widen those gaps further, and this is exactly what this quota system will do, alienate players and supporters alike.

 

[kaftka]

That really sucks.

The icing on the cake is where it says the status quo of two black wingers is no longer acceptable.

What the hell does that mean? Does it mean that if you have a couple of black wingers, who just so happen to be your best players (Habanana-or is he playing centre at S14 level?), they don't count? They must bring in a comparitively shitty flanker or something, meaning a better p[layer misses out? That's crap. The whole quota system is crap, but saying the wingers don't count is like treating coachs etc. like little kids...

The quota system is like apartheid...

QUICK! Someone quote that line so I look like a retard!

Now, obviously it's nothing like apartheid, apart (<--hehe, get it?) from the fact that it is seperating the cultures when you think about it. I know that they mean well, but there must be a better way to reduce racism without fighting it with slightly less racism?

[edit] Nice article btw ERIC.

 

[sambãd5]

the fact that they need a quota is disgusting. the moment south africa say say, race or blacks you have a problem (especially all blacks

)

but yea, politics and sport should stay the hell away from each other. but they do mix often, and the moment they do, bad things happen

 

[el_tk]

The quota system is out-dated. What the hell are you supposed to do if all your coloured backs are injured and you have a coloured prop; play him on the wing?

 

[Bullitt]

Originally posted by Quintes@Jan 17 2006, 09:45 AM
Sport and politics is a deadly cocktail. Sport should be closing the gaps that politics create not widen those gaps further, and this is exactly what this quota system will do, alienate players and supporters alike.

True. Just ask any Glaswegian.

 

[..::ERIC::..]

The great irony is that many of the sponsors have contracts saying the coaches must field the best team / players at all times to maximise exposure or something.

 

[Hayden Shaw]

What a joke.

It shouldn't come down to this. Players should be in there because they earned in not because of polictical reasons.

 

[wigan_rlfc]

I've had a thought that Rugby League should focus on Blacks in South Africa, there is obviously still a lot of racism going on in South African Rugby Union and this quota system is pretty pathetic. Should rugby League focus on promoting itself in Black Areas in South Africa as a sport that Blacks could actually exell in?

 

[QKXV]

Good idea but I don't think it will take off, simply because union is struggling to break through to most of the black population anyway, don't get me wrong, there are loads of followers right across the rainbow population regardless.

Any South African (or any other more political aware opinion) can shoot me down if I am wrong here, but I think Rugby is still seen as a class thing, football or soccer are played more frequently in the townships and favoured as the primary sport in most english taught schools, which is where most black kids goes because of preffering not to be educated in the language of the oppressor (Afrikaans). .

I reckon that people should play what they want and what they are good at, I mean if SA had a dart playing tag team or ping pong doubles in the olympics I doubt one had to be white and the other black, it would and should be solely dependent on their performence and talent in hitting the bullseye or playing a backhand than the colour of their skin.


BTW does mixed race come into the quota count?? Because if it doesn't then it is another example of alienation and discrimination. What about indian, chinese, portugese....shouldn't the quota include everyone then???


I hate talking politics, because being from SA things can easily be twisted around as we are so often tarnished by the apartheid brush, so please don't take what I am saying in the wrong way here, I'm not meaning to offend at all quite the contrary.

 

[Groen_en_Goud]

Well said Quintes....

 

[QKXV]

Looks like ole Leon Schuster is still up to his old tricks eh?

 

[..::ERIC::..]

Can Keith Lowen count as a player of colour?

 

[DNAPlay]

Very Well Said Quintes :bravo:

 

[MightyQuin]

hear hear Quintes.

Polo is viewed as an upper class sport here ... but I don't see them trying to bring it to inner city schools in Bradford or Southall and introducing a "1 black, 1 asian and 1 lesbian" quota!!!


What is wrong is when the best players aren't picked because of their skin colour - be they black, yellow, pale pink or purple with green spots.

Just pick the best damn players!!!!

 

[captainamerica]

this (the quota) is ridiculous. i'm telling you.

for shame.


and even though i personally disagree with it, i'm going to make sure these rules are adhered to in all my south african super 14 matches on rugby06.

 

[sanzar]

Originally posted by ..::ERIC::..@Jan 17 2006, 07:57 PM
SA teams are not going to come close to the Super 14 playoff's with the stupid quota system rules they have to adhear to.

From another forum:

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE

1. Every team to have a minimum of 8 players of colour in their 30 man squad

2. All of these 8 players must be given reasonable game time - monitored weekly by the national selectors

3. The status quo of two black wingers is no longer acceptable

4. A minimum of 4 players of colour must be in every match 22

5. At all times, 2 players of colour must be on the field

I am all in favour of encouraging blacks (sorry, "previously disadvantaged") play at the lower level but at this level these rules are pure crap. They create doubt in players minds on weather they should be there or not, and disadvantages white players who may be better than one of the black players but isn't selected because of the colour of his skin.

This will not get SA anywhere.

I don't even see how they could think it could work. [/b][/quote]
While I agree with what you're saying, I do sort of see method in their madness... For if all their S14 teams HAVE to have a number of black players, then it's in the SARFU's interest to see black players developed and will therefore lead to less segregation and ultimately be good for the image of Rugby is SA... Mind you, that's only what I'm assuming the theory is, and I agree that the immediate effects of such a policy are devestating.

 

[DonBilly]

The quota system is questionable for sure but I still like to see what the SARFU have done so far to promote Rugby in the townships and in the black community. It remains a mystery for me why France have produced more black players than SA at international level but with much less black people in the country. This year is the 100th birthday of the Equipe de France. In the very first one which played New-Zealand on the first of January, 1906, there was already a black player from Guyane, a French department (county) in South America.

Politics and Sport don't mix well but it would be stupid to not see that they have always interfered.

 

[Wildwil]

This whole quota system is making our sport in SA suffer. Cricket,Rugby and many more won't ever be so great until this crap is sorted out. I am not saying the quota players aren't good but some of them aren't there on merit.

 

[QKXV]

In the long run the players will develop and it will be better, but right now, while the process is in the beginning we will have a hard time for a while. It's logical that if you have a bigger pool of people playing the sport then your chances of finding talent within this larger group is alot better. Getting previous disadvantaged races intersted in the game is therefore a brilliant way to enlarge the pool of rugby players and therefore the talent. I believe the quota system is not the best way of achieving this but it is the system that SARFU has decided on, I still don't think that people should just get into teams because of the colour of their skins, but the process is only in it's beginning and trust me, if SARFU can stand by what they've decided and manage it in the long run SA will reap the benefits and we will be the powerhouse of world rugby. Obviously for any sports fan it is very important that your side wins matches right here right now, and for this reason the quota system will not have many fans at the very moment....me included.