SAN DIEGO – San Diego Armada Rugby Football Club (RFC) is hosting a rugby tournament Saturday Dec. 7. Four gay-inclusive rugby teams – San Diego Armada, Los Angeles Rebellion, San Francisco Fog and Seattle Quake – will all compete in the Rucktacular tournament at Robb Field, starting from 9:30 a.m. Matches will take place until 4 p.m. after which there will be a traditional rugby post-match drink up at The Hole in Point Loma. Spectators are welcome throughout the day at no charge.
Rucktacular takes place every year as a social tournament between the three California based gay/gay-inclusive teams as a preparation step in the run up to the official rugby season which runs January to April. This year it’s San Diego’s turn to host the tournament and Seattle will join in the fun too, which means that more than 100 gay and straight ally Rugby players are expected take part in Rucktacular 2013.
“Team sports can be a daunting prospect for members of the LGBT community as we may feel like we won’t fit in as ‘one of the team’ or worse, there may be homophobic or other bullying,” says Sunny Joat, president of Armada RFC. “SD Armada Rugby is a purposefully inclusive team with a mix of players where the banter ranges the spectrum of straight and gay humor but the passion for performing well on the field is equal. The Rucktacular tournament is a great chance for our community to watch some great rugby, share in our passion for the sport and experience the positive benefits of team sports.”
Members of the team will be available throughout the day to help spectators get familiar with the action on the field and to answer any questions. For anyone interested in learning more about playing rugby, there will also be some non-contact Touch Rugby learning games during the tournament, so bring shorts, T-shirt and running shoes or soccer cleats if you would like to have a go.
In addition to Saturday’s tournament action, there is a welcome reception at Hillcrest Brewing Company Friday Dec. 6 from 7 p.m., an after-party at Bear Night in Numb3rs Saturday Dec. 7 from 10 p.m. and a teams’ brunch at 7th Avenue Pub (at Wholefoods) in Hillcrest Sunday Dec. 8 from 10 a.m. There will also be a fundraiser raffle held over the weekend where the main prize is a trip for two to Las Vegas to go see the International Rugby 7s tournament Jan. 25/26 2014 (flights from SD, LA, SF or Seattle, one night hotel and weekend passes for the 7s tournament included). More information about the tournament and San Diego Armada can be found at www.sdarmada.com or call 619-734-7421.
