Retired, but a good call all the same. Another union convert.

Botham and Dowes only serving, of course, as privately educated Unions boys, to further the stereotype.

It seems to work both ways.

The club website is keen to mention which fee paying school player 'x' attended as some sort of brand of quality. The Royal Grammar School in Worcester is a club sponsor and a number of the schools mentioned make specific refernce to 'rugby' being an important part of their curriculum and culture, though it doesn't mention which code of course...

It wouldn't be unreasonable to assume there is a shared social 'character' between rugby union and fee paying education, particularly public schools.

EDIT - the info was from the club website and the wikipedia entries for the players. Quite a few players had no content on the club site or a 2 line entry in Wikipedia but its also worth noting that on a number of Wiki entries the school was given as a heading with equal 'weighting' to 'age', 'nationality' etc seeming to show that a private education is something that supporters also feel is an important indicator of quality.

You're right, it's part of the players history. Certain schools have often been seen as important for progressing to club rugby. It was really important before professionalism, now clubs don't give a t0$$ as long the guy can play. I
Sadly infrastructure of RU at junior levels will always be baised towards private schools because that's where all the administrators come from.

I do also think you have to accept that if state schools don't offer it to pupils then kids probably won't play the game. I also think you have to accept that many top RU players outside the UK will not have gone to private school in their own countries (only the white ones probably).

Just looked up "toff" for a definition. Came up with



PS, nob was genuinely there

As both players were educated at a fee paying school I think the definition fits perfectly and the original poster is owed an apology from Mr Gilder as are those of us accused of stereotyping.

£0000.00

Move the decimal point once to the left and I'd settle.

The fact that RU has a large proportion of ex public schoolboys in its ranks is a reflection of the quality of sports provision and facilities in state schools.

Public schools, particularly boarding schools devote a huge amount of time to sport and this translates into a greater proportion of players making it to the higher levels in those sports that the schools concentrate on - eg RU, cricket etc. This is an indictment of state schools.

You will probably find that those who succeed in sport that went to state schools do so through the local sports club being excellent rather than anything that the school has provided.

I wonder how a parent's ability to fund a private education for their kids, somehow translates in the minds of the gormless, into them being labeled as toffs! Money is no indicater of good breeding as the meter on here will easily show! Surely, the the only real "toffs" are those who attended a major public school like Eton, Rugby or Marlborough?

So, do we in similar vein dismiss all those none Union playing kids from Gipton, Belle Isle and Bramley as chavs then, citing their parents' lack of disposable income? Or is it the fault of the local Head Teachers who merrily sold off the school's playing fields, that we should be pointing the finger?
l

'twas always the case for instance that in the Wakefield/Five Towns RU district one would never be considered for Yorkshire representation unless one had attended QEGS in Wakey (true story)

By all means call me gormless but when wealth is an important part of the library definition of toff then a "parent's ability to fund a private education for their kids" quote logically "translates"....."into them being labeled as toffs!"

D'urgh.

...and Worcester's squad includes at least one player educated at Rugby.

Other than that though, a typically well crafted comment from poor little William.

So, by your defination, people who trousered enough wonga to fund a private education could be considered "Toffs"?

Mike Tyson....Idi Amin.....Mugabe.... etc etc?

I'm not convinced

Poor?

little?

It is not I, who is a vertically challenged ghinger with mortgage arrears