A 9-year-old boy was told this week that he can no longer play age-grade rugby with his friends as he’s over the weight limit.
The Year 4 student was one of 106 children who applied for a weight dispensation in the Counties Manukau Rugby Football Union club competition – and after being denied, has opted out of playing any winter sport this year.
The union says structures are in place to ensure player safety and fairness in competition.
Sport NZ’s National Sport Development Consultant Andy Rogers joined Piney to discuss how to avoid barriers for kids in sport.
He told Piney every young person should have the opportunity to enjoy and benefit from being active.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Weekend Sport podcast with Jason Vine
from newstalk ZEDB.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Last hour, let's move to access of a slightly different kind.
A new story emerged this week than a nine year
old Auckland boy has been told he can no longer
play age grade rugby with his friends because he is
over the weight limit. Now, this boy is a year
four student. He was one of one hundred and six
(00:34):
students who applied for a weight dispensation. This is in
the county's Manico Rugby Football Union club competition. He was
denied that dispensation and has opted out of playing any
winter sport at all this year. Now, the union says
these structures are in place to ensure player safety and
(00:54):
fairness in competition, which I totally get. But here's the
case of a young boy who wants to play sport
and there is a boar in the way of him
doing so. Andy Rodgers is Sport New Zealand's national sport
Development consultants and he joins us. Now, Andy, thanks for
(01:15):
taking the time. I know you can't comment on this
specific case, but this is the incident which has compelled
the conversation, so perhaps I can start by asking you
for your general reaction to this news that a barrier
has been placed in the way of a child who
just wants to play sport with his friends.
Speaker 3 (01:33):
Yeah, as you say, it a little hard without more
of the background context, difficult to comment on the specifics
of the story, but what I can say first and foremost,
I feel pretty sorry for the young man caught in
the middle of it. And at Sport in New Zealand,
we believe, you know, really strongly that every young person
should have the opportunity to enjoy and benefit that they
(01:54):
get from being active. It's really important that we work
as a sector, you know, to remove barriers and not
create them, especially for young people. And our role as
administrators is to prove opportunities where all young people are welcomed.
And that's whether they're chasing their high performance dreams or
just want to have fun, get fit and socialized. So
(02:18):
one exciting piece we're just released, actually in partnership with
the Sports Sector, is a tool that I encourage people
to jump on our website and have a look at.
It's called the Sport Pathway Framework and it really is
a tool to encourage conversations and help people find a
place where everyone can fit and support their motivations and
their aspirations to fulfill their potential at whatever level that
(02:41):
might be fantastic.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Well, I'll have to check that out. So, in terms
of barriers to kids in particular participating in sport, what
are the main ones? We've got one here, which is
I guess a specific example around around weight. And I
understand the safety argument. I think we can all understand that,
But what are some of the other barriers to kids
participating in sport in general terms?
Speaker 3 (03:05):
Yeah, it's really good fun, Jason, and something that we
ponder on quite often. Look, we're told by young people
and their families people now are living really busy lives,
so busy schedules have a major impact. The cost involved
transport is a massive one. And if you think about
(03:26):
we're on based up in Auckland, getting across Auckland on
a busy afternoon, getting home from work on a busy evening,
isn't it. So transports a big one. Access to gear,
and we know for girls there's a couple of additional
ones that come through quite strongly, confidence in fear of
being judged to big factors, and then we know even
(03:47):
more so for disabled people, they face even more challenges.
So we know these issues are real, and that's why
we're working really hard as a system to break through
and be more inclusive and be more flexible with offerings
and take a much more community led approach to the
way we're rolling this out because communities know their people
(04:09):
generally and they know how to adapt and provide offerings
for them.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
Yeah, and some things you can't impact. I mean, you
can't change Auckland's traffic system, for example. That's something that
I think is even beyond Sport, New Zealand, or beyond
any of us really. But are there some of the
things you picked up on there that that you are
doing specific work on that can be more readily removed
as barriers.
Speaker 3 (04:32):
Yeah? Absolutely, you're right. We can't change the weather, right
and we can't change the transport at the moment in Auckland,
although putting a train in would be nice. However, Yeah,
there are, and that's why I referenced community led local solutions.
We're actually seeing some great response in some of the
metropolitan areas where local organizations are getting together and providing
(04:57):
more opportunities at a local level. You know, not everyone
has aspirations to go on to great things and have
an overly competit of structure, and we're seeing a real
uptake and more, I guess close to home, locally led
offerings where people can enjoy the value of sport without
having to travel an hour and a half each way
(05:21):
in busy schedules.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Are you able to in any way measure the positive
impact of physical activity and exercise on young people?
