A great piece of advice I received from one of my coaches during junior rugby league was:

Never play down to the opponents level, just stick to and play your game.

If they want to fight and get all aggressive, let them.

Never retaliate, always allow the referee to enforce the correct rules.

You’ll never win the game throwing punches.

Just head down and score tries, it’s as simple as that.

Be the bigger team and win.

The score board never lies.