Kings of the Mountain: Upper Valley Rugby Club Wins New England Title

After its inaugural New England Rugby Football Union season ended under less-than-ideal circumstances in 2016, the Upper Valley Rugby Club entered this year determined to make a statement to both itself and the league.

Did it ever.

“It’s significant, because we put a lot of hard work, commitment and heart into our team this year. I’m proud of the teamwork and effort we achieved this year,” said team captain Zac Conaway.

Read the full article via the Valley News originally posted Wednesday, November 08, 2017.

If You Scrum It ...

What started out as a handful of rugby enthusiasts horsing around in the snow behind the Witherell Recreation Center last January is now the Upper Valley Mountain Men, a squad less than two weeks away from formal league play in the New England Rugby Football Union.

What started out as a handful of rugby enthusiasts horsing around in the snow behind the Witherell Recreation Center last January is now the Upper Valley Mountain Men, a squad less than two weeks away from formal league play in the New England Rugby Football Union.

Read the full article via the Valley News originally posted Saturday, August 20, 2016.

In the News: Mountain Men Recruiting

The Upper Valley Mountain Men are looking to build depth in their ranks for the upcoming club rugby campaign and will start the process with an open practice next week.

Under the auspices of the Upper Valley Rugby Club, the Mountain Men completed an undefeated season in New England Rugby Football Union Division IV last fall, gaining promotion to D-III this season. The club will get things rolling with a workout open to anyone interested in learning more about rugby from 5:45-7:30 on June 27 at the former Lebanon Junior High School field on Bank Street.

The workout is open to all men and women regardless of past experience with the sport. The workouts will emphasize the basics, such as passing, safe tackling, rules and field positions. Each practice will conclude with a game of touch rugby, allowing new members to put their new skills to work.

Read the full article via the Valley News originally posted Friday, June 22, 2018.

A Kick on the Floor: UV Rugby Club Takes Game Indoors

Yes, there is such a thing as indoor touch rugby, and it looks like a blast.

The Upper Valley Mountain Men have been active during the winter months, staging informal pickup outings every other week in the Lebanon Middle School gymnasium.

After going 7-2 and finishing second to Monadnock last autumn during its inaugural New England Rugby Football Union (NERFU) Division IV season, Upper Valley’s players are keeping the game fresh on their minds while using the outings as a recruiting tool. A fair number of newcomers have shown up for one or more of the untimed, unscored contests, introducing them to the fundamental rules and skills of the game, minus much of the physicality.

It’ll be a different story once the spring scrimmage season kicks off in mid-April, but for now, playing on a gym floor beats what the club was doing last winter.

Read the full article via the Valley News originally posted Sunday, February 12, 2017.

A Great Volunteer Team

Via the Mascoma River Greenway:

Members of the Men’s and Women’s teams of the Upper Valley Rugby Club put forth an amazing effort on Tuesday night and moved the MRG Pocket Park closer to completion. President Brian Frampton and his club mates dug out sod, applied mulch to flower beds, and did some serious digging to install wood chips under the picnic tables.

Read the full article originally posted Wednesday, August 1, 2018.

Everybody’s Rugby Team

It takes a special kind of athlete to play rugby. One who enjoys the challenge of a hybrid sport that involves continuous running, kicking and carrying the ball, being tackled, and passing only sideways and backwards. For the members of the Upper Valley Rugby Football Club, however, the sport is more than just a game with unusual rules, mud in your eye, and a checkered history. The Mountain Men (men’s team) and the Valkyries (women’s team) consider community service projects and genuine goodwill toward their teammates and opponents an essential part of the game.

Read the full article via the Lebanon Times originally posted Monday, August 27, 2018.