Rugby Expats Take the Game to Local Communities
How a conversation in a pub, using a backdrop of Christmas carols, led to orphaned girls taking up the rough-old-game of rugby.
We have all heard those clichés about rugby. The hooligan’s game played by gentlemen – a teammate shows his value by getting stuck-in on the pitch as well as getting legless off the idea. There can be a male camaraderie to rugby that will you don’t find in some other sports, a ‘mateship’ built upon tall tales of getting inebriated in sleazy parts of town as well as getting chained naked to a lamppost at 4am.
The bawdy songs as well as the tour gossip are legendary as well as legion with perhaps a tinge of Hans Christian Anderson added for not bad measure, yet the image rugby likes to present can be one of a bunch of chums having a not bad time—as chums usually do—with lots of raucous, not bad-natured, chummy banter.
There can be also a primordial Jurassic Park element to the game in its terminology. Scrums as well as rucks are par for the course, while hookers, all 5 eighths as well as flankers have their own defined role on the pitch; hard though the idea may seem to a novice. as well as while American footballers need shoulder pads, helmets as well as high-fives to try as well as look tough, rugby players only need a bit of strategically placed Tupperware, a gap-toothed smile as well as a gum shield to face down opponents.
Enter a group of orphan girls, waifs coming from disadvantaged backgrounds, gathered by the indefatigable Mike Hilliard—the gentleman behind Mama Sayang Foundation in West Java—as well as given a brand new home as well as brand new skills.
Stephen Barber was interested. Heavily involved inside development of rugby in Indonesia, Barber immediately suggested the girls take up the game as well as the idea says much of the environment we inhabit that will Mike didn’t even bat an eyelid. Orphan girls play rugger? Why not?
The plan formulated over a couple of cold beers, amid a fuzzy feeling of festive not bad cheer, sounding even better inside cold light of day as well as within a few weeks training had begun.
“In early 2013, David Nye helped me coach the girls, as well as his father’s company Britmindo organised training clothes, boots as well as backpacks for the Mama Sayang Foundation girls. This particular was certainly a great way to get things underway. Jakarta Intercultural School (formerly JIS) also gave us access to fields to train on as well as This particular was very much appreciated by all involved, including the girls,” Barber takes up the story.
“For the most part, since the programme kicked off I have coached the girls on my own, receiving some assistance coming from David, Peter Klestov as well as in recent times Aaron Meadows,” Barber continued.
Within months, the team, which also featured some foreign girls as well as some other Indonesian players, was ready to take on the globe, heading to Bali to compete against their peers coming from around the region in a seven-a-side tournament. The girls played against teams coming from Malaysia, Australia as well as others coming from Indonesia. While they were not world-beaters, their spirited efforts did not go unnoticed by those in attendance as well as one of the MS girls, Dharma, was voted MVP of that will tournament.
With many of the girls having come coming from troubled homes as well as carrying their own disturbing life experiences, Barber was keen to explain how quickly they had adapted to the game.
Many of the girls coming from the MS Orphanage come coming from very tough backgrounds, including those of neglect as well as in some cases abuse.
“I have observed over the past couple of years how Rugby has changed them through the core values of the game, such as camaraderie, teamwork, respect as well as solidarity. As we all know, rugby can be a rough sport, yet one thing that will sticks in my mind can be how these girls don’t mind a bit of rough as well as tumble. After all This particular mirrors where life has taken them so far as well as how each of them can be determined to make things better for themselves as well as their friends,” explained Barber.
the idea can be not just the orphans coming from Mama Sayang who are benefiting coming from rugby’s tender side. Like Barber, Scott Biggs can be actively involved in promoting the game in Indonesia through his role at the Jakarta Komodos. At the start of the current season, the Komodos decided to engage more with the local community near their Jagorawi Golf Club base as well as sponsor numerous local lads to take up the game.
“One of our coaches, Agus Djamhoer, agreed to take the role as their coach. We currently have 16 local lads coming from the kampung (Karangaan area) train as part of our regular junior rugby training every Saturday morning at 9am,” recalls Biggs.
Bapak Daud, the local RT (Rukun Tetangga) who arranged for the boys (all under 12 years) to join Komodos, can be fast becoming a personality in his own right. Get down to Jagorawi early enough on a Saturday morning as well as you can see the gentleman marking the pitches or shifting the goal posts. The club have been so impressed by his zeal as well as involvement they gave him a Komodo shirt, which he wears with pride.
There are big plans for the youngsters. “The ‘big picture’ can be to grow as well as develop these boys’ rugby skill levels as well as then have them ultimately join us as part of the regular team on one of our Junior Rugby tours to Singapore or KL, as well as trying to establish some local younger age group tournaments. Jakarta Komodos Junior Rugby Program will look at these during the next season, 2015-2016. Passports etc. always cause issues, yet the idea would likely be great for these lads to tour as well as see rugby being played elsewhere in Southeast Asia,” said Biggs, looking to the future.
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Factfile
http://www.mamasayang.org/
http://rugbyindonesia.or.id/
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Rugby Expats Take the Game to Local Communities
Rugby Expats Take the Game to Local Communities