Rugby Here & There – 11/13/2007

I haven’t had much time to do the rugby digging that I usually do…so here are some fun rugby stories I was able to dig up this morning!

• CGA Women’s Rugby Tackle the Competition in their First Season

The Coast Guard Academy Women’s Rugby Team have just completed their first season as a formal club sport in an organized league as a member of the New England Rugby Football Union, Division four by making it all the way to the championship finals.

The team finished the regular season with a 4-1 record scoring 220 points and allowing only 14. With only the one loss, the Academy’s team earned the wildcard entry into the 4-team playoffs.

The team took on the College of the Holy Cross, the undefeated number one seed, in Worcester, Mass. on Oct. 27. Despite the rain, mud and non-home field advantage, the Lady Bears pulled off their biggest win in their short history and a major upset shutting out Holy Cross 14-0. With their win, they were next scheduled to play Roger Williams University, who was their only loss during the regular season, for the New England Division four championship.

Despite the team’s efforts, they lost the match to Roger Williams in an exciting game, 22-19. Even though the scoreboard wasn’t in their favor the Academy’s team didn’t lose entirely. The team gained a great amount of experience by competing for the championship during their first season as a club team. They will certainly come back next year with just as much drive but with more knowledge of the game.

Always love to hear about new teams!

• Should Oregon Add Women’s Rugby?Many folks at Oregon are devastated that the university’s wrestling program will be discontinued following this season. The heartache is understandable – nobody likes to see opportunities diminished for student-athletes.

  In today’s Oregon Daily Emerald, Robert Husseman offers an argument that the transition of women’s rugby from club to varsity status would not only help the university become a national leader in that sport, but would aid in Title IX compliance.

  I am of the belief that no school should ever use Title IX as a reason for eliminating a sport. If budgetary reasons are to blame, that’s completely different. In Oregon’s case, it’s estimated that the addition of baseball and competitive cheer programs will add about $300,000 to the annual budget.

  Husseman suggests that a self-sufficient athletics program could afford to move its club program to varsity status and keep the wrestling program going. I’m not privy to accounting information in Eugene, so I don’t know if this is realistic.

  What I do know, is that Husseman has the right thinking in mind. He wants to see the university add more opportunities, not subtract them. He figures that if Oregon wanted to add baseball, it should have done it, but not at the expense of wrestling. Instead, he says, add women’s rugby to the mix. Not only is it an exciting sport, but rugby is similar to football in that it accommodates and requires a large number of participants. More opportunities? No problem.

  With four varsity programs out there, Oregon could continue a trend that might bring us closer to an 89th NCAA championship.

  This brings to mind the recent discussions on Saturday’s A Rugby Day and Goff about more and more teams thinking about Varsity status. In my opinion, we should encourage this, but be careful that the teams play rugby and not some washed down version that the NCAA would approve. See the next bullet below for more opinions on NCAA status.

• Women’s Rugby Blazing Trails in NCAA PlayWhile rugby is considered a club sport nationally, West Chester’s women’s rugby team is one of only four schools that are now recognized as NCAA teams.

  Women’s rugby is one of seven on the NCAA’s list of emerging sports. This list was created more than 30 years ago to increase the number of athletic opportunities for young women and help promote gender equality on and off the playing field. However rugby must attract 40 teams within 10 years to earn championship status or it will be dropped from consideration, a problem the other teams on the list are trying to overcome. Since there are currently four women’s teams in the nation playing varsity rugby, WCU, Eastern Illinois, Maine’s Bowdoin College and Southern Vermont, they have four years left to obtain this goal.

  WCU captain Michelle Kirk said attracting more teams in the next four years is an attainable goal.

  “Similar to what happened in women’s lacrosse several years ago, it started as a club sport and as the publicity increased they were able to become a NCAA sport. I think rugby will have a similar affect, especially with the arising popularity of high school [rugby]. There is definitely a possibility that we can achieve this goal,” Kirk said.

  West Chester Athletic Director Ed Matejkovic told ESPN that four schools in the Division II Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference are looking to add rugby. He plans to push for women’s rugby in the next conference meeting.

  “There will be a discussion because people will see the coverage that this game has received,” Matejkovic said. “Maybe, they will realize this is a viable thing. Just like anything, people are afraid of change and doing something new. I think you just have to punch in and do it. Next year when we play EIU at our place, I’ll invite the [athletic directors] in our conference and say, ‘Come see a game. You’ll enjoy it every bit as much as field hockey and soccer — maybe more so, in some cases.'”

  The first NCAA-sanctioned women’s rugby match against Eastern Illinois was held in Charleston, Ill. on Saturday, Sept. 15, 2007. The Lady Rams were able to defeat Eastern Illinois scoring a try in the final minutes to win 20-19. Although the win was extremely exciting for the Rams, the team hopes the game’s exposure will build rugby’s chances of becoming a success at the NCAA level. This success could push more schools to create NCAA programs, creating scholarships that would help to meet the requirements of Title IX.

  Kirk believes that the game’s exposure will definitely help build in rugby’s success, but more with people who are already involved and interested in the sport.

  “Exposure was big in th
  e sense of rugby world but I doubt much past that. That specific game isn’t going to make the difference we need,” Kirk said. “Although it helps that newspapers are writing about it, and people are talking about it, I think it’s not reaching out to all people, people that don’t have knowledge of the sport.” One thing about the game Kirk was sure about: “It definitely touched the rugby world.”

• Hitting the Cycle: Don’t let dresses fool you: Women’s rugby tougher than they lookBeauty, grace, elegance. When you think homecoming dresses, these are the words that come to mind.

  Tackles, bruises, blood. These are the things you think about when you add UMBC women’s rugby into the equation.

  Rather than cut the rug on the dance floor, the women’s rugby team traded in their high heels for cleats, and spent the afternoon ruining their dresses, showing that appearances are not everything. The ladies, dressed in their best, physically dominated the first half of Sunday’s annual homecoming game in route to a win.

  Don’t let the apparel fool you. Attired in their normal uniforms after the first half, the ladies continued to fly around the ball, proving that there is nothing girly about the women’s rugby team.

  Having never been to a women’s rugby game before, I didn’t know exactly what to expect. Would the speed of the game match up to that of men’s rugby contests? Would the hits be as vicious?

  My questions were answered within the first couple of plays. The women swarmed around the ball carrier. Hits were bone-crushing, causing some in the crowd to wince, while others couldn’t help but ooh-and-aah.

  Leaving Walker Field Saturday afternoon, I had a new appreciation for the women’s rugby team at UMBC, as they rolled up a 35-0 win. Just like the men’s team, they were fast, physical, technically sound, and tough. By the end of the day, I began to think that the women actually had more courage and gamesmanship than the men’s team.

  After all, I don’t see the playoff-bound men’s program dominating in bright pink, bare back dresses.

  Since I love a good Debutante Rugby Ball, I couldn’t pass up this article. Don’t forget the Austin Valkyries will be hosting a Debutante Ball after Dallas 7’s in June 2008.