Calling all rugby players!

damorzacon

How many do we have here?

Long shot here but was anyone at the Battleship tournament in Mobile, AL this past weekend?

linusr

Do former, broken-down rugby players count? And no, I wasn't there, but I did watch the RWC Finals at a bar in my town, consuming all my calories for the day while yelling at the TV.

damorzacon

Of course it counts! I'm a relatively new player and I'm broken down too. Where did you play?

Wish I could've watched it live with the rest of my team. Before I could watch it on dvr the score popped up on my phone.

damorzacon

Bump for the day crew.

linusr

I played at UC Davis back in the '80s. I was a scrub on our C and D sides, and then I coached our C forwards the next year. Played back my first year, played breakaway the next two, and loved it.

linusr

Where do you play? Somewhere in the South, I'm guessing. What position?

damorzacon

I play for the Pensacola Aviators. I just started playing last summer...started with 7s and then when 15s season started I really fell in love.

I normally play tighthead but I'll move to loose occasionally and I've hooked a few times.

GiddyupTim

I am not a rugby player. But both my sons played in high school, and my younger son still plays in college, at UC Santa Barbara first and now at Willamette University, where he transferred this year.
I have visited the Navy flight school at Pensacola. Man that was fun!

IzzyBooNZ1

I don't play rugby but (and being from New Zealand ) I'm curious, is it quite popular in the US??

damorzacon

tufel - that counts in my book haha. Did you happen to go to the aviation museum while you were here. Definitely one of the major things to see in Pensacola.

Izzy - it's growing...not fast enough for my liking but it is. I think the US making a RWC appearance has helped but the Eagles are still considered amateur. We've got a professional rugby union starting play in April that will have 6 professional teams to start. Maybe in 2019 we'll be able to compete with the All Blacks

SAfricaChick

Mmmm you guys should start by competing with South Africa at 7's without trying to intimidate us in Las Vegas with Fighter Jets flying over LOL.

Don't worry - we are also hurt by the Blacks (and Japan, but that's another story!)

Sorry, no, I don't play rugby, but I am a fanatical supporter of South Africa and the Eagles and any other rugby team I can find any connection to. What can I say - I was born in Namibia and grew up in South Africa - we are born with the gene!

linusr

My daughter is on a Rotary exchange in New Zealand and we were texting during the game; great fun given the distance between Idaho and New Zealand. Damorzacon, I hooked one game without ever practicing at the position. What a nightmare! I was 142 pounds at the time; pencil-necked geeks shouldn't hook if they don't know what they're doing.

damorzacon

Hey, an advantage is an advantage. If it takes fighter jets, who am I to say otherwise The US was hurt by everyone lol Hopefully in 2019 we'll make a better showing.

That must have been awesome linusr! So it started at noon here (CST) what time was it in NZ?
That does seem pretty small for a hooker haha. I think the only reason they put me there was because we had two guys about 6'3" each that could prop and with me in at hook it was a huge front row. I had no idea what I was doing but it was fun to control the pack for a bit.

SAfricaChick

We were watching the semi-final between South Africa and New Zealand on TV and skyped the game with a phone in front of the TV to my step-daughter in Thailand. That was quite fun as well!

debrakgoogins

Does being a diehard rugby fan count? I've been to Maggotfest in Montana 6 times. I'm planning a trip to New Zealand with my son to see the All Blacks play.