Keep it Positive bibs bring sideline messaging front and centre

Canterbury Rugby’s Keep it Positive message will be front and centre in junior rugby this season, with over 400 bright yellow bibs with a simple “Keep it Positive” message on them distributed to community rugby clubs throughout the region.

The idea, that’s backed by Canterbury Rugby’s Principal Partner Ray White, is that those that help facilitate our junior game will stand together to stamp our poor sideline behavior, wearing a common bib, rather than their club colors, whilst delivering a positive reminder that ‘we’re all there for kids to have fun’. 

“Our volunteers are excellent role models for sideline behaviour, and by helping them differentiate themselves from the sideline and teams playing should serve as a positive reminder that we are all there to support the tamariki playing our beloved game.” Said Canterbury Community Rugby Manager Fiona Smith

It is a sentiment shared by Ray White’s Claire Morris, who said “We joined forces with Canterbury Rugby to get behind the Keep it Positive campaign as we recognised that this is an area of our game that needs our support. By helping provide these bibs to the community, we want it to serve as a constant reminder of what behaviour we want to encourage when on our sidelines.”

The bibs will be distributed this week in Keep it Positive packs, alongside collateral designed to reiterate the Keep it Positive messaging.

Some of the bibs have also been distributed in recent weeks to Ohoka and High School Old Boys’, where coaches have heralded their importance.

Russell McLeod, who coaches the Ohoka Under 11 Mud Ducks, said “The bibs are a great idea. It’s really easy for both the kids playing and the spectators to distinguish who the referee is.”

“The bibs provide a neutrality from your club colours, and the messaging emblazoned on them emphasises that we’re out there doing the best for the kids and ensuring the players all enjoy themselves in the game.”

“They are good in the fact the person in the middle with the whistle controls the positive way in which the game is played and spectated upon.” said High School Old Boys’ Under 6 Carter coach Regan Turner. “It shows the parents on the sideline that the ref is just another volunteer giving up their time to allow their kids to play a game and having "Keep it Positive" printed on a bright yellow bib plants that mindset in their minds.”

“Watching the play so closely, they’ll see the ref in close proximity and they will continually see the Keep it Positive messaging, hopefully kerbing any negativity towards referees in general.”

“For the kids, it makes that separation between the referee and another parent running round on the field helping the team out, they learn to respect the referee early on when they can identify who it is.” Turner said.