ARTICLE REVIEW: Nurturing Rugby Sports Development

Team Sport Activity That Is Suitable For Malaysian School Children

INTRODUCTION
Malaysian children participate in school or community-based athletic programs as part of a team
sport. There are numerous benefits for children who take part in these programs as long as
parental expectations do not put undue pressure on the child and the child has the maturity,
capability and desire to join in. Above all else, team sports should be fun.
ARTI CLE REVI EW: Nurturing Rugby Sports Development
This article is about the effort of IJM Plantation Sdn Bhd towards promoting the
sports of Rugby amongst Malaysian School Children particularly in Sabah. At the end of
this review we would find out the suitability of the games for Malaysian School Children.
This topic is important to be discussed because, according to this article, the
project Rugby in the Community would benefit not just those in the immediate
vicinity but an even wider spectrum of the populace, particularly in Sabah considered
one of the poorest State in Malaysia. The long-term rugby programme is one that offers
hope and opportunity to schoolchildren for excellence in the sports in addition to
character building and enhancing discipline and leadership skills.
The journey started in 2002 when IJMP embarked on its mission to take the
game of rugby in Sabah to unprecedented heights while at the same time providing
locals,especially the schoolchildren and youth with varied opportunities to get involved
in the game or even make a career out of it, such as in coaching.
The main focus of the project are:-
Establishment of the Academy for Rugby Excellence with a phased
implementation throughout the state of Sabah
Organising All-Age Level Tournaments in order to sharpen the competitive
edge of young ruggers
Organising Coaching & Refereeing Courses to impart both information &
formation for teacher coaches
Organising International Level Tournaments in order to promote the game
and honing the skills of local players
Setting up a Residential Rugby School in Sandakan, Sabah to be the
home for young ruggers where they will play as well as guided in their
studies.Leadership, discipline and character building will also be part of the
overall curriculum.

IJMP took it upon itself to finance all of the above. Its employees were also
directly and indirectly involved in the project. The Company took pains to ensure that
the projects and programmes were sustainable over the long term and had a beneficial
impact on a reasonably large section of the community. Towards this end, IJMP initiated
a Smart Partnership with the Sabah EducationDepartment and the Sabah Rugby
Union.A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was jointly signed on 23rd April 2002
for thedevelopment of rugby in Sabah in which all three parties had different
butcomplementing roles.The birth of the tripartite partnership spearheaded by IJMP
soon changed thefortunes of Sabah Rugby for the better in myriad ways.IJMP provided
the necessary funds to back up the programmes including the purchase of equipment
and balls. The Sabah State Education Department supplied a constant pool of
schoolchildren from selected schools throughout the state for regular rugby lessons
which were eventually incorporated into the schools extra-curriculumactivities; while the
Sabah Rugby Union provided the manpower and know-hows toconduct the curriculum.
Almost immediately, the rugby development programmes got off to a sound start
when IJMP decided to sponsor and bring in professional Fijian ( and later Samoan )
coaches/players to kick-start the project. The cost was quite considerable but the
Company was confident that in the long term it would be worth every cent spent.This
was only the start as IJMP had bigger plans in the pipeline for rugby. The dream was to
set up Academies of Rugby Excellence throughout the State of Sabah by creating
platforms at major towns in Sabah for sustainable rugby programme for schoolchildren.
Today, an estimated 3,000 schoolchildren from nearly 50 schools
throughout the state of Sabah are engaged in learning and playing the game on a
proper and systematic basis, guided by their in house teacher cum coaches and from
time to time visited by Fijian and Samoan coaches. Meanwhile to cope with the growing
number of trainees, IJMP, at considerable expense, has increased the number of
professional foreign coaches. At the same time locals, particularly teachers, are being
trained or given refresher courses to ensure continuity of the Academy well into the
future. Refereeing courses were also introduced.
According to the articles, from January 2006 to June 2007, numerous Age-Group
Rugby tournaments were organized to provide the schoolchildren opportunities for
competitive games. Tournaments were also organised for the senior teams so that they
can sharpen their competitive edge and do well at national or even international level
tournaments. There is also the annual international invitational Borneo Rugby 10s
organised by IJMP and Sandakan Rugby Club. Attracting international participation, this
is the annual showcase of Sabah Rugby at its best and one of the highlights of the
Malaysian Rugby calendar. Coaching clinics and rugby carnivals are two events held in
conjunction with this tournament as part of IJMPs Rugby in the Community
project.Sending teams to compete in tournaments regularly is also a major but
necessary expense account.

School children who take part in rugby rimau will develop and strengthen their
social skills while learning how to cooperate with their teammates. Often team sports
such as rugby are a place where kids establish friendships and come to understand
important concepts like appreciation and respect for others. Kids can be competitive,
and the desire to win is natural - but rugby or many other team sports also foster
valuable lessons in fair play and good sportsmanship. Kids gain an understanding of
how to cope with competition in a healthy way, and the value of putting forth their best
effort for individual satisfaction and the good of the group. As part of a team, children
can develop their problem solving skills, become more self-disciplined, and become
adept at critical thinking, more patient and persistent. They will have opportunity to learn
how to cope with disappointment and be a gracious winner. It builds character to learn
the lessons of both victory and loss.

