Growing up, I played every sport under the sun. You name it, I probably played it. On every team I tried to get the same number because that was my number. It belonged to me; it was what identified me. By the time I reached college, I had lost a lot of the passion for sports that I had when I was younger. The love of the games had dwindled and I believe a lot of that has to due with the fact I was playing for the win, and most importantly for myself.
When I started rugby my freshman year of college, I was introduced to a completely new community and sense of connection. Rugby is like no other sport in the best possible way. My team is a big mixture of girls who have played for years and people like me who have never touched a rugby ball before my first practice. The team and consequently the entire rugby community opened its arms and welcomed me to the wonderful world of the only true contact sport.
Over the last three years, I have learned a lot of technical aspects of the game: how to properly tackle, the various responsibilities of each position and the difference between a rugby pass and a hospital pass. I also learned a valuable lesson about teamwork. As cheesy as it sounds, every time I step on the pitch, I am not playing for myself, I am playing for my teammates and for the pure love of the game. As I put on the jersey, pride comes over me. Not in a cocky way, but a confidence in the number on my back.
Across the world, every rugby player in my position wears the same number. At the point I step on the pitch, I am no longer representing myself. I am representing my team and every inside center in the game. This is a new feeling for me. As I said before, in other sports I had my number; now I have rugby’s number. Most sport teams, outside any rugby teams, has a specific number or set of numbers that are retired in remembrance of the contribution that player made to the sport. At a certain point though, we need to stop putting people on pedestals, but rather expect a strong character and great work ethic from everyone in the sport. Rugby does this.
Sportsmanship and determination are key aspects of any rugby team. These ideas have been drilled in my head just as much as the technical skills have been. When I play, I no longer play for myself, I play for the love of the sport. I am connected to a community greater than myself that has taught me to always get back up when you fall—or are tackled. This sport has given me bruises, cuts and bumps, but if I could go back and change one thing about my rugby career, I would've started it earlier.
I said it before, this sport is like no other in the best possible way. Your teammates run, tackle and bleed beside you on the pitch. The team is greater than the individual. They lift you up emotionally—and physically for line-outs. If you have the opportunity to join a rugby team, I promise you will not regret it.
