Coming In Hot

Hannah Lawrence

Many underestimated the hidden skills that were found last Friday on Upper Field when some high school girls, part of the varsity rugby team, played their first ever inner-squad game.

They can only pass the ball behind them. The ball is like a football but not. They don’t wear any gear, but they run right into the other teams’ face. They get touchdowns, but they are called a Tri. Some say it is like a game of tag with a ball, but last Friday showed that it was much more than just that.

Last Friday, the girls here in high school got to experience their first ever touch-rugby game in the history of Dalat International School.  There were two teams: the Gold team and the Blue team. They were divided not by rank of skill but by girls learning together about the game. Most of these girls are athletes, but some are not and have never been on a varsity team, much less on a team. There is much diversity; with Coach Van though, they are making history.  The girls’ varsity rugby team played an inner-squad game and played with all their knowledge of the game, with only three weeks of practice.

The game of touch rugby is simple (at its core). There are two teams that consist of seven players on the field. These seven players are trying to get to the opposite side to put the rugby ball down on the other side without being touched. If they are touched, they have to put it down on the ground and walk over it, so that their other teammates can take it and run, while the other team has to back up 5 meters before touching the opponent with the ball. The Dalat girls had it down.

They played with so much intentionality while making some mistakes to learn from.  There were some injuries, such as a broken finger, sprained ankle, and bruises left and right, but as they say, “No pain, no gain.” Specifically, Abby Owen (10) said, “I like it, and I’m glad I did it. Everyone is pretty much new at the sport, but they are all encouraging and nice.”

She has never played a varsity sport, and others like her now have an opportunity that they didn’t have before. This sport has brought opportunity for these girls. This bonding experience will go down in Dalat history. And it is only the beginning.