AURUFC Newsletter 2019 - Make sure you enable images!

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AU Sharks
Gay & Inclusive team
There is no better way to fully appreciate what it means to be part of the sharks than to hear from them
 

Growing up in rural NSW Soccer was my sport of choice and was the more popular sport alongside AFL. Since moving to Adelaide approx. 5 years ago I have wanted to get back into sport but didn’t really know where to start. Through meeting Pete at work he would often spruik the idea of rugby as he told tales of his numerous injuries and match day antics. While I had never really thought about rugby, it did sound like fun.

When Pete told me that he was working on getting an academy for gay and inclusive players together my interest was really piqued. On the first come and try day I had absolutely no idea what to expect but soon found that were a number of others who were in the same boat as me and had either never played before or hadn’t played in a long time which was quite exciting.

We got straight in the basic skills of rugby with tackling and passing drills and before long we training in what was dubbed typical rugby weather with misty rain and lots of mud. The drills were quite fun and it was great to get to know everyone afterwards over a few beers and a bbq. It quickly became apparent what rugby meant to the people who came along to help out, whether they were coaches or players from other grades.

Fast forward 7 weeks and the Sharks are really starting to look like a team and you can really see the difference that training has made thank to our coach Dan. Training has been really fun but were are really working as a team and honing our skills. Its great as we have a few players that have come back to rugby and they are great for explaining things and adding to Dan and Pete’s expertise.

Recently Cam, Nate, and myself were getting ready play our first ever game of rugby at Ballymore for the Purchas cup. We were all quite nervous but more excited at the fact that we we’re going to debuting at the hallowed ground for Australian Rugby. Upon arriving at the stadium we only had the opportunity for quick introductions before jumping into a quick pre match training session. The support both on and off the field was awesome. We went on to the field only knowing that the ball goes backwards and players go forward but the adrenaline of being on the field played its part and the before long we were one try down.
 

The support of the players was amazing in the way that they coached us through our positions and told us where we needed to be but the spirit of the game really showed not after our 20 point win against Perth Rams but in the locker rooms leading up to our final match against Sydney Convicts. For me, the feeling was surreal. Tommy Tucker (our Barbarians coach) spoke of the importance of rugby as an inclusive sport and that as a gay and inclusive team we need to survive and show others that there is a place for them. This really resonated with me and I truly understood the power of the sport and what it means to be a Shark.

- Ryan Cox

 

Three months into Shark life and things are swimming well…

We can get our jaws out for a big smile…
Enough puns - but things are going great.
Twenty guys have signed up for the training option and are learning rugby step by step under Coach Dan’s instruction. On average, 10 – 15 guys show up to the Academy no matter the weather and many are stepping up to the challenges of their ‘first tackle contact’. It is amazing how far these guys have come in three months. Amongst the group are some returns to rugby, guys who left other clubs for their own reasons, returning knowing they can be themselves. Others are brand new, holding that ball for the first time, learning to pass, run and catch.
 

Purchas Cup was the first opportunity for the AU Sharks to get some game time. It is the biannual tournament held in odd numbered years (2019, 2021) for Australasia’s gay and inclusive Clubs. This year, the event was hosted by the Brisbane Hustlers and played on Ballymore – a hallowed rugby union turf of Queensland.

Three Sharks - Nate Gould, Ryan Cox and Cameron Forster were joined by AU player Andrew Rusk, an American and LGBT ally who came to our Club late in the season. These boys stepped up to the game as part of the Barbarians team. They met their teammates from around Australia an hour before the first match and carefully listened to the instructions of Coach Tom Tucker from the Sydney Convicts.

The first Friday night match was against Purchas newcomers Perth Rams. Rams showed much potential, but the Barbarians proved a stronger force that gelled into a team early to finish Barbarians 20 v Rams 0, including a try from our own Rusk. Our representatives came off that field pumped. The new Sharks were excited, ‘We get it. That’s what this drill was for. It all makes sense.’

This win took the Barbarians into the division two final – the Purchas Shield. Saturday was warm and Ballymore was soaking in the Brisbane sunshine that we Adelaideans had not experienced for a while. The Barbarians has some new faces from Melbourne and Perth, but quickly formed as a squad again. Our challengers, Convicts B proved too strong this year with the 32:0 win. Barbarians were always strong in defence.

