Could you please give me a rough idea of when practices start?

Tigers Rugby will start official practice in February or sooner if we can go outside on our game “pitch” (rugby for field).

But, on December 12th, we will begin meeting at 8:00 am every Saturday at Paul Derda Rec Center (13201 Lowell Blvd.).  There we will teach the game, and work on strength, speed training and play “touch footie” on the basketball court indoors for at least two months once per week.

Practices always last 1 hour and 45 minutes (we will be out by 10:00 after questions).

The City and County of Broomfield will alow us to use the grass fields in March if the grass is clearing by then.  Throughout the season we have 3 days-a-week practice at Aspen Creek Park on Mountain Meadow Drive and Sheridan (2 blocks south of 144th on Sheridan).

We practice on Monday, and Wednesday from 3:15 pm until 5:00 pm.  We will also have Saturday morning practices from 10-11:45  am throughout the season.

Games?

League games (An A-side match for 70 minutes and a 35 minute  B-side match) are played on Wednesdays and some Saturdays.

U-16 (Freshmen and Sophomores) play on 5 separate Mondays (two 45 minutes games a day).  We play our home games at Championship Field in Broomfield County Commons Park at 132nd and Sheridan.

How long does your season lasts?

The first league match is on February 25th.

The State Championship tournament runs from May 1st through May 15th.

How difficult is it for a 9^th grader to pick up the sport for the first time?

First time players pick up the game quickly.  There is a separate match schedule for the U-16 players, so they get plenty of game time playing against other kids their own age. We are blessed to have close associations with other coaches at other schools.

This year we may likely field two teams with full league schedules and one independent Tigers Rugby U-16 side (made up of primarily Holy Family and Pomona HS students).

How you are affiliated with the school?

Tigers Rugby is an independent non-profit corporation that has no direct affiliation with any school.

Tigers Rugby began as a program for off season training.  From 2002 through 2005, I was a football coach at Holy Family.  As a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, and a Licensed Physical Therapist, I coached linemen, speed and explosion, and served as the Junior Varsity Head Coach at Holy Family for two years (2004 & 2005).

When it became more difficult to afford the time to coach 12 months a year, I settled into rugby only.  This year marks our sixth season.  We are still friends with all of the football coaching staff.

Personally, I had played rugby for 16 years, and coached my sons for 10 years, through a period when we were state champions in football twice at Holy Family.  In the last five years we have won two division championships in rugby, received a coach of the year award, a player of the year award, and two team sportsmanship awards from Colorado Youth Rugby.