This page created by Lauren Schieb
W&J Women's Rugby Club
I love the color pink. I fit the definition of a "girly girl" to a tee. I have trouble even killing flies. I am happy to be a member of the W&J Women's Rugby Club.
!PA280058.JPG|thumbnail,align=right! W&J has had their Women's Rugby Club for about three years founded by Jessica Landis from the class of '06. The team is coached by Chris "Murph" Anderson and is part of the American Rugby Union and USA Rugby. The club competes in the Allegheny Rugby Union Collegiate Division, and although W&J is considered a level 3 school in the division, the club often plays schools in the Division 2 Conference.
The club has both a fall and a spring season and plays neighboring schools such as Allegheny, California University, Pitt, Clarion, Slippery Rock and Juniata. In the fall the club primarily plays big dual games while in the spring they play tournaments.
The W&J Women's Rugby Club is not just a club it is a community too. The girls socialize on and off the field with themselves as well as with other schools. It is not uncommon to play an aggressive game of rugby against another school, and meet up with their girls afterwards for a social. Even the women's coach Chris Anderson drives from Morgantown, West Virginia twice a week to volunteer to help the girls.
!PA280031.JPG|thumbnail,align=left! Any girl at W&J is eligible to play rugby. There are no prerequisites in experience needed, just a mouth guard and a pair of cleats! It takes fifteen girls to fill a rugby field, and because the W&J Women's Club is small in size, every girl has an opportunity to play.
Overall the W&J Women's Club still remains a work in progress. We have a team of dedicated girls, yet we are always looking for new players. Oftentimes girls say they are scared of playing and getting hurt, but it doesn't hurt to give it a try. If I can do it, I think anyone can!
"Girls Can't Play Rugby"
*Based on an interview conducted on March 3, 2007-Jessica Johnston-Junior, W&J Women's Rugby Club President
If I was asked to describe rugby in one word, I would say awesome! I have played rugby now for the W&J Women's Rugby Club for about two years, and now am the club's resident President. I was motivated to join the sport from fellow friends and sorority sisters, Jess Landis and Megan Wilson.
Oftentimes the girls will hear comments such as girls can't play rugby, and my response to that is at first a look of disgust followed by, "I will play the very person who made that comment in a game of rugby." On a national level girls who play rugby are made out to be "butch," and at W&J they are oftentimes associated with the Pi Phi Sorority that a lot of the team members are a part of, but I think if people came out and saw our team they would be surprised by our girls.
The game of rugby is full of contact, aggressive, and fast moving. One of my favorite aspects of playing rugby is I know that I get my workout in for the week, but it is also the memories too. Last fall I had my favorite rugby memory when I scored my first try at home against Juniata and a lot of my friends were in the crowd. In the future I would love to learn as much about rugby as possible and maybe even coach it one day.
One of the biggest challenges we have as a club is getting girls to come out for the team, because they see how we are bruised and broken following games. I would encourage girls to just give it a try and if they have any questions feel free to contact anyone on the rugby team!
Rugby in Prom Dresses
!PB030082.JPG|thumbnail,align=left! Rugby and prom dresses-two items that wouldn't ordinarily go together, but at the Juniata Hellbender Formal they definitely do. Every year the Juniata Women's Rugby Club sponsors a charity game for a battered women's shelter. Their catch phrase is, "Leaving violence on the field."
This year the W&J Women's Rugby Club attended the 9th annual Hellbender Formal on Saturday November 4th. The hellbender is the unofficial mascot of the Juniata Women's team and therefore the title their charity event is named after it.
Before going to the tournament many of the girls went to Goodwill to buy dresses, made their own, or pulled out old high school formal dresses. The tournament consists of teams playing rugby games in formal attire. The game is really all about having fun, and getting to meet girls from other schools all for a good cause. 
Although Juniata College is about a three hour drive, the W&J Women's Rugby Club has a built a strong relationship with the girls throughout the years. During the game, rugby is played the same exact way, except with the special touch of a dress that is both constricting and easier to pull down than normal rugby attire. In order to raise money for the battered women's shelter each club brings a monetary contribution to participate in the tournament. During the tournament each school plays at least two games and then progresses onward depending upon the number of wins.
Overall the tournament was a large success for the girls this year, and they raised over $2,250 dollars for the charity which was way over their target mark. The normal game time pressure was taken off the girl's shoulders, and the ability to help other women was constantly remembered. Even though girls are often told they can't play rugby, they in fact can--and in prom dresses too!
Where to Start
- In order to begin to play rugby it is easiest just to contact Bridget Gruber: gruberbm@washjeff.edu or Kristin Kilgore: kilgorekd@washjeff.edu
- Ask when and where practices are and show up!
- One more important message: Be sure to have a mouth guard for the first practice. They are only about $1 at Wal-Mart!
- You will also need to buy a pair of cleats--You can get soccer or rugby cleats. They are very easy to find at Dick's Sporting Goods or other sporting good stores.
- Remember to take a chance and try rugby out. If I can do it, you can too!!
Links
http://clubs.juniata.edu/womensrugby/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rugby_union
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_and_Jefferson_Rugby_Club
http://www.alleghenyrugby.org/
W&J Women's Rugby Club
