RU is boring and always has been. RL is boring these days but didn't used to be.

People going for a waz, pushing past and bumming you when they go get a beer, tripping and spilling it over everyone, talking to randomers who swear too much and know sod all about the game is all part of the sporting experience, embrace it, I don't get bummed when I'm at home!

Wow.....I actually cannot believe this thread has gone from a comment made on breakfast TV to a full blown argument about drinking at sporting events......jesus wept.

Drinking has and will always be apart of life. The British culture is one of the biggest for drinking. Drinking and sport go hand in hand. Please dear god go to an amateur game and I dare you to get offended at people 'ruining your view of the game' due to going past to get to the bar. The people who do this probably work their @rses off every day and when they finally get that day off on a weekend they want to support their team and have a few beers whilst doing it. And I say good on them. They can enjoy their life and time off however they like.

do you mean "bumped"?

Not when this impacts the enjoyment of other people who also "work their @rses off every day" and want to support their team without having to get up 15 times in 80 minutes because some people can't control their urge for a drink.

As for the amateur game, well that's exactly why it's in the shocking state that it is.

Or an alternative view,

As most stadia for RL are not packed to the rafters, the one's who seem so put out about letting people passed (whatever the reason is) could also move themselves?

You must be really fun to take to a game!! You'll find that a lot of people actually can 'control their urge for a drink'. It's a choice. I for example, like to have a couple of pints whilst watching the game. A lot of my friends like to have 5 or 6, not doing anyone any harm. Do you by any chance sit there in silence watching the game? Do you shout for bad referee decisions? Do you make calls about the game even if you know feck all about it as many people do? Do you swear during a game? All these impact people's enjoyment too but at least the drinking means the club benefit from the takings. Especially if you drink the home brand like I do (Bulls Bitter).

As for the amateur game it's a bloody social event. What do you expect? The fans and players to be tee total whilst maintaining a strict diet

It's for people to get together, play the sport they love and then enjoy the social aspect which comes with it. It's on it's because there is no funding in the game, plain and simple.

The discussion is surely about seated areas and generally at event games.

I meant bummed in terms of someone's bum brushing your front as they go past not bummed as in, you know... Prison hahaha!

Why is drinking the only way you can have fun?
I have a drink at games. 1 or 2. Depending on if I'm driving or not. I shout and cheer when things happen on the pitch.

Do you understand what's proportional and generally acceptable behaviour? For some people to EXCESSIVELY go so many times to the bar or toilet is not and should not be considered acceptable because it adversely affects other people beyond what is expected. That's without getting into the excessive drinking leading to aggression and excessive swearing.

For example, if I walk down the street I expect to have to let other people walk in front of me or to make way for them. I don't expect to be pushed out of the way by somebody.

As for the amateur game then yes I would expect people to be able to struggle through a Saturday or Sunday morning game of social rugby without having to consume alcohol. It's not exactly a hardship. Plenty of sports and social events manage it. And the fact that RL can't manage to produce a relatively friendly and civilised gateway to the sport is a huge negative in terms of attracting and keeping players, supporters and even sponsors.

I have never seen anyone getting blasted and starting fights and being aggressive at FC games. People around where I sit don't even drink in the ground particularly. Majority of people that want a drink go to pub before and after and just have a laugh and a bit of banter. Part of the game day experience, just adds to the carnival atmosphere, you know, not the boring, miserable atmosphere of one person sitting still and silent in their chair thinking that someone going past once or twice is the most annoying thing on gods green earth!

Who are you to say what excessive is?? I would say the words excessive and unacceptable should only be used if the majority of the 12,000 or whatever people in the ground feel the same and you know what? MOST PEOPLE COULDNT CARE LESS!!

The whole fun part of my comment was meant to be aimed at the fact when people ask if they can go past it ruins their enjoyment. I know I'd get frustrated if I was sat with a friend and they were getting y and vocal about people going past. It happens. I'm sorry but no-one sits for a full 80 mins in a sporting event. I have no problem with people who don't drink. It's not a necessity for me in order to have fun in my day to day life.

I do understand what is considered generally acceptable behaviour. But thanks non the less for asking me as if I am child (y) Much appreciated. I've underlined part of your quote, I highly doubt that the poster means one particular poster goes up and down this often as that would be rare. The same person 3-4 times maybe, but then what about the other people sat in that row? Who may have families? Are they not allowed to go past either as this spoils the enjoyment of the poster? After all their qualm is about people getting up and going past, it makes no difference what they have got up for? As I say I go to the bar twice during the game maybe, yet other's get up far more often than me and come back with food for their kids, or a drink because they forgot, then maybe something for themselves?

As for the part in italics, this is hardly a problem for RL? The vast majority of the time it's a very peaceful and respectful game. There no segregation because there isn't a history of violence within the sport. The swearing, again is probably less to do with the sport and more to do with today's generation. And in fact the past two generations for allowing this behaviour to seep through.

I think you'll find that RL does provide a gateway and path to the sport. It has and is billed as a family sport and rightly so. When I played amateur RL after the game I would have a pint or two with my teammates. There would be a drink off for the Man of the Match, all voluntary of course. It all helped the club earn some much needed money. There is no problem with this. Obviously in very very very extreme cases (which almost never happen) one person would get hammered. That's their personal problem not the sports.

"Surely".…. Quite a bold statement.

Irrespective of it being about seated areas, there is generally plenty of room to move if you wished. Event games (assuming you mean CC final, GF and internationals?). These are bi g events. Let people enjoy them as they wish.

