Rugby lessons, Rugby questions

Some days I have to rack my brain for story ideas, and other days, I get an email or a phone call or some conversation turns into a bigger story than what it appears to be. This was the case when I was reminded of the Norwich women's rugby team. Now, I don't know the first thing about rugby, other than most schools don't sanction it and certainly the NCAA does not.

Here are some quotes from coach Austin Hall and some players that I didn't use in my story in today's sports section:

“The best thing about this team is there’s so many players. She’s (senior Coral Lore) an Iraq veteran, and she brings a kind of leadership that others just can’t imagine having, just as a first-year player, essentially.” - Austin Hall

This got me thinking, with so many Corps members on athletic teams, how many have seasons interrupted by service? This seems a simple question of a military school, so it's probably been done, but how interesting. And coach Hall brings up what I did end up talking about in the story - the correlation between the military and rugby - but I think it can be applied to other sports as well. I admit I don't know the first thing about military service either, but I do know it's the biggest team effort for the country. Seems cliche to say it outloud, though.

"I’ve never been a great player, I’m a little too small, so I just got into coaching. I started a high school team at South Burlington High School. It’s hard to say no to a group of high school kids with a ball and they say, ‘What’s this? Can you show us how to do this?’ So that ended my playing career. It actually worked out well because a lot of the kids on the high school team seven years ago are now going on to play for Burlington. Burlington Men’s Club, they started in 1977. They’re not who you think – they’re doctors, lawyers.” - Austin Hall

I originally went to school for physical education, so naturally this spoke to me. I was told day after day about 'lifetime sports' - softball, walking, golf, things like that. Now, I don't think rugby is a sport just anybody can play well into their middle life, but it is interesting to me how a sport can shape an entire life - not just a childhood/adolesence/teenage/college life, but an entire life. A lot of people are fans their entire lives, but a participant? To be so devoted to a sport that you maintain a level of fitness to be competitive is a great sign for the future.

--Anna Grearson