Fledgling Rugby Team Seeks Membership
As the Rugby Team begins its first year at North Park, it looks for enough members to start competing against other Chicago area teams. After gaining CLASS approval, the team has been practicing on Tuesday evenings with approximately five or six people with varying levels of experience, according to team founder David Englund.
Englund, a senior exercise science major, said that the plan for the team is to compete against other rugby teams at DePaul University, Elmhurst College, University of Illinois at Chicago and men’s leagues like that of Lincoln Park. However, competition cannot happen until the team reaches 15 members, as that is a full team.
“Right now it’s just a group of guys getting together playing rugby for the love of the sport. I wanted to start it because when I first started playing rugby in Massachusetts a couple summers ago I liked the camaraderie and the attitude of the sport” said Englund.
Frank Wheelwright, a senior business and economics major, said he joined the team because he was wanted to try a new sport and he looks forward to competition.
“I can’t wait. I’m a little nervous because…most of the guys have never played before but I’m looking forward to playing, really seeing how the game flows and just experiencing a whole new sport that I’ve never participated in before” said Wheelwright.
The team holds practices on Tuesdays at 5:30pm on the green space. Anyone interested in joining the team should contact TJ Ruggiero at tjruggiero@vikings.northpark.edu or David Englund at denglund@vikings.northpark.edu.