Roughing It With The Ruggers

Rugby isn't one of Harvard's more serious sports and never has been The ruggers like it that way.

Two years ago Harvard was the class of the East and went as far as the finals in the nationals. In the contest California-Berkeley--the perennial champs--eked out a 6-3 overtime win, forcing the upstart Ivy Leaguers to settle for a second place national ranking.

Last year held almost as much glory for the Crimson, which lost only two games all year. They were upset by Princeton in the Eastern tournament in April, but got revenge the next week by whipping the Tigers, 20-0.

Taking it Easy

Success, naturally enough, was followed by attention. Everyone likes a winner and people who didn't used to know rugby from whiffle ball suddenly became afficionados. Enter the ruggers' unique formula for success: no varsity status, no university supervision (e.g. coaches), optional practices three days a week and, yes, kegs and rigorous beer consumption following practices.

All That Glory

But all that glory, at least for now, is history. This year's squad is a lot less big and a lot less awesome than usual. Gone are such heroes of yesteryear as Charlie Bott, Al Halliday. Roy Roberts and Mark Cooley. They're legends now, consigned to an era which may very well go down in the books as Harvard rugby's Golden Age.

Last weekend the ruggers came down to earth in a hurry, losing to the Boston Rugby Club, 57-0. For football fans, that's the equivalent of losing by more than eight touchdowns. Yes, reality can be merciless. But while the winning tradition may be dead, or on hold, the tradition of having fun is thriving.

Marc Hissey is the Harvard Rugby Football Club's match secretary. While the team scrimmages, Hissey assesses the squad from the sidelines. "This is a rebuilding year for us pretty much," he says, putting the case mildly. "We've lost 18 of our top 30 players."

The enthusiasm, however remains. Greg Carey, a four-year veteran, watches the team play and says, "We're beginning to look good," If quantity is any indication, the pack is still largely intact. Seventy players fill the field, breaking into "A," "B" and "C" teams.

The players seem to fit the usual classifications. There's an assassin (Keith Cooper), an animal (Carey), a boot (Joe Kanecht), and a hoss (Hassan Riffat). They dress in the traditional fashion, too Bandages, crutches, stitches, broken noses and black eyes are de rigueur Florence Nightingale would feel right at home attending to the players over the post-practice keg.

Rough Riders

Tradition is a word heard frequently around the rugby field. It's important to drink beer after practice, it's important to be an unsupervised club sport with a vigilante image, and it's important to have good, dirty fun. You might call it the ultimate "winning isn't everything" attitude.

Junior Matt McEvoy is well caught up in the rugby spirit: "I'm getting into the rugby tradition," he says in between beers, "I run around a bit, get dirty, and get into tradition."

To get an idea of how far back this tradition extends, consider the ruggers' upcoming game Saturday. Some teams develop rivalries over ten years, but Harvard rugby rides a three-year winstreak into Canada this weekend for its annual renewal of an 110-year rivalry against McGill University. That's more than four times as long as the Ivy League's been around, good enough to be considered the oldest continuous collegiate athletic contest in America."

Party Time

Despite the team's imposing history, it doesn't take long for the new player to begin to feel comfortable. Having practiced a whopping six times together so far this year, the ruggers are already developing their usual camaraderie.

Tom Heintzman, a freshman, talks about the non-athletic aspect of rugby. "It's more of a social sport than other teams around here," he says, "and the guys are all pretty friendly." Not to mention the benefits of knowing a lot of upperclassmen at the House parties, the Yardling adds

Another freshman is just as enthusiastic. His eyes shine brightly despite the puffy black swelling that surrounds them as he says, "Rugby is great, the fun just doesn't stop."

Rug on, ruggers. Another beer?