A preseason tournament in Faribault, Minn., was my 15-year-old son's official introduction to the sport. Known to his teammates as Frodo for his lack of height and abundance of hair, John had practiced weekly at Soccer Blast in Burnsville.
He joined the only city team available, composed of boys from Prior Lake, Apple Valley, Eagan and Burnsville.
Rugby, for me, had a reputation involving injuries and wild boys. When I turned to the Internet for information, though, I was relieved to learn that, while it is a contact sport, rugby is played in more than 100 countries by men and women.
It has been in Burnsville for five years.
With sunshine on our faces in Faribault, we sunk into our chairs, covered by blankets and ready for the game to start. The opposing team, 35 members strong, stood arm-in-arm and sang a rugby tune. Our team had 19 players and needed 15 to play, small latitude for injuries.
In rugby, the "pitch" is bigger than a football field. The game starts with a kick-off. The scrum comes into play to restart after the referee, known as "sir," has whistled. Similar to a tight huddle, the players in the scrum are bent over and locked shoulder-to-shoulder as they try to hook their feet around the ball and kick it out to other teammates.
They score by getting the ball into the end zone, which is called a "try." They score points by kicking, too, and can only pass the ball laterally or backward. It can be kicked forward to advance; a player can pick it up and run with it until being tackled. The game doesn't stop; the ball must be released so play can continue and it is fast-paced.
The positions on the team have unusual sounding names -- loose head prop, locks, flankers, eight man and scrum half to name some. When my son announced he might be a hooker I was concerned.
After an illegal tackle above the waist by a Burnsville player prompted a penalty from the sir, a rugby mom called the Burnsville players a few choice names.
Maybe her son had been tackled improperly, which frightened her like a mom protecting her cub. Maybe she got caught up in the action, but she said a few obscenities and the sir ended the game abruptly, which upset both teams.
It was decided that Burnsville won that game because we had scored earlier. The coaches had never seen that done but admired the move by the sir. Parents and players alike would learn from this lesson: Wasn't this a game, after all?
We found ourselves in the championship game. Burnsville was a little better that day and the Bruisers got a championship trophy, even if it was a preseason tournament.
As for me, I'm breathing normally again and I must admit I look forward to the next game.
Brenda Elsagher lives in Burnsville.
