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Nov. 24, 2001, 6:42PM
<h3>STATE SUPPORT </h3> <h2>Football still king, but rugby finds fans in Texas </h2>By ALEX GOFF
Special to the Chronicle In a state where Friday night high school football games are all but religion, Saturday afternoon rugby games are becoming an increasingly popular pastime for athletes and fans alike. The playing of Saturday's test match between the USA and the South African Springboks at Robertson Stadium is certainly an indication that rugby has arrived in Texas, and in a big way. "We're getting a really good buzz around town about the match," said Paul Mabry, a former captain of the Galveston rugby club and currently a member of the board of directors for both USA Rugby and the Houston 2012 Olympic Committee. "Houston's one of those cities where going to a game can be a last-minute decision. But there is some curiosity about it, and attraction to something different." To thousands, though, rugby is not something different. It has been part of their culture and their lives for years. Encouraged by the expatriates from many rugby-playing nations who have settled in Texas, former college and high school football players have been drawn to rugby by its physicality and camaraderie. For many of these players, having the U.S. national team's Eagles and the Springboks, one of the best teams in the world, come to Houston is a chance to tell more people about the game they love. Recent years have been kind to Texas rugby. In 2000, Fort Worth took the USA Rugby Division II club championship. This year, it was The Woodlands' turn. Both clubs have since moved up to Division I. In the spring, Baylor won the Division II collegiate title. Texas teams compete in two national rugby leagues. The USA Rugby Super League features the Dallas Harlequins, while Major League Rugby includes several Texas teams, including this year's finalist, the Austin Blacks. The single Division I club championship for Texas came in 1984. That year, the Dallas Harlequins won thanks in part to all-time Springboks great Naas Botha, who had moved to Texas to play for the Harlequins. But Dallas wasn't a one-year wonder, making the final in 1983 and the final four in 1986. Botha will be honored at a dinner the night before Saturday's game. Players continue to pour out of the local colleges and universities because they love the sport, and rugby is one of the very few sports where an ordinary citizen can represent his or her town in national and international competition. Many have a football background, but not all. What they do have is a desire to play a tough game and be part of a club through their adult lives. "We recruit a lot of players from Sam Houston University," said Clive Jenkins, a Welshman who is director of rugby for The Woodlands RFC. "College is where a lot of players learn about rugby for the first time. The football influence in Texas is very strong, and as a result we play a very physical style of rugby here in Texas." More and more players are discovering the sport in high school, and even in junior high (where the players play a non-contact form). Under-19 rugby continues to grow around the country, and spring rugby in Texas seems the perfect complement to football. "Football players are often told to run track in the spring," said Lowell Locke, who coaches two high school teams and several under-15 programs. "But it's rugby that helps them develop their skills. It makes them better tacklers and better ball-handlers." Locke's son, Andrew, is the starting quarterback for the St. Thomas Eagles and the starting flyhalf and captain for the St. Thomas rugby team. Next spring, if all goes well, Andrew will be in Venice, Italy, playing for the United States at the Junior World Cup. Andrew is already known for using rugby skills and rugby moves in football, and he likes it that way. "I like rugby a little better than football because the decisions and calls are made by the players," he said. "There's no time to send in someone with a play." Not to mention the substitution laws don't allow it. Andrew Locke knows there's a struggle for rugby to be fully accepted as a high school sport. It's usually a club sport, not varsity, but over time more kids understand what the game is about. "As a club we're able to bring in kids from other schools to join the team, which is great," he said. "It's a tough sell. Our school has a big baseball tradition, and rugby conflicts with that. But we're also getting kids who started playing as under-15s, and they know more about the game." "Usually teams center around kids whose dads played," added Lowell Locke. "They have grown up on the sidelines and want their chance. Then they bring their friends." Everyone in the sport understands that for rugby to have more cachet, it needs to be played by kids. Youth touch rugby programs are springing up all over the country, and USA Rugby has created a rugby PE curriculum that any school can ask for. But rugby needs to grow in other ways, too. USA-South Africa is a high profile game that will not only showcase rugby to the Houston public but will showcase Houston to the rest of the world. "This means a lot to us because we're in the thick of the 2012 Olympic bid race," Mabry said. Rugby is also in its own campaign to become a full-fledged Olympic sport. USA Rugby is a member of the US Olympic Committee. "We're in a real dogfight. Most people don't realize rugby is a real sport and part of the USOC. We get one vote on Houston's future the same as other sports. It means a lot to Houston to have this on live worldwide TV. We know there will be tens of millions of people watching the game, and the last piece of the puzzle is getting a lot of people in the stands." Surrounding the game will be a number of events, some festive, some serious. New York police officer Daniel Rodriguez will sing the national anthem and God Bless America, and the first James A. Baker III leadership award will be presented at halftime. Houstonian and former Secretary of State Baker played rugby for Princeton from 1949 to 1952 and has taped an address for the game. The first recipients will be Mark Bingham and Jeremy Glick, two of the passengers who helped thwart the hijackers of Flight 93 on Sept. 11.
