That Girl from Derwent dwells on the value of religion this Christmas.
That Girl from Derwent has learned a few more things about prejudice since moving up North.
That Girl From Derwent reckons if you're going to be offensive, you should find a better reason.
That Girl from Derwent considers why it is that some words have wider implications than others.
Imagine my surprise when, this weekend, I voluntarily sat down with the intention of watching the Six Nations Italy v. Ireland game. And not only did I sit down and watch it.
I enjoyed it.
I don't know what it is, but there were something about watching that game - even though I supported Ireland and they didn't play overly great rugby - that just touched me. I couldn't work out what it was - apart a slightly worrying crush on Brian O'Driscoll - and finally I had to conclude that maybe, just maybe, I actually liked rugby.
It was a bizarre conclusion to come to. Here at University, if there is one type of person that has drawn most vehemence from my lips, it is rugby players. From smashing bottles in Ziggy's, to trying to sleep with my friend, from stealing my 3D glasses on a night out, to trying to sleep with me, my relations with rugby players have been anything but smooth.
Then I got thinking, why is it that rugby players at University have a bit of a, shall we say, notorious reputation - whereas in the national arena, rugby players are the creme de la creme of the sport teams?
Anyone who reads the tabloids will know all about the lurid lives of the football players, spending ridiculous amounts of money, cheating on their wives... in comparison, it seems the UK's professional rugby players are lovely, down-to-earth lads with more sense than their pay-cheques. Yet at University, it's the rugby players who have that scandalous reputation and, well, can you even name any football players?
I guess maybe it's because of the different backgrounds of the two sports. Historically - as far as I know - everyone played football. And yet, rugby tended to be the more "public schoolboy" sport. In the national arena, this has translated to rugby players being considered the gentlemen of the sporting pair, while football, if you will pardon my phrasing, was the "common" alternative. With regards to University, I reckon this meant that, historically greater regard was given to the rugby club... and thus we know all about them, but nothing about the football players who, I have no doubt, are exactly the same (some lovely, some not so).
And so, once I'd realised that it wasn't rugby players I disliked at all, but just certain obnoxious people, I decided that I'd quite like my boyfriend to play rugby again.
Well, if Brian o'Driscoll must be married...
You must log in to submit a comment.
