A Crash Course in Rugby

By now almost everyone knows that on Friday the 18^th of September the Rugby World Cup began in Great Britain. This weekend the two semi-finals will take place and so in less than two weeks’ time we will know who the Champions of the 2015 Rugby World Cup will be. I’m really excited about this but some people are not, this is probably because they don’t usually watch rugby matches. However, since so many people are going to be watching the final I think it is about time for a crash course in rugby.

Although I’ve never actually played the sport I consider myself as an almost-expert-fan because I have watched many rugby matches over the past few years. I have also called on the advice of experts so you will be well prepared to watch the semi-finals or the final.

A brief history:

Legend has it that 16 year old William Web Ellis was playing football at his school in Rugby, England when he caught the ball and ran with it towards his opposition’s goal line. At the time this was against the rules which stated that the ball should be caught and then kicked; however, not long after this incident the rules changed and thus rugby the sport was formed.

Objective of the Game:

The objective is to get more points than the other team. Points are earned by scoring tries, this is when the ball is carried over the opponent’s try line, which result in 5 points and can be converted to an extra 2 points with a successful place/drop kick. 3 points can be earned by a successful penalty kick or drop kick.

Basic terminology:

A scrum: occurs when there is an accidental infringement

A lineout: occurs when the ball goes out of bounds

A ruck: a loose scrum formed around a player with the ball on the ground

A maul: occurs when three or more players, including the ball carrier and at least one other player from either side, are in contact together (unlike a ruck the ball is still in hand and has not been grounded.

Length of Game:

The game consists of two 40 minute halves with a 10 minute break in between. Remember to use this break wisely so you don’t have to miss too much of the match.

Now that you know a bit more about rugby you’re more likely to enjoy the two semi-finals and the final!!  

For more information visit: http://www.rugby.com.au/tryrugby/Playing/RugbyExplained/History.aspx 

A Different Perspective

Living through the same routine over and over again can ensure that you always view the situation in the same way. When you walk to your work you probably will not notice the beautiful leaves above you or the colours of the flowers in the gardens next to the road. But, if you were able to notice all these small things they would remind you how beautiful this world is and cheer you up.

Here are a few optical illusions to help you change your perspective:

Now that your eyes have been trained to notice different images and see images in two different ways, you can enjoy these photographs:

Did you realize this photograph is upside down?

Remember to keep an eye out for the beauty of nature in your life that you often take for granted. 

Youth Against Extinction

When we think of the voice of all animals we imagine the thunderous roar of a lion. That sound echoing through the Savannahs kept man away from poaching and trophy hunting for several centuries; and yet now the king of the Savannah’s voice, is hoarse. No matter how many times he yells man only snaps a photograph and drives away.

Our lions are suffering. Once 200 000 freely roamed the earth and now the estimate is below 30 000 wild lions. There are two main reasons for this horrid decrease in population numbers, the first is the increasing demand for lion trophies and the second is the demand for lion bones mainly in Asian countries. In order to profit from these demands the “Canned Hunting” industry was formed.

In this industry female lions are used to breed as many cubs as they possibly can. When they can no longer reproduce they are either used for trophy hunting or are killed for the bone trade. At the same time, the cubs are torn away from their mothers soon after birth, so instead of their mother’s tongue gliding across their fur they are petted by complete strangers who think this is a true African experience. Unfortunately, when these cubs grow up they will be trapped in an enclosure and shot at by trophy hunters. Once they are dead their heads will be mounted on walls in foreign countries or even here in South Africa and their bones will be flown to Asia. This is what people are doing to our King of the Savannah.

Because of this tragic greed thousands of lions have died. The ones that remain are by no means fit to be the voice of all animals like they once were. And so, this role needs to be resumed by a group that is prepared to change the minds of those around them, to succeed when so many want them to fail and to save these beautiful animals from extinction. Plenty of generations could have accepted this task, and in 1960 Ian Player and his team did. But now is the time for a new group of conservationists to step up. It is the youth of South Africa, of Africa and of the world who will take up this challenge and will save our animals. 

It is we who have the power that is needed to swing this fight in our favour. We are motivated and prepared to use our talents in every way possible to educate the rest of the world. We will stop at nothing to protect our beloved animals. 

If you'd like to watch my speech at the Global March for Elephants Rhinos and Lions click this link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFg91HVQHDw&feature=youtu.be