Incentives of Rugby for Youth

Ruck.co.uk

As we saw in the previous post, many incentives can arise from playing rugby in college. It can give you scholarship money, new friends, and a way to stay in shape with the freshman fifteen looming over you. But this leads to another question. Are there incentives in growing rugby and advertising it to the younger generation? This could potentially be very controversial. A lot of debates are going around arguing about whether or not contact sports are dangerous for younger kids. On the one side, they say that the kids know what they are getting into and that it can be very beneficial in other ways besides fitness. On the other side, they say that it can have a negative effect on the child’s cognitive brain skills and detrimentally affect their mental health. But, luckily, rugby is much more than just kids hitting other kids, it can have other benefits than that.

In an article by Ruck.co, a website and news magazine about everything rugby all over the world, they give the reasons of why we should start to let the younger generations pick up this growing sport and the incentives that come with it. The obvious benefits of letting them play are the improvements of their physical health, mental health, and school work. But it will also teach them to lose. As you grow up, you can get used to getting everything you want, since nobody ever wants to disappoint you. But, when you play a sport, especially rugby, you learn about losing. What makes rugby different is that after you lose, you have to blow it off and eat with the other team afterward. You learn to put your ego aside and congratulate the other team.

Rugby also teaches kids the value of endurance and working hard right from the get-go. Rugby is a lot of physical work, even at the younger levels. When they play, they will learn to build their endurance, strength, coordination, and other different skills. They will be able to learn this when they play any sport, but rugby will do it more than any parent can hope for.

Now although the benefits are great for children, there can be a negative economic benefit on the local sports in that area. In the place where I live, every single kid did the local soccer and basketball team. It is something that fuels the town all throughout the year on Saturday mornings or Sunday afternoons. But, if rugby came into the picture, that could potentially be an issue. Those local sports teams could face economic issues, especially if rugby becomes more prominent.