Rugby Game

On Saturday, NYU took us to see Saracens vs. Worcestor Warriors at Wembley Station. Even though the 6 Nations rugby tournament was in its second week, England wasn't playing that day so I'm assuming most English rugby fans had their eyes on this game.

Well, it was .... interesting.

First, the ridiculous Saracens song. Every five minutes, a thirty-second chant consisting of "Stand up, for Saracens, for Saracens. Stand up" played, and the crowd went insane. Everyone would jump up, wave their flags, move their arms like they were dancing to the Monster Mash, and sit back down just as quickly. At first, we had no idea what was going on, but by the second half of the game, we were joining right in. Granted, it was more out of mockery than camaraderie, but you have to listen to the song to understand. You can find it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKWmLGnlRug, and the chant they played at the game lasts from 0:32 to 0:58.

Second, the kids. I couldn't believe how young everyone was; there were six-year-olds yelling at each other about the game. If they formed a mob, I would've been quite frightened.

Third, the half-time show. About 250 girls (and 2 boys as far as I could see) came onto the field to dance to The Saturdays, a British girl band that I'd probably liken to Miley Cyrus. They did a routine of jumping up and down, moving side to side, and punching the air. I never thought I'd see such a sight at a rugby game. If anything, I expected a Linkin Park-like pump-up band exuding masculinity and all its stupidity, not a pop group. Like I said, interesting.

Fourth, the butt boosts. Whenever there's a throw in, players from both teams get thrown in the air so that they are nearly twice as high as everyone else on the ground. They achieve this feat by launching themselves backwards off the ground, only to have a teammate behind them push their butt with open palms upwards into the air. At least, that's the best explanation I could see.

Now getting to the actual rugby. Finally a part of the experience that went according to expectations. All the violence and roughhousing required that trainers ran up and down the sidelines, waiting for players to get hurt (which they did). The game seems to involve a fair deal of luck since the touchdowns (?) only came from broken tackles. Otherwise, the game just seemed to move back and forth at mid-field with each team destroying the other. I've got to admit that watching some of the more painful tackles and surprisingly broken tackles was quite enjoyable and voyeuristic (in a non-sexual way).

Saracens won by a score of 25-20. I was rooting for them since they were the home team and the favored team to win the Guinness Premiership. However, I don't think I'll be going back to a rugby match, at least not before I see a football match. Hopefully, there, I'll be more prepared for the experience that comes with the game.

The crowd leaving the stadium for the Tube station. It's easy to see why European riots at rugby or football matches break out. Probably for this reason, there was a police barricade at the Tube station. They only let people through in stages so you're not killing each other (as much) to get into the Tube, like they do in Washington DC on July 4th. I don't think I've seen this at an American sports game, but it's effective.