England played Scotland today int the rugby Six Nations tournament. The English got one national anthem played and the Scots had two. Confused? Firstly, get the thought that England and the United Kingdom are the same thing out of your head - they're not. Scotland had Flower of Scotland, the Scottish national song, played as their anthem. England had God Save the Queen as their anthem. God Save the Queen is the national anthem of the United Kingdom, not England. Now I'm not saying God Save the Queen shouldn't have been played because England and Scotland are both part of the UK and it is therefore the national anthem for both England and Scotland. What irks me is the fact that it was played as the English national anthem and it isn't. There is no English national anthem but as far as rugby is concerned, Swing Low Sweet Chariot is the English national anthem. In the absence of an English national anthem, we should have had a song that is immediately identifiable with English rugby.
Related link: Campaign for an English Parliament