Kevin Putt: Former Springbok and Kings College Rugby 7s coach on poor behaviour and brawls at sports matches

Another instance of violence on our sports fields. 

A brawl broke out between parents and students during the rugby match between Auckland Grammar and De La Salle College. 

The match was called off, with eight police officers needed to break up the chaos. 

Former Springbok and Kings College Rugby 7s coach Kevin Putt told Mike Hosking while all-out brawls aren’t common, they see intolerance and volatility in the crowds nearly every week. 

He says that we’re living in a much more intolerant and volatile society, and even if another person tries to shut down abuse and poor behaviour, it can instead result in it escalating. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
We've got some bad behavior on the sports field again.
So all out brawl between parents and students is during
the Auckland grammar game against De La Cell match was
called off. Eight coppers were needed to break the mess up.
Kevin Partter's the form of Springbok, of course, our current
rugby seven's coach at King's College, and he's with us Kevin,
morning to you.

Speaker 2 (00:18):
Good morning, Mike.

Speaker 1 (00:19):
How often would you see this sort of stuff in
a season.

Speaker 2 (00:22):
Well, if you're talking all out brawls and that, that's
obviously very isolated because media had picked that up a
heck of a lot. But if you're talking about the
intolerance and volatility of it, you'd see it nearly every week.

Speaker 1 (00:33):
Jeers, And is it getting better? Is there any sort
of overarching we're a bit over this kind of behavior
thing going on or not really?

Speaker 2 (00:42):
Well, it's the exact opposite. I think there's people wanting
to get over it, but that there's a few contributing
factors in my view, Mike. One is the poor old
volunteers disappearing. You know, the good referees that are about
flipping seventy years of age running around the field. They're
just not willing to put up the good people have
gone from it because of the abuse and intolerance it
goes on. And so that's letting, you know, sort of

(01:04):
reduce the control factor around school sport.

Speaker 1 (01:07):
Jeez. So when somebody yells out and abuse as a referee,
doesn't that someone on the standlight, like a normal person,
go don't be a dick and shut up or something
like that.

Speaker 2 (01:14):
Oh and you're one hundred percent, But I mean you
have a look where we're living in a much more
intolergent and volatile, nearly an angry society. Look at the
amount of road rage and that's increased as to what
we would have seen in the past. So you're dead
right that that can happen. But that invariably leads to
what you've just spoken about, of those reactions that become

(01:35):
mass and group orientated rather than just an individual.

Speaker 1 (01:38):
Is it elite level only or not not at all?

Speaker 2 (01:42):
I mean, that's the saddest thing you can go along.
And I'm not going to suggest that you can expect
it at elite level or at maybe first fifteen one
A stuff. But what you have got is people could
be playing a six A game and suddenly you've got
kids that have been under such pressure from the parents
are filming the game, and everything's the suggestion that they

(02:02):
are the meal ticket jeep as this is my son's
future or my daughter's you know, career that's on the
line here, and it's so inaccurate. So I don't know,
I even look back that maybe maybe media have got
a little bit to play here. Look at the Lions
from the weekend. What's the biggest story to come out
that the refs got it wrong and we've got an
angry society we're going to see on the weekend. That's

(02:23):
just no different to the British lines versus you get
what I mean, there's a lot of championing of the negatives.

Speaker 1 (02:30):
Dear Idea, Kevin, nice to talk to you appreciate it.
Kevin part who's Rugby Simons coach at King's.

Speaker 2 (02:34):
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