Speaker 3 (05:32):
Yeah, that is a great question. We know that it's
hugely important, and we're now collecting more and more evidence
to support that. We know that when young people are active,
not only do they build friendships for life, they grow confidence.
It supports mental well being as well. We know that
(05:52):
young people are happier when they're engaged in physical activity.
So we've recently actually published a report called Active Minds,
Active Bodies, and the report confirms that those kids that
are involved in sport and being physically active are actually
better in school, the better in life. And that's why
(06:13):
through sport, we believe every child deserves that. So we
need to work really hard to break those barriers down
to open up offerings for everyone.
Speaker 2 (06:21):
Are more or fewer children playing organized sport now than
in the past.
Speaker 3 (06:27):
Yeah, well, obviously we had that rather unfortunate incident of COVID,
but we are seeing jason a pretty steady recovery post COVID,
especially in school sport, and we know that numbers have
grown over the last three years. Several of our large
sports are showing encouraging increases in their membership as well,
(06:50):
which is clearly incredibly positive. And there's certainly a growing
interest in flexible, more informal ways to just to I
gees activating sport.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
What sort of things are you talking about there.
Speaker 3 (07:07):
Yeah, Look, some of our sports, the sports that are
really adapting, being more inclusive and taking that community approach,
are seeing strong growth. So we've got initiatives up and
down the country. Examples Hopes and Maria's which is a
collaboration and partnership with civil organizations including New Zealand Basketball,
(07:29):
Local EWE, Maldi Basketball that are putting hoops and giving
access to young people. In Maria's Rugby League have a
program called Sister Rise which is addressing more offerings and
opportunities for young girls and female coaches that are having
tremendous success and talking to Rugby League the other day
(07:51):
that they've got about a sixty percent increase in young
women participating in that program. And additionally, we're seeing programs
being more inclusive and encouraging people from all walks of
life to get involved in sport and reap the benefits.
Since rugby is an initiative that's being developed by occupational
(08:12):
therapists to fit the needs and learning pace of players,
so it looks to support you know, players with disabilities,
that are neurodiverse, that have sensory needs. And we're seeing
these programs roll out up and down the country, so
they're not just growing participation, they're building belonging and really
breaking down societal barriers as well.
Speaker 2 (08:35):
This might be outside the scope of your brief, Andy,
but do you think that kids sport is best administered
by schools or by clubs?
Speaker 3 (08:45):
That's a great question, and I think we're really blessed
in this country to have a system where you're able
to access sport in both. So I think that my
answer would be I think they player both play a
really important role. The key here is that not one's
better than the other. It's about how they work together
to meet the needs of all participants, artless of the setting.
(09:07):
You know, I think the key here is that we
want to offer quality experiences and we continue to put
the needs of young people first, you know, and that means,
as I've said previously, offering a range of opportunities that
match the motivations of the children. So we need to
fit into young people's lives, not young people fit into
(09:28):
our sports systems.
Speaker 2 (09:29):
And something that always happens with kids sporters that you know,
a young boy or girl shows promise at an early
age and everybody says, wow, there's the next you know,
Dan Carter, you know's there's the next Porsche Woodman Wickliffe,
just to use a couple of rugby examples, and yet
these children are eight nineteen years old. Is balances better?
(09:50):
You know, children playing a lot of different sports. Still
a key plank to your philosophy on kids exercise and sport.
Speaker 3 (09:57):
Yeah. Absolutely, And I happen to know you're a big
fan of the balance is better approach, Jason, so I'm
glad you brought that one up. Yeah. Absolutely, balance is better.
It is more than just the talent piece though, it's
about it's our approach to use sport New Zone and
it's ensuring that we put the needs of young people first,
(10:17):
So what we say, it's about balancing sport with life,
you know. So it's ensuring that we keep the fun element,
but we also keep the development element, and that we
balance adults expectations with what kids actually want. So when
we get that balance right, we see that outcomes for
everyone involved, and we say that balance is better. It's
(10:39):
not just the philosophy, it's a practical approach and it's
now backed by strong evidence and it's really getting embraced
by the sector. And we know that those organizations that
are picking it up and using it and adopting their
systems are seeing some significant improvements in the quality of
the experiences that young people are achieving. Young people are
(10:59):
getting better, they're having more fun, and they're staying in
for longer.
Speaker 2 (11:03):
Very interesting, very very interesting thoughts the afternoon. Andy, thank
you so much for taking the time to join us.
And know our listeners we'll have a lot of feedback
so we'll get to them. But thank you for your
time this afternoon.
Speaker 3 (11:13):
No promadell, thanks for having me on the show.
