No helmets - a Whaler plays rugby
BY JOSH GALVIN
Growing up playing sports on Nantucket I learned how important athletics were to my life. Besides the pure enjoyment I got playing sports such as baseball, football and basketball, I saw the value in the structure sports added to my life as well as the concepts they embodied - teamwork, persistence and cooperation.

The writer takes a fall.

Right now I am a junior at Bates College and in my third season with the Bates Men's Rugby Club. Before I got here, I knew virtually nothing of the sport of rugby (besides, it appeared to be rather violent). It was in my senior year of high school when Greg Schwanbeck, a former Nantucket High School teacher and Union College rugby alum, informed me that the game of rugby had lots to offer in terms of a purely addicting sport and a truly enjoyable culture. I took Schwanbeck's word for it and came out for rugby in the fall of my freshman year.

I've lived on Nantucket since kindergarten and started playing football at the Boys and Girls Club in the third grade. Football was a big part of my life, and I knew I would miss the game in college, but at the same time I knew I did not want to play college football. The more Schwanbeck told me about rugby, and the more I learned about it, the more it seemed like a natural replacement. Replacement is actually a difficult word to use because, at the risk of sounding like a "jock," it would be nearly impossible to replace the feeling I got from playing high school football for the Whalers. In any case, I knew that I had the fundamentals of tackling down, and I wasn't afraid of a little contact, so I gave it a shot. Besides, I got to catch and run with the ball, an offensive lineman's dream.

During my first rugby match I learned just how different the sport is from football. I found myself completely exhausted about fifteen minutes into the first of two forty minute halves. There is little stoppage time in rugby, which makes it a lot more like soccer in that a player is constantly on the go and either running with the ball or running to the ball. I had to learn how to conserve energy, and how to read what was happening in the game so I wouldn't fly around aimlessly.

The tackling is very similar to how an ideal football tackle is supposed to look, but when watching football on television you rarely see a textbook tackle. The rules in rugby state that a player must wrap up the ball carrier and should not hit an opponent above the shoulders. This helps reduce head and shoulder injuries, as there aren't any "T.V. tackles" - in which an NFLdefender will leave his feet and go shoulder first into a player - in rugby. There is also a lot of kicking in rugby which changes the direction of play frequently and this was a strange adjustment for me as well.

Like other sports, a rugby team has to be motivated in order to succeed.During our first practice I learned that we didn't even have a coach yet, so it was up to captains and other veteran players to ensure that the rookies learned the game properly. We eventually did hire a coach to assist us, but practices continued to be organized by the players, and my sophomore year saw us play an entire season without a coach.

This year we have had a coach since early in the season and it clearly shows. While the captains and older players on the team deserve credit for the work they have done for the club, a coach makes a world of difference - we are in the playoffs this year for the first time since 1998. If our team continues to win we may play the University of Maine/Orono where now graduate student Greg Schwanbeck plays.

I don't regret playing football at Bates. I love the game of rugby and the team we have is an eclectic group of former high school athletes who wanted to remain active but for one reason or another did not want to play a varsity sport. It has also showed me a unique sports culture. While being on the rugby pitch is a battle and tempers can flare, afterwards it is all smiles, with competing teams having a meal together and getting to know one another. There is also such a wide range of personalities who play rugby that literally every one is interesting with a unique story and angle on the sport. I encourage anyone curious about rugby to go to a practice or two. Who knows, you

might discover you like it. I

Josh Galvin is a 2004 graduate

of Nantucket High School