Rugby - Take the ball and run!

Most americans are unaware that right now the 2007 Rugby World Cup is being played in France. I first got introduced to the sport in college where I played six seasons (2 a year) for Susquehanna University. Once I left school it became a lot harder to follow because it's never on TV here and I kind of lost track of the game. I finally managed to watch a couple of matches on satellite TV this past weekend and realized how much I miss the "elegant violence" of the sport!

I don't know why it's not popular here in the states. We love contact sports! Early American football games closely resembled Rugby, especially the first game played by Rutgers and Princeton in 1869. In fact, just five years later, in 1874, the first college rugby game in the US was played between Harvard and McGill University (of Montreal). That's according to the US Rugby official website. And the US actually won gold medals in the 1920 and 1924 Olympics. Since then, we haven't done much. Lately, the men's side gave England a good game and the women's side is making some waves as well.

Ok, so much for US Rugby. How did the game start anyway? According to tradition, in a pique of inspiration, William Webb Ellis, for whom the World Cup trophy is named, picked up the ball and ran with it back in 1823 during a soccor-type game at the Rugby School in England. Or maybe not. All Celtic tribes played an ancient rugby-ish game (called Caid in Ireland) and Ellis' dad had been in the army and stationed in Ireland. He could have gotten the idea from him.

Tribal Polynesians, New Zealanders and Eskimos also played a similar game going back to antiquity. It could have been the Viking game of Knappan or the Roman sport of Harpastum that spawned the sport. It could have been a caveman carrying a rock that another caveman desperately wanted. Kind of like "kill the guy with the ball" from grammar school playground days. Whatever the origin, for Rugby to become the popular sport that it is today, it needed rules. Standard Rules.

During the Victorian era, many British schools played a form of Rugby. They all had different rules. Sometimes there wasn't even a limit on the number of players on the field. Imagine hundred of people out there pounding away at each other! Like early American Football, these were brutal affairs. Some wanted to outlaw the sport. Then, in 1871, the Rugby Football Union was formed and the rules were standardized. Rugby became less like watching a train wreck and more like a game requiring toughness and finesse all at the same time. It became beautiful to watch and it still is.

Ok History Geeks, pick up the ball and run to the Rugby Football History website to learn more. As for me, I'm going to tune in the Rugby World Cup, pour myself a beer and try to remember a couple of those songs we used to sing at the party after the game...