Ruck on: local rugby squad invites teams to tournament

Established in 1972, the Mad River and Stowe clubs were separate entities before ultimately unifying in 1984. That also happened to be the year in which current club President Don Allen joined the squad as a player.

“I can’t quite seem to get it out of my blood. I’ve been around the club a long time,” said Allen. “I had a good, long stretch as a player and eventually as a captain. Then, after my playing days, I kind of tapered down because of age and injuries and I coached us for four years. About a year and a half ago the longtime president of the club tragically passed away. Then six months or so later I was named president of the club.”

The Mad River Invitational consists of eight clubs from throughout New England and New York, and is one of the oldest active rugby tournaments in the region. “We try and keep the tournament relatively upscale and interesting,” Allen said. “It’s a prestigious little tournament and quite the draw. People will travel and spend the night or weekend in Stowe. It’s a nice, tidy little tournament in a tidy little town.”

Mad River/Stowe competes in the third division of the New England Rugby Football Union. As the hosting club, it’s Mad River/Stowe’s prerogative to decide the level of competition included in the tournament and, rather than give itself an easy route to a championship, the team instead embraces adversity. The team invited only one team from its division, with the rest coming from the upper echelons.

“The idea is that we, for the most part, invite clubs that are better than us, or at least better than small town rugby,” said Allen. “Syracuse has dominated the last three or four years, but we often sneak in a victory or two. We’ve won (the tournament) once and we’ve come in second place two or three times.”

Heading into the 2018 invitational, Mad River/Stowe is in high spirits after defeating rival Burlington and placing second in a 10-team tournament in Delaware. But knowing the strong competition that awaits, Allen is keeping his expectations in check.

“I have confidence that we’ll finish in the middle of the pack,” he said. “I would love to say we’re going to win it, and we’ll certainly approach it that way. To win the final we’ll have to have all of our guns there and we’ll have to all play pretty well.”

When the Mad River/Stowe ruggers aren’t on the pitch they are active within the community, volunteering for numerous local events. They’ve assisted with the Stowe Derby, the Darn Tough Ride and North Country Animal League’s Mutt Strut. In addition, they have held rugby clinics in Morrisville and Stowe to introduce the sport to younger generations.

The opening kickoff of the Mad River Invitational is at 9 a.m., with continuous matches until 5 p.m. However, due to an expected heatwave, the tournament’s format is subject to change.

“We may have to shorten the matches or make it a single elimination tournament to prevent teams from playing too many games on a hot day,” Allen said.