What stood out in the matches was the skills the boys came possessed on the field. Nate showed some great support coming in for the clean outs and Cameron remembered to protect the ball away from the opposition during tackles when on the attack. Ryan showed a jack of many trades picked up during the Academy, accepting each challenge as it arose. Best of all, the Sharks proved they’re coachable, listening to instructions from teammates like Andrew and keeping to the plan from Coach Tucker.

As many know, rugby is as much about off field as it is on and it was fantastic to see the boys overcome that difficult charge of melding a Barbarians team and take it that next step further, mixing and networking with the players and staff of other teams. Many new friends were made, drinks shared and stories left on tour….

We AU members can be very proud the Sharks who represented us. It was the first time playing, the landed tackle and the team tries scored that allowed these guys fall in love with the Spirit of Rugby.
Let’s see what happens with Bingham Cup – 2020 – Ottawa Canada. It’s the world version of Purchas.

- Peter 

Juniors Presentation

Congratulations to all those that won awards. This year has been an incredibly successful year in the juniors with our U12s making finals for the first time as well as it was the first year we have had an U16s team.
With the juniors only getting better and stronger, AURugby is well set up for a fantastic 2020!
 

Trevor Knight Award
Highest honour awarded at AURugby in the juniors
 

For years now we have awarded juniors that have demonstrated certain qualities the Trevor Knight award. Janice Knight has kindly written a piece on on the importance of this award to us as a club and the qualities it represents.

Trevor Knight loved rugby.  He loved that it is a game that anyone can play, at any level.  He loved the  spirit of rugby - the camaraderie, the cooperation, the loyalty, the respect for opponents, the laws (never the rules)  and the deep friendships that grow between those involved in the game.

He was also a dedicated administrator.  He wanted things to be well organised, so that everyone was fairly treated.  He played, pretty averagely, at University, then when he joined the Royal Australian Navy, he played in Melbourne, and in various places around the Pacific, when he was at sea on HMAS Swan and later in Sydney and Perth.  

When we moved to Armidale after a rugbyless stint in Mount Isa, he got involved again.  He was invited to join the Senior Common Room of St Alberts College, and, as he was only in his early thirties, thought he would see if he could play rugby with the students.  It took them about five minutes to realise that he would be their coach, and invited him to fill that position.

He took the task seriously, got his referee’s ticket, read, listened and absorbed the game.  The College was new, and numbers were small, so they entered the comp at third grade level.  Most of the players were new to the code.

Another facet of Trevor, was that if he was involved, so were we.  I washed jerseys, and occasionally drove injured players to outpatients.  Our children were always at matches and after match functions.   Emily’s 4th birthday was celebrated in the change rooms after an away match in Inverell.  The players were mostly away from home, as UNE was residential, and the fact that Trevor’s whole family was involved was a lesson in partnership.

Over the years, Albies thrived and won some premierships.  We had two Wallabies of our own, Damien Smith and Peter Lucas.  As well he became involved in the administration of New England Rugby Union.  He coached New England one year.  As well, he became a NSW Country Selector. 

He never thought that he knew everything, and sought help from more knowledgeable people.  One of his master strokes was to invite Alan Roper, one of Australia’s great rugby coaches to go the Armidale to raise the level of play in the Club.  Alan became a dear friend, and visited often.

Through rugby, he had a network of old players, Wallabies and experts some of whom have visited this Club.

For him, the Spirit of Rugby is inclusiveness, contribution, generosity of time and spirit, friendship, loyalty.  From Under Eight to Over Eighty, we can all share in the spirit.  The young players who were recognised on Sunday are showing that they get it big time.  Trevor would be so proud of them, especially the people who have received the Trophy named for him.

Help for an important cause
 

There is a long and rich between AURUFC and Barossa Rams. The Rams have always put on a fantastic day, with an atmosphere around their club that brings to life the true greatness of what community sport is all about. However, Barossa Rams are facing difficulties with their home grounds. We would ask all supporters or rugby to please read the PDF attached and reach out to help this fantastic club.

Please click here for a PDF on how to help Barossa Rams

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