Worst Rugby crowd you've been part of
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Not worse, but most disappointing. Millenium Stadium for the 2002 ABs v Wales test.
I was expecting the Cardiff Arms Park Welsh singing. It was a bit flat (Wales were very mediocre at the time), but the ground DJ started playing Bread of Heaven through the PA. I don't know as it is the only time I've been to Cardiff, have nothing to compare to ... but from mutterings - I think the crowd went on strike and refused to sing anything at all, they couldn't believe the DJ was trying to create the atmosphere for them.
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@canefan said in Worst Rugby crowd you've been part of:
A mate of mine went to a test in Pretoria (or was it Bloemfontein? ). He made a tactical decision not to take his jacket off to show his ABs jersey underneath because of the crowd around him
what a pussy
, i went to Ellis park for one of the best games of rugby in my lifetime. Yes - prerochial and my jersey was worn with pride inside the stadium. Braii and beer everywhere outisde in every carpark or street.. hard to beat (will repost in other thread) -
@higgins said in Worst Rugby crowd you've been part of:
@mariner4life You have just described Martin Luckie Park in Berhampore to a tee!!!! They probably top Masters Avenue as MLP comes with the added attractions a somewhat chilly southerly and cold showers if you have the late game.
Oh if we're talking grounds, then it was never a pleasant trip to Ngati Toa Domain. Mary Crowther was always pretty shit too.
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@rapido said in Worst Rugby crowd you've been part of:
Not worse, but most disappointing. Millenium Stadium for the 2002 ABs v Wales test.
I was expecting the Cardiff Arms Park Welsh singing. It was a bit flat (Wales were very mediocre at the time), but the ground DJ started playing Bread of Heaven through the PA. I don't know as it is the only time I've been to Cardiff, have nothing to compare to ... but from mutterings - I think the crowd went on strike and refused to sing anything at all, they couldn't believe the DJ was trying to create the atmosphere for them.
They should have sung it in the change rooms beforehand...
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@mariner4life said in Worst Rugby crowd you've been part of:
Worst crowd is the SFS especially on a friday night. Private School investment banker piston wristed gibbons in sports coats, RM Williams, chequered shirts and a scarf whinging at the ref half interestedly as the Waratahs again fail to deliver.
Good god yes, this. Sydney rugby crowds are absolutely awful. Comparing them to the league crowds, it was hard to believe you were at the same park.
Only time I enjoyed them was HK in 2010 when Aus beat us.
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@canefan I think I mentioned this at the time but at the Bledisloe in Perth in 2019 a lot of Wallaby fans didnât don their Wallaby scarves and beanies until it looked like they might have a chance of winning the game. We sat in a section surrounded by all black fans and by end of match reckon it was 50.50 yellow and black supporter gear
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@nevorian said in Worst Rugby crowd you've been part of:
@canefan I think I mentioned this at the time but at the Bledisloe in Perth in 2019 a lot of Wallaby fans didnât don their Wallaby scarves and beanies until it looked like they might have a chance of winning the game. We sat in a section surrounded by all black fans and by end of match reckon it was 50.50 yellow and black supporter gear
That's
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Iloggan Park down in Cornwall. Known universally as Hooligan Park. Always a punch up with quite often the âsupportersâ piling in too.
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Twickenham around 2005-ish. England v AB's. Racist abuse being chucked around from England "supporters" & directed at Pasifika AB's. Pretty vile stuff. Wasn't just me either, my accountant heard similar stuff at the same game.
Thankfully, that sort of stuff seems to have been weeded out by the RFU
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@victor-meldrew said in Worst Rugby crowd you've been part of:
Twickenham around 2005-ish. England v AB's. Racist abuse being chucked around from England "supporters" & directed at Pasifika AB's. Pretty vile stuff. Wasn't just me either, my accountant heard similar stuff at the same game.
Thankfully, that sort of stuff seems to have been weeded out by the RFU
That does not sound typical of a Twickenham crowd and I've been going there for years now. Likely due to the period, just after RWC win, loads of dis-satisfied bandwagon jumpers on corporate jollies would be my guess. Sounds pretty unpleasant.
