Ohio Elite Rugby capped a successful weekend on Sunday in Obetz with a convincing win over the Michigan selected side. Ohio outscored its opponents from Michigan and Allegheny by a combined score of 162-3 over two matches in two days.
“Dominating,” Ohio head coach Brandon Wolfe said. “We played even better today than yesterday. Every facet of the game minus that little penalty in the end where they scored. We basically gave up no points all weekend, which is excellent. I thought we did great work.”
The eastern half of the Midwest Rugby Local Area Union competition was a prequel to the finals of the tournament, which will see the winners of the east meet the prevailing western team. The western half includes teams from Chicago, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa.
All 28 players that suited up for the Ohio side over the weekend were from upper-level men’s rugby clubs and Division I or II teams in the state. Ohio’s finest showcased why the sport of rugby is growing both in Ohio and regionally.
“It’s very popular in Ohio,” Wolfe said. “It varies on state, but in Ohio it’s popular. There’s more men’s teams in Ohio than in most states. The two best high school teams are in Cleveland, they’re number one and number two in the country. Notre Dame College is in Cleveland, they won the national championship in Division II last year.”
Being eye level as a spectator at a rugby match that features a talented team like Ohio Elite is invigorating. The action fluctuates between open runs and drawn-out scrums. Late in the match four different Ohio players broke off runs that nearly spanned the length of the field.
The physicality is on center stage as well during a high-level rugby match. The on-site trainer was kept busy helping banged up players. The love of the game wasn’t hard to see on a Sunday morning that featured 40-50 unpaid players putting it all on the line.
“Some of these guys are in the best shape of their lives right now,” Wolfe said. “They run all the time and do a lot of physical fitness. It’s physical, but everybody’s prepared. It’s our job as coaches.”
Columbus recently lost its professional team in the Ohio Aviators due to the league, PRO Rugby, folding. But Columbus still has a Division I-level team in town. Wolfe has faith that the team will build back up. There’s been a men’s Division I club in Columbus for as long as he can remember. Eight Columbus rugby players play for Wolfe and Ohio Elite.
The room to grow is clear on each and every level for Rugby in the Ohio area. The end game may be landing a Major League Rugby (MLR) team someday.
“Potentially,” Wolfe said. “I think potentially if it’s going to grow. I know there’s two teams from New York and Chicago that are supposed to join the group next year. They’ve already put deposits down. They don’t want to make the same mistakes from before of going into debt, growing too fast and then it just fails out. They’re going to try to slowly grow. But I definitely think Ohio could be in the mix.”