Speaker 2 (11:15):
Jason, No, thank you for joining us. Andy. Andy Rogers
Sport New Zealand's National Development National sport development consultant.
Speaker 1 (11:23):
There For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine, listen
live to News Talk set B weekends from midday, or
follow the podcast on iHeartRadio
You're listening to the Weekend Sport podcast with Jason Vine
from newstalk ZEDB.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Last hour, let's move to access of a slightly different kind.
A new story emerged this week than a nine year
old Auckland boy has been told he can no longer
play age grade rugby with his friends because he is
over the weight limit. Now, this boy is a year
four student. He was one of one hundred and six
(00:34):
students who applied for a weight dispensation. This is in
the county's Manico Rugby Football Union club competition. He was
denied that dispensation and has opted out of playing any
winter sport at all this year. Now, the union says
these structures are in place to ensure player safety and
(00:54):
fairness in competition, which I totally get. But here's the
case of a young boy who wants to play sport
and there is a boar in the way of him
doing so. Andy Rodgers is Sport New Zealand's national sport
Development consultants and he joins us. Now, Andy, thanks for
(01:15):
taking the time. I know you can't comment on this
specific case, but this is the incident which has compelled
the conversation, so perhaps I can start by asking you
for your general reaction to this news that a barrier
has been placed in the way of a child who
just wants to play sport with his friends.
Speaker 3 (01:33):
Yeah, as you say, it a little hard without more
of the background context, difficult to comment on the specifics
of the story, but what I can say first and foremost,
I feel pretty sorry for the young man caught in
the middle of it. And at Sport in New Zealand,
we believe, you know, really strongly that every young person
should have the opportunity to enjoy and benefit that they
(01:54):
get from being active. It's really important that we work
as a sector, you know, to remove barriers and not
create them, especially for young people. And our role as
administrators is to prove opportunities where all young people are welcomed.
And that's whether they're chasing their high performance dreams or
just want to have fun, get fit and socialized. So
(02:18):
one exciting piece we're just released, actually in partnership with
the Sports Sector, is a tool that I encourage people
to jump on our website and have a look at.
It's called the Sport Pathway Framework and it really is
a tool to encourage conversations and help people find a
place where everyone can fit and support their motivations and
their aspirations to fulfill their potential at whatever level that
(02:41):
might be fantastic.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Well, I'll have to check that out. So, in terms
of barriers to kids in particular participating in sport, what
are the main ones? We've got one here, which is
I guess a specific example around around weight. And I
understand the safety argument. I think we can all understand that,
But what are some of the other barriers to kids
participating in sport in general terms?
Speaker 3 (03:05):
Yeah, it's really good fun, Jason, and something that we
ponder on quite often. Look, we're told by young people
and their families people now are living really busy lives,
so busy schedules have a major impact. The cost involved
transport is a massive one. And if you think about
(03:26):
we're on based up in Auckland, getting across Auckland on
a busy afternoon, getting home from work on a busy evening,
isn't it. So transports a big one. Access to gear,
and we know for girls there's a couple of additional
ones that come through quite strongly, confidence in fear of
being judged to big factors, and then we know even
(03:47):
more so for disabled people, they face even more challenges.
So we know these issues are real, and that's why
we're working really hard as a system to break through
and be more inclusive and be more flexible with offerings
and take a much more community led approach to the
way we're rolling this out because communities know their people
(04:09):
generally and they know how to adapt and provide offerings
for them.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
Yeah, and some things you can't impact. I mean, you
can't change Auckland's traffic system, for example. That's something that
I think is even beyond Sport, New Zealand, or beyond
any of us really. But are there some of the
things you picked up on there that that you are
doing specific work on that can be more readily removed
as barriers.
Speaker 3 (04:32):
Yeah? Absolutely, you're right. We can't change the weather, right
and we can't change the transport at the moment in Auckland,
although putting a train in would be nice. However, Yeah,
there are, and that's why I referenced community led local solutions.
We're actually seeing some great response in some of the
metropolitan areas where local organizations are getting together and providing
(04:57):
more opportunities at a local level. You know, not everyone
has aspirations to go on to great things and have
an overly competit of structure, and we're seeing a real
uptake and more, I guess close to home, locally led
offerings where people can enjoy the value of sport without
having to travel an hour and a half each way
(05:21):
in busy schedules.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Are you able to in any way measure the positive
impact of physical activity and exercise on young people?
Speaker 3 (05:32):
Yeah, that is a great question. We know that it's
hugely important, and we're now collecting more and more evidence
to support that. We know that when young people are active,
not only do they build friendships for life, they grow confidence.
It supports mental well being as well. We know that
(05:52):
young people are happier when they're engaged in physical activity.
