As secondary schools prepare to introduce rugby, the physical aspects of the game are under scrutiny. Annabel Miller examines the arguments on both sides

One Sunday, at my son’s rugby club, I wandered over to have a look at the older under-13s group in action. I watched, alarmed, as boys cannoned into each other like young bulls, and crashed to the ground during tackles.

“Is it always this rough?” I asked one of the mothers standing on the sidelines. “Oh yes,” she laughed gaily. “We’re always up at A & E!”

I was amazed, not only by the extreme physicality of the teenage game, but also by the gung-ho attitude of the watching parents. Why was all this a good idea?

That question has become highly topical, as the Rugby Football Union (RFU) is working with the Government to introduce contact rugby union, as a compulsory sport, to thousands of secondary schools. Through the CBRE All Schools programme, 750 schools will take up rugby for the first time by 2019. Opinion is divided between those who think rugby is too dangerous for school play, and those who argue it is no more dangerous than a lot of other sports and is a physically healthy and morally salutary game for young people.