Rugby is an excellent sport for young children to take up, and the earlier the
better. Children, both girls and boys, can take up rugby based classes such as Sabah
Academies For Rugby Excellence and many other rugby academies all across the
region. Rugby is unique in that specific human qualities can be learned. It has been
shown that rugby can help develop better concentration, discipline, tolerance and
determination. They learn to work as a part of the team they are taught to respect the
coaches and referees and thus learn great manners. Rugby helps to build a healthy
body, healthy mind and creativity is instilled in such a child who takes up the game at an
early age and that child will often bloom into a player with an exceptional eye for
opportunity. Problem solving, learning to take tricky decision and having confidence
becomes a lot more developed as anyone learns the game. Rugby has the power to
help youths develop the capability of analysing and deducing some general principles of
life while dealing with complicated problems often bolstering their developing mental,
social and physical agility.
As a problem solving sports, Rugby Rimau is believed to help overcome some
serious issues faced by children nowadays. As we knows, Chilhood obesity numbers
have tripled: more time in front of the television and computers combined with school
funding issues that have cut athletic programs and increased emphasis on academic
achievements have contributed to kids getting less physical activity. Add unhealthy
eating habits and super-sized food portions to the mix and you have children struggling
with weight issues at an early age. Based on this article, team sports such as rugby
rimau is an opportunity for kids to participate in regular physical activity and a wonderful
way to start reducing the risk of obesity and the health-related issues it causes.
Children who regularly participate in a team sport are usually more careful about
their diets and open to better nutritional choices that enhance their performance on the
athletic field. The physical exercise helps them shed fat and build more lean muscle,
and increases their energy and general feeling of well-being. It can also build
confidence. Kids will feel better about themselves as they develop physical skills and
their body-image will improve, making them less prone to self-criticism. As they become
more proficient at their sport, success will encourage them to continue challenging
themselves with other physical activities and begin to develop lifelong habits of being
active and strong. Kids who are part of a team sport are less likely to engage in risky
behavior, and most often perform better off the field in school. The lessons they learn in
discipline and determination as part of a sport translate well to their academic and social
life. They learn to respect their own bodies, minds and capabilities and to make more
thoughtful choices.

I never had the opportunity to coach Rugby games in my school but I always love
the games when Im into it. There are several times, when Im back in Sabah during the
school holidays, I followed my sister who is an advisor of Rugby Club in one of the
secondary school in Sabah. What I like the most in a team sport such as rugby is that, it
needs a teamwork among players, and no matter what pressure you are in when you
are playing, it is important to always motivate each other to keep going until the end of
the game. Those are the things that I saw when I watch my sisters team playing on the
pitch. According to my sister, they hire a coach from Fijian and got sponsors from many
companies. In my opinion, schools administration plays a very important roles in
promoting any sports because their support and commitment contribution is the key to
bring their team to higher standard.

After reviewing this article, I found that Rugby or Rugby Rimau is indeed a
suitable game for Malaysian school children. The moral and ethical level of a child is
developed by rugby thanks to the rugby laws of the game. Necessary challenges are
offered by a game of rugby which is quite a good thing for those children seeking to
explore and test their wings. Developmental thinking is be cultivated in a child through
a game of rugby especially social skills. Underachievers are most likely to be helped
by rugby which promotes healthy competition. Rugby is able to teach a child about
teamwork, boundaries, rules and/or responsibilities. The communication power of the
child is improved through playing rugby, as are various team skills. The concentration
level of a child is enhanced by rugby. Powers of evaluation and analysis are developed
and so is the ability to strategise. Rugby incorporates discipline control of emotions,
anger and aggression is key. A child learns that the game ends on the sports field
respect for the opponent is instilled. Playing a game of rugby can give one a sense of
accomplishment. Im told that critical thinking skills of a child can be developed too. The
spirit of sportsmanship is enhanced. Kids can learn problem solving through rugby and
develop their own unique style of play. It helps youths gain confidence. Different
patterns of play need to be recognized and its necessary for tactics to be learned and
be developed by the child.
As we can see in this articles, ever since the IJMP run the Rugby project in
Sabah, The group has successfully turned rugby into a sports success story. The group
also strongly believe that sports are ideal platforms to accomplish racial integration and
unity. Today, seven years one, rugby in sabah has become a shining example of what a
concerted well-planned partnership and properly executed effort at sports development
could achieve. Ruggers including school children from all corners of Sabah as well as
players and team have been hitting the headlines of newspaper while the group has
become synonymous with the success of game not just in Sabah but also the region.