No prizes for guessing the most viewed rugby clip at the weekend. The number of views on X has long since passed three million and \u2013 spoiler alert \u2013 people were not studying the finer detail of Gloucester\u2019s defensive effort at Villa Park on Saturday. Leicester\u2019s Geoff Parling used to be just another stern-faced Prem coach; suddenly he is an unlikely global social media star.<\/p>\n
For those who missed it \u2013 and here\u2019s hoping you enjoyed your mini-break on Jupiter \u2013 here is a potted summary. The TNT Sport presenter Craig Doyle and a new colleague, Liam MacDevitt, were on the pitch before the game, with MacDevitt being urged to take a kick at goal as part of his on-screen Prem initiation. All seemed OK right until the moment an angry Parling loomed into shot.<\/p>\n
Asked by a cheery Doyle whether he would consider signing up the debutant \u2013 the kick didn\u2019t miss by much \u2013 Parling responded by unceremoniously shoving the Irish presenter away<\/a> and bluntly telling both men \u2013 \u201cIt\u2019s fucking not on!\u201d \u2013 to get lost. At which point pretty much the entire internet collapsed beneath the weight of people rushing to offer their hot takes on the episode.<\/p>\n The eventual consensus, rightly, was that both parties were partly at fault. We can all probably agree, in the cold light of day, that coaches shouldn\u2019t be shoving TV presenters and broadcasters shouldn\u2019t be arsing around on the field when professional athletes are trying to prepare for a big game. Parling\u2019s beef was that the stray ball could have injured an unwary player; a minuscule risk, maybe, but not an ideal scenario just moments before a significant league fixture.<\/p>\n That said, the affair also had its entertaining side for those of us who know and like both combatants. Not since my old student mate Jim accidentally shot a pool ball through the bottom of a full pint glass belonging to the scariest-looking biker in the bar has anybody moved faster than Doyle to repair diplomatic relations. \u201cGeoff\u2019s not happy about that\u201d is destined to take its place among the great live TV understatements, well worthy of an end-of-season award when they dish out the gongs in June.<\/p>\n All publicity is good publicity, right? Well, yes and no. Because the spat on Saturday plays directly into the broader debate of exactly how rugby wants to be perceived in future. It could even be argued that Parling v Doyle was an accident that needed to happen, a skirmish that neatly symbolised the intensifying tug of war for the sport\u2019s modern soul. Does rugby now belong to the broadcasters, without whose money the game would have to revert to amateurism? Or the actors and producers \u2013 AKA the players and coaches \u2013 without whom there would be no show worth watching? Or, ditto, the oft-forgotten paying audience?<\/p>\n It is a particularly pertinent question in the light of recent off-field developments. It has just been announced, for example, that the boxing promoter Eddie Hearn has added the Northampton and England back-row Henry Pollock to his Matchroom talent roster. Hearn, by his own admission, knows almost nothing about rugby but clearly sniffs a bit of crossover potential. Not to mention plenty of dosh for all concerned.<\/p>\n There is just one snag. Someone needs to quietly advise Hearn that his new client comes from a team sport where the ring walk is very much a collective effort. Stick Anthony Joshua in the Northampton pack and he would soon discover there are 14 other players working hard to help him shine. Every time Pollock wins a game for club and country it is a joint venture rather than a solo, belt-waving photo opportunity.<\/p>\n The 21-year-old has also now further enlarged the target on his back. Unlike other high-profile rugby personalities like South Africa\u2019s Siya Kolisi, he has yet to win a World Cup nor, indeed, even a European trophy. A bleach-blond haircut and a penchant for shushing the crowd charms some audiences but not others. Good luck to him and Hearn \u2013 pro rugby is a short career \u2013 but playing the fame game has its price.<\/p>\n Henry Pollock has been added to the Matchroom talent roster by promoter Eddie Hearn. Photograph: David Rogers\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Which is why club rugby, in particular, sits at something of a crossroads. On the one hand there is a desperate push for fresh franchise investment and new eyeballs to massage the sport\u2019s straining finances. On the other is rugby\u2019s supposed raison d\u2019\u00eatre: a family-friendly sport that prioritises humility, integrity and calling the referee \u201dsir\u201d at all times.<\/p>\n Leicester\u2019s statement after the Parling-Doyle affair reflected this inherent contradiction. Alongside an apology from Parling was a quote that did not entirely chime with the hard-hitting, no-prisoners image some sections of the sport would like to accentuate.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is important we stay a family focused game and it wasn\u2019t appropriate for viewers to see that,\u201d Parling was quoted as saying. \u201cWe have a great product in the Prem and I offer my thanks to Craig Doyle and TNT for continuing to innovate and think differently. After talking last night we\u2019ll make sure we are fully aligned behind new ideas, including when best to use them; and keep pushing our game to new audiences.\u201d<\/p>\n In short, rugby would ideally love to have its cake and eat it. In reality, that is becoming steadily more difficult. Pressure is building on the sport to dive fully clothed into the business of \u201centertainment\u201d and, with Hearn\u2019s expert assistance, promote itself as the bish-bosh modern equivalent of 1970s ITV wrestling, with Pollock in the role of Giant Haystacks. Backed up by pre-match clips of, say, Doyle creeping into Parling\u2019s bedroom at 3am \u00e0 la Michael McIntyre.<\/p>\n Alternatively, without being too po-faced, it could opt to accentuate what really matters. As underlined by France v England in the final round<\/a> of the Six Nations, there is sufficient gladiatorial entertainment in most games nowadays to reduce the need for excessive artificial additives. Viral social media clips come and go but, ultimately, it is the quality of the core product that will define rugby\u2019s future.<\/p>\n