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@catogrande said in Worst Rugby crowd you've been part of:
@victor-meldrew said in Worst Rugby crowd you've been part of:
Twickenham around 2005-ish. England v AB's. Racist abuse being chucked around from England "supporters" & directed at Pasifika AB's. Pretty vile stuff. Wasn't just me either, my accountant heard similar stuff at the same game.
Thankfully, that sort of stuff seems to have been weeded out by the RFU
That does not sound typical of a Twickenham crowd and I've been going there for years now. Likely due to the period, just after RWC win, loads of dis-satisfied bandwagon jumpers on corporate jollies would be my guess. Sounds pretty unpleasant.
Depending on you define racism, it's still prevalent.
Old Racism - oppression of people due to their race.
New Racism - claiming polynesian players shouldn't play for NZ.Been a long time since heard / read the former, but much less since the latter. 2018 Twicks mate heard the same old shit.
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Hmmm. I donât really see the NZ/Polynesian thing as being a racist POV. Iâd say that is more a dog in the manger attitude to NZâs success over the years and the view that they poach players who just happen to be brown skinned. It still comes from ignorance of the wider diaspora but I donât see it as being racially motivated in the perjorative sense.
Mind you I havenât had to listen with gritted teeth all these years.
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@catogrande said in Worst Rugby crowd you've been part of:
Hmmm. I donât really see the NZ/Polynesian thing as being a racist POV. Iâd say that is more a dog in the manger attitude to NZâs success over the years and the view that they poach players who just happen to be brown skinned. It still comes from ignorance of the wider diaspora but I donât see it as being racially motivated in the perjorative sense.
Mind you I havenât had to listen with gritted teeth all these years.
It's probably not out and out racism but it still is borderline racist, i.e. "you've got brown skin therefore you can't do x / can only do y". Similar to the "bigotry of low expectations", but more sinister. Obviously, also ignores all the Polynesians playing rugby for England or the Asians and Afro-Carribeans playing other sports for England
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@catogrande itâs white people saying brown people shouldnât play for the country they were raised snd often born in.
Same standards never been applied to foreign born white people in NZ rugby teams.
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From experience of having had similar views myself in the past in regard to poaching I would say it is not about brown skin per se, more that it is an obvious point of difference and therefore more noticeable. Certainly not you've got brown skin therefore you can't do x / can only do y, but very much "NZ should not be doing X". Most of the UK guys that I've had discussions with about poaching have not centred on the colour of anyone's skin as a rationale, more that "NZ are poachers, pillaging the islands for talent" viewpoint. Once you understand that NZ has a high number of PI origin people living there, raised there and born there, then that POV difference becomes null and void. Of course there are still people that will never consider otherwise but these, to me are very much a minority. I do not doubt that the poaching thing still gets dragged up and will do for sometime yet, but I do not see it as racist.
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@majorrage said in Worst Rugby crowd you've been part of:
@catogrande itâs white people saying brown people shouldnât play for the country they were raised snd often born in.>
The issue here has usually been that those highlighted facts were not understood or believed.
Same standards never been applied to foreign born white people in NZ rugby teams.
Believe you me, there were when John Gallagher was tearing it up for you guys from full back and when we were crying out for a centre with the skills of Jamie Salmon. Bloody poaching bastards!
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@catogrande said in Worst Rugby crowd you've been part of:
@victor-meldrew said in Worst Rugby crowd you've been part of:
Twickenham around 2005-ish. England v AB's. Racist abuse being chucked around from England "supporters" & directed at Pasifika AB's. Pretty vile stuff. Wasn't just me either, my accountant heard similar stuff at the same game.
Thankfully, that sort of stuff seems to have been weeded out by the RFU
That does not sound typical of a Twickenham crowd and I've been going there for years now. Likely due to the period, just after RWC win, loads of dis-satisfied bandwagon jumpers on corporate jollies would be my guess. Sounds pretty unpleasant.
Monkey chants and "kill the samoan c**t".
Think you're right on it being the type of fan, the period and the Lions 2005 tour. A maori AB (Pat Walsh?, Waka Nathan?) also mentioned he'd suffered racial abuse when attending Twickenham as did Aaron Mauger around that time. Utterly different when I attended the IRB Sevens there.
Came to head when Nigel Owens complained in 2014. All credit to the RFU in stamping it out
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