Women’s rugby ready to start hitting Saturday
Utah State University’s women’s rugby team kicks off its season this Saturday at 11 a.m. against the Salt Lake Slugs in Murray, Utah. Hannah Turner, head coach for the Aggies, said the girls will have to play to their strengths if they want to beat the Slugs.
“We’re definitely going to have to depend on our fitness,” Turner said. “Experience is great, but you also need fitness.”
Turner said she thinks the Aggies, will be in better shape than the Slugs because most of the players on the Salt Lake-based team are alumni of USU and in their 30’s or 40’s and have a lot of previous experience.
Being in better shape than the Slugs will be critical if USU’s club team wants to leave Murray with a victory. The Aggies have about 30 players on the roster and only nine of those players were on the team last season. The game versus the Slugs will be a learning experience for the Aggies because so many of USU’s players haven’t played together, or played the game at all.
“The first game is always a learning experience just because rugby is such a foreign sport to so many people,” Turner said. “You realize the fast pace of the game and the level of intensity that’s required where there are no timeouts, there are no huddles, there are no breaks.”
Turner said the Slugs will be a good team for the Aggies to play at the beginning of the season because the two teams have a good relationship with one another.
“We have a very good relationship with the Salt Lake Slugs,” she said. “Rugby is such a great little community where the other team will recognize that for a lot of people it’s their first game. And so we’ll actually be able to break things down and say ‘you just got laid out, here’s why.'”
In spite of USU’s youth and inexperience, Turner said the Aggies “definitely” have a chance to beat the Slugs.
Last season, USU’s injury-riddled team won less than half of its games. Turner, a senior, was among those injured last season, suffering from tears in her ACL and meniscus. Turner said she expects the team to do better than they did last year because of senior team captain Shannan Woolley. Woolley, who is one of the few players returning from last season, said she’s looking forward to the team’s first game of the fall.
“I’m always excited for a rugby game,” said Woolley, who dislocated her thumb last season.
Turner also said she’s looking forward to the game.
“I mean, it’s always fun,” said Turner. “Whether you’re getting laid out, you’re laying someone else out, or you’re just watching people get laid out. It’s always a good time.”
Woolley and Turner agreed on what the single best aspect of rugby is – tackling. Turner elaborated a bit further on why tackling is her favorite part of the game.
“You’ll know it when you hit the right spot,” said Turner. “It’s just knocking the wind out of them when their back hits the ground.”
– blaze.bullock@gmail.com
(CAPTION: THE UTAH STATE WOMEN’S RUGBY TEAM practices on the HPER field on Tuesday afternoon. The team is young and untested, but not lacking in talent. They will play their first game this Saturday when they take on the Salt Lale Slugs in Murray, Utah. ADAM NETTINA photo)