RUGBY!!!! (A Rookie’s Perspective)

Walking into Carleton, I knew I wanted to try new things outside of my comfort zone. Since I’ve been here, I’ve done just that, and one of the coolest new things I’ve tried is Rugby.

I came in with no experience – in high school I ran cross country and played a little bit of basketball, both are very different from rugby. However, I had heard from a lot of people that the community is amazing and that just about everyone who plays now was new to the sport coming into Carleton.

The first day of practice was a bit of a whirlwind. Most people who go to the first practice will probably agree: the practices can be a little intense and hard to follow for newcomers. However, the upperclassmen were super welcoming and encouraged us every step of the way. 

And I mean it with the encouragement. For the first few practices, we would get a ton of feedback but at the same time, they would be super nice to us rookies. Even when we messed up, they would spin it as a good thing. Once I didn’t catch the ball but an upperclassman praised me and told me it was a good thing because I knocked it backwards. (In rugby, you’re not allowed to pass forward so even if you don’t throw the ball, it cannot bounce off of you and go forward.)

Throw you to the wolves?

One thing that I was nervous about walking in was the contact aspect. For myself and a lot of other people I know, being so close to essentially strangers at first can be challenging. And in rugby, you get very close to people. However, the coaches make it very clear that you only have to do the amount of contact that you’re comfortable with. 

However, I wanted to go all in, but having never played a physical contact sport before, I was a little awkward at first. Thankfully the upperclassmen who were helping me were understanding and supportive in aiding me develop some of the tackling and rucking skills needed in rugby. 

Something else people are worried about with a contact sport like rugby is the safety aspect. This is a fair concern to have, especially since the only kind of padding/protection that we have is a mouthguard and the sport has a reputation of being…a little rough. I’m here to say that it’s a surprisingly safe sport. The rules of the game are designed so that yes you will be tackled, and yes you will get bruised, but no you will not hit your head as long as everyone is following the rules and playing safely. It’s been interesting talking to other people who have played other sports about how you’re more likely to get injured in soccer than in rugby. 

In addition, if you aren’t trained enough, for example, if you don’t know how to tackle or how to take a tackle, the coaches won’t put you in. They really care about everyone’s safety so while they will try to get you to a playing ability as fast as possible, they won’t just throw you to the wolves. 

Team Spirit

If you haven’t caught on by now, the team really wants everyone who joins the team to feel welcome and become good at the sport. Another way they show this is when we have tournaments, our coach gives everyone as much playing time as possible. This is especially nice because it’s where all the drills in practice start to make a little bit more sense. It’s also a great feeling to be playing with the experienced players when you do something good to contribute to the team.

Outside of the games and practices, the team has a lot of social events. Even if you don’t come to all of the practices or play in any games, you are  welcome at these outside events. There some of the events have alcohol, many do not, but all are very fun to go to. Each week there’s typically a social where we partake in rugby traditions and another event ranging from brunch to movie night.

Overall, the amount you want to be a part of the community is up to you. If you want to be very involved, there is so much to be a part of. If it’s not your scene or if you have other things that you’re a part of, that’s okay too!

Rugby has honestly been an amazing experience for me so far. I’ve pushed myself in ways I never would have in high school and being a part of such an amazing community has really helped during the first term of college. If you are thinking about joining, you absolutely should! Thank you for reading my long advertisement for women’s rugby (and join us!!)