That the rfl has to offer these events on places like Groupon, it's not as though there is high demand and I assume you are the type that complains that "it looks bad for the game" when a televised match is broadcast with lots of empty spaces.

I haven't personally met anyone who could stomach 5 or 6 pints of stadium beer, fair play to them. But I'd rather move out of the way once in a while than sit next to some of the deadheads who think they are knowledgeable about the game yet in reality are so blinkered and biased they actually believe there is an rfl referees conspiracy against their team.

Now, they are annoying.

Amen to that, nothing worse than a person who thinks they are right about the game when in reality have no clue why decisions were made. Many a time I have asked, "Have you actually played/coached/reffed the game before" and their response is usually "No, but I've been supporting for x amount of years".

Well done. Still doesn't mean you know about the game and why decisions are being made. Best one is when a person genuinley believes they could do a better job! It's laughable!

Well that, in a nutshell, is why RL will never get any bigger. The attitude that people can just move if they're annoyed by the people next to them who are drinking excessively, swearing and being aggressive.
Along of course with those who think only people who have "played the game" can comment on it. Usually they are the worst offenders for painting RL in a bad light.

I'll ask the question again, why do you need to drink to have fun?
Why can't you conduct yourself like a normal human being and manage to not wet yourselves for 40 minutes. That's all you have to do. It's really not difficult.

You want to look at why blue chip companies aren't falling over themselves to sponsor RL? It might have something to do with RL's image.

Why is it your business why someone might need to go past you during the game? They might not necessarily be going to get a beer. I have epilepsy and if I feel a bit strange the best thing for me to do is go get a bit of air and a bottle of water. But oh no, if I push past you I'm a scumbag who is ruining your viewing experience!

There are many reasons why someone needs to go past. Maybe they have bladder problems for example or have eaten a bad kebab and need to fire a torpedo out. Maybe they need to make a phone call or something.

Would you rather I had a seizure in the ground (which I have before btw) and upset everyone round me? Would you rather someone got their snake out and wazzed in the terraces or squatted and did a massive turd? Would you like someone to be on the phone talking loudly to be heard over the noise and basically shouting in your ear about Claire's new boyfriend or whatever??

There are many reasons why people will HAVE to go past you in the ground and it is none of your business as to why. We aren't going to not do it just to please a very small group of miserable and thoughtless people and quite frankly, as one of these people you are talking about, I find I quite offensive that there are people like you who share these ignorant views.

wow. Nice rant that had absolutely nothing to do with what you quoted. He was talking about people who drink, not who have a medical condition

Regards

King James

haha

The reason why RL will never get any bigger is sod all to do with this.

Look at cricket, its become massive / fashionable to attend over the last 10-15 years mainly due to consumption of alcohol.

RL's media image is one of being a Northern, working class sport. The RFL do not try to promote it in any other fashion and hence the nationwide media perception is that of it being a parochial minority sport.

For the record, my commute for a home game is approx 120 miles round trip. I generally have a pint pre game, taking it to my seat.

Blue chips avoid RL as its exposure is not being enough to mass markets. You might want to address that issue to Nigel Wood

You've missed the point of what I was saying, I was just using some examples of other reasons people could be going out to the bar area. Further back in the thread he was saying that people go back and forth to the bar or toilets too much which he reiterated in the post I quoted. I was saying that the poster is assuming that people are getting up to get a drink yet there may be other reasons. Does he ask everyone who is getting up where they are going? Why is it his business? Why is it any different if someone is getting a drink or going to do something else? They are still pushing past and apparently ruining his entire viewing experience regardless.

My point was that it isn't fair to pick out and have a go at people that like a drink without having a go at everyone else as well. If people want a drink that is their business and he should mind his own.

Regards

Yorksguy

Perhaps if we all drank Pimms instead of pints?

What on earth are you on about? Medical conditions? That is clearly nothing to do with this discussion.

I've never told anyone what to do. When people drink excessively and go to the bar or the toilet numerous times in 40 minutes and so push past me that is very much MY business. I paid the same amount of money for my ticket as they did. My behaviour is not affecting their enjoyment. Their behaviour is affecting mine.

It is not unreasonable to ask people to simply act like normal human beings at a family social event.

I would say that those who think it IS reasonable to drink several pints in 40 mins, swear loudly and repeatedly and go to the toilet numerous times in 40 mins are the ones who are at odds with accepted societal norms.

I'll say it again. It is not difficult for a human being to avoid wetting themselves for 40mins.

As for sports images, well cricket doesn't have a negative image to overturn. RL does.

You've missed his point again

Regards

King James

RL has needed a game wide ban on alcholol for several years now. The problem is clubs and fans can't part with it for 80 mins in a weekend.

Personally, i like a drink but very rarely buy that overprices watered down stuff in the grounds.
Anyone who feels the need to want to drink more than 2 pints of that stuff wants their heads testing!

As for the argument, i can see both sides to it and i can relate to both sides, what 'him' is referring to is a small minority of people, for who the drinking is more important to the actual game on the field, this is usually seen at magic weekends etc, most people i know of and have seen maybe go to the bar/toilet once or twice, usually during breaks in play, i know i do, or i try to do.

What do you suggest they (the clubs) replace that income stream with?

Why ban something to suit a minority with a lack of tolerance ? As I have put on an earlier post, most stadia are not bulging at the seams for RL, you can always move?