I knew rugby was popular in other countries, but I didn’t know it was something that was played frequently in America as well. When I met some of the girls who play for my college team, I was a bit intimidated because I knew rugby was a tackling sport. I believe my first sentence to them was, “I don’t want to get hurt.” I went to my first practice just for the hell of it, and it turns out I fell in love with it. Here was a sport I could play, and it didn’t matter if I was the most athletic on the pitch or if I had never played a sport before. I learned a lot, especially the rules of the game, since I had never played before, but I learned more from the team and the sport than that.
- First and foremost, how to be running and catch a ball. It is actually harder than it looks, especially when you need to use both hands and pass it backwards. It took awhile before I could get a backspin on it. There were frequent ugly passes that didn’t make it to the intended target, but having other teammates for help and their patience for us new girls to learn made learning the sport so much less stressful.
- Just because you aren’t in the pack doesn’t mean you can’t ruck. Or tackle for that matter. I was most scared to be tackled by my back liner captain. I still am if I am being honest. She is something to aspire to tackling-wise. Doesn’t give up until the girl she is taking down is on the ground. Being in the backline (the people who most frequently pass the ball), sometimes leads people to believe we can’t tackle or we just leave that to the pack. When in reality, all of us can tackle. Going in for a tackle is everyone’s job.
- How to be proud of your bruises. Literally every Sunday someone on the team posts on Instagram a picture of the wicked bruises on their legs. I’ve had a few myself and many times asked by my roommate why I have a bruise in the middle of my back or side. The standard answer now for most of my bruises now is rugby.
- There is a difference between being hurt and being injured. You can still play when you’re hurt. If something is hurting, you can keep playing through it. Most of the time we are sore or hurting for some reason anyway. The only way the relief stops is when you stop playing every day/week. Being injured is a whole different beast. If you keep playing you will get injured further and can maybe cause some damage. Keep playing if you’re hurt, but it you are injured take some time out on the sidelines.
- I may not be the fastest or strongest, but my presence is still important on that pitch. Sure, I may not be the best player on the team, but that doesn’t mean that I am not a part of it. Rugby makes you feel like you’re a part of something even when you don’t play all the time. There is never a time when you feel like you are not a part of the team and don’t fit in. It’s the first time I’ve been on a team and felt like I actually mattered.
- How to get back up when I’ve been taken down. Which happens very often. Sometimes it hurts to get back up after a tackle especially when it’s cold or rainy or both. But the need and desire to get up and keep playing for team motivates me to get up. A lot of times when you’re sore and hurting and it’s rainy, adrenaline to get up keeps me going. Seeing teammates keep getting up and running back into another tackle is motivating.
My team is kinda awesome, and I love the girls on the team. And I fell in love with a sport that I hardly knew anything about a year ago. #NIUrugby
