By Alfonso De Falco
Contributing Writer
The St. Bonaventure University men’s and women’s rugby teams have found a new way to add more members to the Bonaventure rugby program and strengthen its future.
The St. Bonaventure Rugby Club will host the inaugural Bonnies High School Boys Rugby Challenge Cup on Saturday. The Challenge Cup will provide a setting for the high school rugby players to compete in a college-level atmosphere on the university’s state-of-the-art turf field.
The four high school teams that will participate in the event are Kenmore, Orchard Park, Canisius and Fairport. While the high school rugby season has not officially started, it is a chance teams to prepare for it.
Beginning with their High School Summer Camp, which started in 2013 for the men, the program could gain prospective students interested in playing rugby at the college level. This weekend, the program hopes to show some positive results by giving the team some insight as to what the incoming prospects may be like in the future.
“The high school tournament itself is a great way for Bonaventure to get exposure to rugby players in the local area,” said Patrick Hogan, the current team president.
The games will kick off at 10 a.m. with Kenmore vs. Orchard Park. Each team will participate in three games, with the game time reduced to 20-minute halves, with a five-minute halftime period.
The team with the most wins, and point differential comes out on top as the Cup winner. In the event of a tie, the team with the most total tries will win the Cup. A try is the equivalent of a touchdown in football.
On top of playing games at the university, players will be able to take a tour of the campus, meet the coaching staff, as well as current members of the team.
“We’re giving the opportunity to a minimum of 120 kids to see this school, to play on our new turf field and to see the backdrop and the campus itself,” said Hogan.
Also taking place this weekend will be a rugby clinic between Saint Joseph Academy, an all-girls high school in Cleveland, Ohio, and the girls Western New York Lightning All-Stars, coached by St. Bonaventure women’s rugby coach Clarence Picard. There will be two separate camps on Saturday, followed by two scrimmages on Sunday.
Picard focused on how first impressions this weekend are huge for potential prospects.
“Seeing the St. Bonaventure campus was one of my biggest influences,” said Picard, who is also a former player. “SBU rugby students do a great job making positive impacts to the kids that visit.”
Before the tournament, the program already got interest from other rugby programs, saying they want to sign up for next year’s event. The coaching staff also wants to expand the tournament by inviting other high schools outside of Western New York, like Gonzaga High School in Washington D.C., or Xavier High School in Manhattan.
“These kids have special affinity with the game of rugby, it is something that excites them,” added Picard.
The tournament itself has a lot of potential. The high school summer camp began with just 30 kids in 2013, and has almost doubled as of this past summer. This high school tournament, along with this past Presidents Day Rugby Clinic for high school girls and boys, gives not only the rugby teams’ exposure, but also the university in general, according to Hogan.
defalcaa13@bonaventure.edu