So we've recently actually published a report called Active Minds,
Active Bodies, and the report confirms that those kids that
are involved in sport and being physically active are actually
better in school, the better in life. And that's why
(06:13):
through sport, we believe every child deserves that. So we
need to work really hard to break those barriers down
to open up offerings for everyone.
Speaker 2 (06:21):
Are more or fewer children playing organized sport now than
in the past.
Speaker 3 (06:27):
Yeah, well, obviously we had that rather unfortunate incident of COVID,
but we are seeing jason a pretty steady recovery post COVID,
especially in school sport, and we know that numbers have
grown over the last three years. Several of our large
sports are showing encouraging increases in their membership as well,
(06:50):
which is clearly incredibly positive. And there's certainly a growing
interest in flexible, more informal ways to just to I
gees activating sport.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
What sort of things are you talking about there.
Speaker 3 (07:07):
Yeah, Look, some of our sports, the sports that are
really adapting, being more inclusive and taking that community approach,
are seeing strong growth. So we've got initiatives up and
down the country. Examples Hopes and Maria's which is a
collaboration and partnership with civil organizations including New Zealand Basketball,
(07:29):
Local EWE, Maldi Basketball that are putting hoops and giving
access to young people. In Maria's Rugby League have a
program called Sister Rise which is addressing more offerings and
opportunities for young girls and female coaches that are having
tremendous success and talking to Rugby League the other day
(07:51):
that they've got about a sixty percent increase in young
women participating in that program. And additionally, we're seeing programs
being more inclusive and encouraging people from all walks of
life to get involved in sport and reap the benefits.
Since rugby is an initiative that's being developed by occupational
(08:12):
therapists to fit the needs and learning pace of players,
so it looks to support you know, players with disabilities,
that are neurodiverse, that have sensory needs. And we're seeing
these programs roll out up and down the country, so
they're not just growing participation, they're building belonging and really
breaking down societal barriers as well.
Speaker 2 (08:35):
This might be outside the scope of your brief, Andy,
but do you think that kids sport is best administered
by schools or by clubs?
Speaker 3 (08:45):
That's a great question, and I think we're really blessed
in this country to have a system where you're able
to access sport in both. So I think that my
answer would be I think they player both play a
really important role. The key here is that not one's
better than the other. It's about how they work together
to meet the needs of all participants, artless of the setting.
(09:07):
You know, I think the key here is that we
want to offer quality experiences and we continue to put
the needs of young people first, you know, and that means,
as I've said previously, offering a range of opportunities that
match the motivations of the children. So we need to
fit into young people's lives, not young people fit into
(09:28):
our sports systems.
Speaker 2 (09:29):
And something that always happens with kids sporters that you know,
a young boy or girl shows promise at an early
age and everybody says, wow, there's the next you know,
Dan Carter, you know's there's the next Porsche Woodman Wickliffe,
just to use a couple of rugby examples, and yet
these children are eight nineteen years old. Is balances better?
(09:50):
You know, children playing a lot of different sports. Still
a key plank to your philosophy on kids exercise and sport.
Speaker 3 (09:57):
Yeah. Absolutely, And I happen to know you're a big
fan of the balance is better approach, Jason, so I'm
glad you brought that one up. Yeah. Absolutely, balance is better.
It is more than just the talent piece though, it's
about it's our approach to use sport New Zone and
it's ensuring that we put the needs of young people first,
(10:17):
So what we say, it's about balancing sport with life,
you know. So it's ensuring that we keep the fun element,
but we also keep the development element, and that we
balance adults expectations with what kids actually want. So when
we get that balance right, we see that outcomes for
everyone involved, and we say that balance is better. It's
(10:39):
not just the philosophy, it's a practical approach and it's
now backed by strong evidence and it's really getting embraced
by the sector. And we know that those organizations that
are picking it up and using it and adopting their
systems are seeing some significant improvements in the quality of
the experiences that young people are achieving. Young people are
(10:59):
getting better, they're having more fun, and they're staying in
for longer.
Speaker 2 (11:03):
Very interesting, very very interesting thoughts the afternoon. Andy, thank
you so much for taking the time to join us.
And know our listeners we'll have a lot of feedback
so we'll get to them. But thank you for your
time this afternoon.
Speaker 3 (11:13):
No promadell, thanks for having me on the show.
Speaker 2 (11:15):
Jason, No, thank you for joining us. Andy. Andy Rogers
Sport New Zealand's National Development National sport development consultant.
Speaker 1 (11:23):
There For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine, listen
live to News Talk set B weekends from midday, or
follow the podcast on iHeartRadio
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