Giving Rugby a Try

When parents think about youth sports for their kids to play, rugby isn't likely the first to come to mind. In fact, many parents would probably be surprised to know that youth rugby in the Metroplex is even an option. But, it is. The Alliance Rugby Club is based in northern Tarrant County, and has existed since 2002. Founded by a number of former "ruggers" that had kids interested in playing rugby like their dads, the club has grown to include almost 100 participants ranging in age from nine to adult. Alliance fields five teams, including an under-11 side, under-13, under-15, under-19, and a men's side. The U-19 team, considered the varsity high school side, won a state title last year. Many parents would probably worry about the dangers of youth rugby, but Alliance head coach Doug Neubauer thinks rugby, especially at the youth level, fails to live up to its vicious reputation. "It is a contact sport, so injuries do happen," Neubauer began, "However, there's no blocking. In football, you can run down the field and get smacked by a guy you never saw coming. That doesn't normally happen in rugby. If you have the ball, you get tackled. If they guy in front of you has the ball you tackle him. There are a few other times where there is some contact without the ball, but for the most part, if you don't have the ball you're not getting hit like you are in football. "In football, you line up and every play everybody hits," he continued. "You might go several minutes without contact in rugby." Neubauer also stressed that safety is at the front of club's mission, and that proper technique is taught from the very beginning. "Safety is a big issue," he said. "Parents get all weirded out about rugby and the reputation it has, so when we teach tackling we do a lot of technique work and it's based on safety for the tackler and the tacklee. Big hits are a part of it, but it's supposed to be safe for everybody." There are so many options for kids these days, ranging from individual activities to team sports, so why would a kid want to play rugby? Neubauer thinks he knows. "If they like a contact sport, they'll like it more than soccer," he said. "If they are a football player who never gets to run with the ball, they'll love rugby. The other thing I think that draws kids is that basically they call their own plays. Coaches coach on Tuesday and Thursday and [in games] the players play and make their own decisions."