Pupils learn good sportsmanship

By James Alexander
BBC news reporter

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Pupils at Ling Bob Junior School in Halifax on what makes a good sport

How important is good sportsmanship? And - in the modern era - is fair play fading away?

From today thousands of schoolchildren are to receive lessons on what makes a good sport.

A vigorous cry rings out across the playground - "howzat?". A group of young cricketers leap into the air, convinced it is a wicket.

It is a good shout. But the umpire shakes his head - "not out". The bowler returns quietly to his mark. There is no answering back, no argument, no dissent.

Enjoying a game of cricket in the sunshine, these pupils are among the first to take part in a new initiative to promote the "spirit of cricket" - not just how to play the game, but how to play fair.

The project has been organised by the MCC (Marylebone Cricket Club) and the Cricket Foundation charity.

The focus of the sessions is "gentlemanly conduct"

For a few years now, they have been sending coaches into thousands of primary and secondary schools to encourage children in the state sector to take up the game.

But this year, for the first time, the focus is on what might be called "gentlemanly conduct".

Coaches will visit 3,000 schools, holding classes on what it means to be a good sport:

• the need to respect team-mates and respect the opposition

• the importance of listening to the captain and not arguing with the officials

• and the value of shaking hands at the end of the game.

Fewer arguments

These principles are already being put into practice at Ling Bob Junior & Infants School in Halifax.

They have been piloting the scheme and the teachers say it is making a positive difference; there are fewer arguments in the playground - and in lessons.

The pupils say the cricket sessions have improved behaviour in class

Eleven-year-old Jake says it has improved the way he behaves both on the sports field and in class.

"The will to win can take over and in football you foul people and shove them and take them down. If you win, you don't really think about it because you're too busy celebrating.

"But, if someone's hurt you need to find out if they're OK, and with the loser you need to pat them on the back and say 'well done'."

When Jake is asked if he would rather be a good loser or a bad winner, he thinks for a long time, then smiles: "A good winner."

The campaign certainly has its work cut out. According to a new survey, carried out by the Cricket Foundation, more than half of children say they regularly see cheating on the sports field.

The poll, involving more than 1,000 children and 1,000 parents, found evidence of diving, tripping, kicking, name-calling, even pulling at one another's hair.

And many youngsters claim the biggest pressure on them to win comes from their own parents - pushy mums and in particular competitive dads.

Bad examples on television

The sad fact is sport and sharp practice are familiar bedfellows.

Tackling foul play is a challenge for the school's deputy head teacher, Dorian Brooksby.

Umpiring in his whites, he says he is in no doubt where the problems come from: "Children pick up bad habits from watching sport on television, especially football.

There can still be competition, intense competition Dorian Brooksby, deputy head teacher

"You see footballers fouling and diving and arguing with the referee. You see managers rowing with the officials and with each other. It sets a really bad example for pupils like ours who are at an impressionable age.

"Of course cricket isn't perfect - there've been scandals now and again about cheating and ball tampering and sledging.

"But, on the whole, there's more of a culture of respect with cricket - and there has been for 300 years. And I think the children pick up on that because it's part and parcel of the expectations of the game."

But we live in a society that rewards success. An American football coach once said: "Show me a good loser and I'll show you a loser."

So surely it is natural for children to want to win, no matter what?

"There can still be competition, intense competition," says Mr Brooksby.

"But the players and spectators need to learn it is only a game. Someone has to win and someone has to lose. What's important is how to be a good winner and how to be a good loser."

It is an appeal reminiscent of the well-known Victorian poem - "Play up, play up and play the game".

It may seem an old-fashioned idea in an era when professional sport is awash with money and celebrity, but in playgrounds like this it appears there is still a place for fair play.