Curb your language Kyle, urges Greenwood
TOP players have been told to remember they are rugby “ambassadors” and to avoid foul-mouth exchanges with officials.
Will Greenwood fully supports the decision to punish Kyle Sinckler for swearing at referee Karl Dickson during Bristol’s victory over Exeter.
England’s World Cup winner admits he was no angel as a player, and often emotions got the better of him. But he also believes the only way to stamp out aggressive and unseemly player behaviour towards authority is by hitting them hard and making them embarrassed by their acts.
Tighthead Sinckler will miss England’s opening Six Nations clash with Scotland after receiving a two-week ban for his yelling “are you f*cking serious” at ex- Harlequins scrum-half Dickson.
Greenwood says: “Kyle has apologised and admitted it was inappropriate. But what has happened is, because of Covid, there are no fans and we get to hear everything that is said.
“Rugby has been strong on this in the past and should carry on being so. Some may say you are all Victorian rugby players and get a life! But the reality, is I don’t want to hear that sort of language on an U11s pitch. What do those youngsters do? They copy their heroes. Who’s their hero? Kyle Sinckler is.
“Call me old school but we are talking about a twometre space at the moment. That should always be in existence for a referee on the field! The second you start encroaching into that space then you will have problems. It isn’t right.
“If you go harsh on people by either binning them or sending them off then they stop doing it. We know kids watch things on TV, Youtube, social media etc when they are going to hear swear words. But it is ugly and unnecessary.
“If you were asking a referee after the game about a particular incident, would you ask him in a way that some footballers do? Or in this situation how Kyle asked him? No, you wouldn’t!”
Greenwood believes referees being miked up has helped as a deterrent to overly aggressive behaviour but admits you will still get the odd swearing incident.
He insists: “The players are ambassadors for their sport whether they want to be or not, and behaviour needs to be tempered to reflect the audience that is watching.
“Stump microphones in cricket have changed things. The sledging is still there but it’s a lot wittier and sharper and involves a few less F-bombs!
“Just by changing the parameters you still have the freedom to express your frustration, but you find a way to articulate your point of view to a referee that shows passion.”
“I’m not a fan of interspersing every third word with an expletive. Maybe I’m old fashioned. Did I swear? Yes. Would I be embarrassed by my actions if a clip like that appeared? Yes. Would that make me think twice about it? Absolutely!”