Rugby: An emotional touch for rugby

NEWPORT BEACH - This year’s Touch at the Beach Rugby Tournament,

which was almost canceled due to the terrorist attacks on America,

featured an emotional experience for the participants, Sept. 15.

The 15th annual touch rugby tourney hosted by the Back Bay Sharks

Rugby Club of Newport Beach was dedicated to Mark Bingham, a rugby player

from the Olympic Club in San Francisco.

Bingham, who was one of the passengers on board United Airlines Flight

93 which crashed in rural Pennsylvania, was among those who apparently

fought with the hijackers, forcing the plane to crash short of its

intended target.

Banners supporting the American pride surrounded the field and

American flags hung from palm trees and makeshift flagpoles all over

Peninsula Park.

A moment of silence was observed and over $100 was collected for the

Red Cross and will be donated on behalf of the Back Bay Sharks Rugby

Club.

The tournament also featured the exciting dynamics of touch rugby, the

non-contact version of the sport.

Among the competitors, collegiate clubs from Claremont College and UC

Irvine and women’s teams from San Diego were on hand. Also, teams from

Santa Monica, Long Beach, and Huntington Beach, as well as teams from

Costa Mesa and Newport Beach joined the action.

The Del Mar Exiles edged Da Boyz of San Diego in the championship

game, 2-1. The Del Mar Hoodz took third place, beating the School of Hard

Knocks from Newport Beach for the prize money.

In the women’s exhibition match, the Hoodz Women’s team defeated

Ghetto Booty in another close game, while Claremont College edged out

UCI, 2-0, to take the Collegiate title.

The Back Bay Rugby Football Club can be contacted online at

www.backbayrfc.com or by phone at (949) 675-6799 and the club welcomes

new or experienced players to join the club. Back Bay Rugby Football Club

plays the Olympic Club Oct. 20 in San Francisco, which is the final game

of the Major League Rugby regular season.