<h3>STATE SUPPORT </h3> <h2>Football still king, but rugby finds fans in Texas </h2>By ALEX GOFF
Special to the Chronicle In a state where Friday night high school football games are all but religion, Saturday afternoon rugby games are becoming an increasingly popular pastime for athletes and fans alike. The playing of Saturday's test match between the USA and the South African Springboks at Robertson Stadium is certainly an indication that rugby has arrived in Texas, and in a big way. "We're getting a really good buzz around town about the match," said Paul Mabry, a former captain of the Galveston rugby club and currently a member of the board of directors for both USA Rugby and the Houston 2012 Olympic Committee. "Houston's one of those cities where going to a game can be a last-minute decision. But there is some curiosity about it, and attraction to something different." To thousands, though, rugby is not something different. It has been part of their culture and their lives for years. Encouraged by the expatriates from many rugby-playing nations who have settled in Texas, former college and high school football players have been drawn to rugby by its physicality and camaraderie. For many of these players, having the U.S. national team's Eagles and the Springboks, one of the best teams in the world, come to Houston is a chance to tell more people about the game they love. Recent years have been kind to Texas rugby. In 2000, Fort Worth took the USA Rugby Division II club championship. This year, it was The Woodlands' turn. Both clubs have since moved up to Division I. In the spring, Baylor won the Division II collegiate title. Texas teams compete in two national rugby leagues. The USA Rugby Super League features the Dallas Harlequins, while Major League Rugby includes several Texas teams, including this year's finalist, the Austin Blacks. The single Division I club championship for Texas came in 1984. That year, the Dallas Harlequins won thanks in part to all-time Springboks great Naas Botha, who had moved to Texas to play for the Harlequins. But Dallas wasn't a one-year wonder, making the final in 1983 and the final four in 1986. Botha will be honored at a dinner the night before Saturday's game. Players continue to pour out of the local colleges and universities because they love the sport, and rugby is one of the very few sports where an ordinary citizen can represent his or her town in national and international competition. Many have a football background, but not all. What they do have is a desire to play a tough game and be part of a club through their adult lives. "We recruit a lot of players from Sam Houston University," said Clive Jenkins, a Welshman who is director of rugby for The Woodlands RFC. "College is where a lot of players learn about rugby for the first time. The football influence in Texas is very strong, and as a result we play a very physical style of rugby here in Texas." More and more players are discovering the sport in high school, and even in junior high (where the players play a non-contact form). Under-19 rugby continues to grow around the country, and spring rugby in Texas seems the perfect complement to football. "Football players are often told to run track in the spring," said Lowell Locke, who coaches two high school teams and several under-15 programs. "But it's rugby that helps them develop their skills. It makes them better tacklers and better ball-handlers." Locke's son, Andrew, is the starting quarterback for the St. Thomas Eagles and the starting flyhalf and captain for the St. Thomas rugby team. Next spring, if all goes well, Andrew will be in Venice, Italy, playing for the United States at the Junior World Cup. Andrew is already known for using rugby skills and rugby moves in football, and he likes it that way. "I like rugby a little better than football because the decisions and calls are made by the players," he said. "There's no time to send in someone with a play." Not to mention the substitution laws don't allow it. Andrew Locke knows there's a struggle for rugby to be fully accepted as a high school sport. It's usually a club sport, not varsity, but over time more kids understand what the game is about. "As a club we're able to bring in kids from other schools to join the team, which is great," he said. "It's a tough sell. Our school has a big baseball tradition, and rugby conflicts with that. But we're also getting kids who started playing as under-15s, and they know more about the game." "Usually teams center around kids whose dads played," added Lowell Locke. "They have grown up on the sidelines and want their chance. Then they bring their friends." Everyone in the sport understands that for rugby to have more cachet, it needs to be played by kids. Youth touch rugby programs are springing up all over the country, and USA Rugby has created a rugby PE curriculum that any school can ask for. But rugby needs to grow in other ways, too. USA-South Africa is a high profile game that will not only showcase rugby to the Houston public but will showcase Houston to the rest of the world. "This means a lot to us because we're in the thick of the 2012 Olympic bid race," Mabry said. Rugby is also in its own campaign to become a full-fledged Olympic sport. USA Rugby is a member of the US Olympic Committee. "We're in a real dogfight. Most people don't realize rugby is a real sport and part of the USOC. We get one vote on Houston's future the same as other sports. It means a lot to Houston to have this on live worldwide TV. We know there will be tens of millions of people watching the game, and the last piece of the puzzle is getting a lot of people in the stands." Surrounding the game will be a number of events, some festive, some serious. New York police officer Daniel Rodriguez will sing the national anthem and God Bless America, and the first James A. Baker III leadership award will be presented at halftime. Houstonian and former Secretary of State Baker played rugby for Princeton from 1949 to 1952 and has taped an address for the game. The first recipients will be Mark Bingham and Jeremy Glick, two of the passengers who helped thwart the hijackers of Flight 93 on Sept. 11.
