Make It A Rugby Weekend

There’s no college football game being played at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, S.C. this weekend.  And even if there was, it would no doubt result in yet another University of South Carolina loss.

So why not use USC’s bye week to check out one of the Southeast’s most unsung athletic traditions?  You know, one of the few Columbia-based athletic teams that the University hasn’t managed to scare off?

We’re talking about rugby, people, a sport that makes American football (at any level) look positively tame by comparison.

Specifically, we’re referring to the Columbia Olde Grey – the Capital City’s oldest athletic club – which is facing off this Saturday in its annual grudge match against the Charleston Outlaws.

“Forget Clemson and Carolina,” one rugby enthusiast tells FITS.  “When it comes to physical sports, there is only one real rivalry in the Palmetto State.”

“The only game that matters is the Columbia game,” Charleston’s flamboyant Welsh Head Coach Chris “Taffy” Greenslade tells FITS. “No self respecting Outlaw gives a damn about getting to the Sweet Sixteen or winning the National Championship. The Old Grey scalp is sacrosanct and Oh boy do they know it!”

The rivalry – which kicks off the 2009-10 conference schedule for both teams – has been dominated in recent years by Charleston, but the upstart Columbia squad pulled off an upset win a year ago (a shutout, no less) and are the reigning Palmetto Champions.  Both squads play in USA Rugby’s Division II, which also has teams in Greenville, Augusta, Charlotte and Wilmington.

“Charleston, I hate to say, has been the most successful club in the Palmetto Union in recent years, and they have done this at our expense too often,” Olde Grey President Matthew Foxworth told FITS. “But Columbia has been building and working harder than ever. We have a new coaching structure, new blood and a group of guys with a real drive to take down those lightweight, low country boys.”

Rugby itself is also is enjoying a resurgence these days.

Last month, the International Olympic Committee approved the game for inclusion in the 2016 and 2020 Olympics.  There’s also a major motion picture about the sport due to be released next month.  Directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon, Invictus tells the story of South African president Nelson Mandela – who used the 1995 Rugby World Cup to unite his country after the fall of apartheid.

Saturday’s “Rug off” is set for 2:00 p.m. at Owens Field, which is located next to the downtown Columbia Airport (1400 Jim Hamilton Boulevard).

Admission is free.

UPDATE: Sic Willie, “Shorty” and Uncle Deets were among the crowd at Saturday’s game, which Charleston won 33-11 (although we’re not 100% sure on that score).  We had a blast and can’t wait to watch another match!

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