The Baton Rouge Rugby Football Club (also known as BRRFC), founded in 1977, is a men's

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

team based in

Baton Rouge, Louisiana Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...

, United States. The club competes in and is governed by the True South and

USA Rugby USA Rugby (formally the United States of America Rugby Football Union, Ltd.) is the national governing body for the sport of rugby union in the United States. Its role is to achieve and maintain “high levels of quality in all aspects of rugby ...

History

Founded in 1977, the club has been a cornerstone of the rugby community boasting healthy numbers and excellent play. Being in Louisiana provided the club distinct advantages with food and culture in the southern region - rugby has been an excellent addition to the Baton Rouge Area. BR RFC has attracted diverse players over the years boasting Men who have worked in Oil/Chemical, Engineers, Lawyers, Doctors, Nurses, Beer Distributors, Semi-Pro Athletes just to name a few. Many players are from the surrounding areas: Lafayette, Mandeville, Hammond and New Orleans but also international invites have had players from Britain, Australia, New Zealand and Fiji. Up until 1991, Baton Rouge played as a Division I Rugby Team, where they secured many national invites, namely the 1985 National Championship game v
Philadelphia Whitemarsh
The club has had a myriad of success throughout the years even after transitioning to Division II rugby in 1992. The Club participates in many local Baton Rouge Charities; most notably Toys for Tots, the BR Women's Shelter, Youth Rugby and the Red Cross.

Notable Matches and Accomplishments

* 1979: ERU National Championship Game * 1980, 1982, 1984: Regional Finals Qualifier * 1985: ERU National Championship Game * 1993: ERU National Championship Runner-up * 1994: ERU National Championship Runner-up * 2013: True South Rugby - West Champions * 2014: True South Rugby - West Champions

Founding Members

Founding members include: Hookers, Phil Siccone and Tyrone Yokum; props, Jim Brugh, Reggie Davis, Steve Hazel, and Bob ‘Santa’ Lundsford; locks, Bob Causey and Tom Gagneaux; loose forwards, Barry Haney, Rob Wright, Gary Meyers, and Wayne Fontanelle; No. 8, Mark Lawson and Rick Odom; back, Frank Perkins, Johnny Mclean, Clay Mahaffey, Paul Lachin, Phil Lachin, Bob Dow, Les Bratton, Bill Bratton, Donnie Bratton, and the Hammond connection; Bob Tuminello, Gene Hampton, Bobby Guidera, and Jim Morris.

Tournaments

Baton Rouge Rugby puts on two tournaments every year - The Redfish Sevens Tournament and the Ho-Ho-Ho Tournament for Charity.

Redfish Sevens

Th
Redfish Tournament
is a Rugby Sevens round-robin game. All clubs of any age group, male and female may participate. The tournament usually boasts 25-40 teams every year for the sevens non-qualifier sometime between June and July.

Ho-Ho-Ho Tournament

The Ho-Ho-Ho Tournament is a co-ed scrimmage that occurs every year in December to raise money for Toy-for-Tots, the BR RFC's target charity work every year. In 2016, the club donated 200+ Toys and $400 to the local area Toys for Tots at Happy's Bar. The Scrimmage is unique as players dress up in santa themed outfits and play a toned-down game of rugby so injuries can be avoided. Players come from around the state of Louisiana to participate as ages 17+ are welcome.

Rugby Union Memberships

The Baton Rouge Rugby Football Club was originally a member of Deep South Rugby Football Union. In the late 1990s, the club moved to the Texas Geographical Union where they competed against other TGU Division 1/2 teams such as: Dallas, Austin, Houston, San Antonio and Shreveport. Baton Rouge later returned to the Deep South Rugby Union in 2009, converting back to a Division 2 squad. In 2013, the Deep South Rugby Union became a subdivision of the True South Geographical Union, later becomin
True South Rugby
where Baton Rouge currently competes against its main rivals: * Birmingham RFC * Jackson RFC * Memphis RFC

Practice/Field Location

Currently, BR RFC practices and plays at Highland Road Park located in Baton Rouge, LA

References

External links

Official siteUSA RugbyIRB Official Site
{{Rugby union in the United States Rugby union teams in Louisiana Sports clubs and teams in Baton Rouge, Louisiana Rugby clubs established in 1977