photo credit: Malak Chahboub
The Olentangy Blues rugby team, which plays under the non-profit organizations USA Rugby and Rugby Ohio, has been rebuilt since 2019, and the players are now approaching their upcoming season. The Blues had many successful wins last season, having an overall record of 11-13, as well as winning their second state title; defeating Hudson 29-7 in the Division I club final.
There are two different types of rugby: fifteens rugby, where there are eight players in the front and seven players in the back, and sevens rugby, which is when both teams have seven players on each side; all games are played in the span of 80 minutes consisting of two 40-minute halves. From a distance, rugby resembles American football, but the rules, uniforms, field playing and more, all differentiate.
“The tackling and blocking techniques differ; in rugby you can grab onto a player’s jersey to tackle them while in football you can’t,” senior player Camden Belinger said. “It depends on the style of rugby you are playing. In sevens rugby, yes, but fifteens not so much.”
In fifteens rugby, each player has their own specific playing role; the eight players in the front (forwards) make up the scrum and in the back, the players are divided into groups of three, half-backs, three-quarterbacks and full backs. Each of these roles are very important and vital for the team to pull off a win.
“The importance in the position I play is definitely getting the ball out and hammering the ball over and over again into the other team, so jukes or nothing just straight head on into the team to help get us down the field,” senior player Brock Fisher said. “Also, the biggest part is tackling when it comes to the position. You can’t second guess yourself once, or it might be game over.”
A major key to the Blues’ success will be how they support each other on and off the field. Players need coaches and teammates who will push one another and still stick together.
“The culture of the team I play on is something that’s hard to describe unless you’re within the team. We have all been playing together for six years so it’s definitely something special to be a part of, and they are family for sure,” Fisher said. “We push each other to the max every practice, and we get mad at each other sometimes, but at the end of the day we are all brothers.”
The Olentangy Blues are in pre-season currently, meaning the players are working toward the new rugby season by conditioning and basic practice at Olentangy Orange Middle School. The Blues is an all-district club team; rugby isn’t yet recognized as an OHSAA (Ohio High School Athletic Association) sport. However, the Olentangy district and other schools like Dublin and Saint Ignatius all have club rugby programs as well, so the Blues compete against those teams.
The team has only four months until the first game, and it has already outlined some goals to accomplish.
“The one team goal we have as of right now is winning another state championship,” Belinger said. Last season, the Blues won their second title on June 3 at Fortress Obetz.
For a sport like rugby, communication is extremely vital. If something is miscommunicated, it throws off the team’s game, but that’s what drives these players.
“The driving factor for our team to come out with a victory is definitely without a doubt our preparation leading up to the game,” Fisher said. “We are always confident in what our assignments are and our jobs that when it comes to the game there is no confusion whatsoever and no question in what we are doing on the field.”
