__NOTOC__
The Cardiff Lions RFC () is a
gay
''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'.
While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...
and inclusive
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 ...
football club based in
Cardiff, Wales
Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...
. The club was founded in 2004 and is the first of two gay and inclusive rugby clubs in
Wales
Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
. The Lions were admitted as members of the
International Gay Rugby Association and Board in 2006.
History
Union Cup
The Lions have competed in the three
Union Cup tournaments to date; 2005 in
Montpellier
Montpellier (; ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of France, department of ...
and 2007 in
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
and 2009 in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. The 2007 tournament was a great success: Ten Lions players and Lions fans were joined by 2 of the
Newcastle Ravens and one player from the
Bristol Bisons RFC. The club recorded victories over
NOP Amsterdam Rugby Club (35–5),
Malmö Devilants, twice, (30–5 and 35–0) and the
Caledonian Thebans RFC
Caledonian Thebans Rugby Football Club is Scotland's leading inclusive rugby club and represents Scotland in international rugby union tournaments for inclusive teams.
Established in 2002, the Thebans were based at Edinburgh's Murrayfield Stad ...
(5–25), drawing with the Emerald Warriors 10–10 on the way. The club missed out in a tense final in Copenhagen to the
Emerald Warriors RFC 10–5 after extra time.
Union Cup 2007
2009 saw another successful year for the Lions in the Union Cup – taking part in the 10s tournament, the Lions played some superb running rugby to become undefeated 10s champions. They recorded victories over Kings Cross Steelers
The Kings Cross Steelers are a British rugby union team, based in London. Founded in 1995, it was the world's first gay-inclusive rugby union club. Its founding sparked the beginning of a much larger gay-inclusive rugby movement which to date i ...
2nd (19–0), Los Valents (26–12), Newcastle Ravens (0–22) and Caledonian Thebans (0–26). This set up a final against the Steelers 2nds, in which the Cardiff Lions emerged 29–7 victors. A number of the squad also helped out with the Bristol Bisons RFC who won the 7's tournament. Cardiff Lions Captain Justin Gyphion also picked up the top try scorers award to crown a highly successful weekend.
Image:Clrfc-unioncup2009.jpg, Cardiff Lions – Union Cup 2009 10s Winners
Bingham Cup
The Cardiff Lions travelled to New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
New York may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* ...
, NY in May 2006 for the 3rd Mark Kendall Bingham Memorial Tournament
The Mark Kendall Bingham Memorial Tournament or the Bingham Cup is a biennial international, non-professional, gay rugby union tournament, first held in 2002. It is named after Mark Bingham, who died on board United Airlines Flight 93 when it cra ...
where they came 6th in the Plate competition.
In June 2008 the Cardiff Lions travelled to Dublin
Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...
for the 4th biennial Bingham Cup hosted magnificently by the Emerald Warriors. The structure of the competition and seedings put the Lions in the lower tier and competing for either the second tier Plate, third tier Bowl or fourth tier Shield. A travelling squad of 23 players and 6 support staff made a vast improvement on the previous Bingham Cup results:
Friday 13 June
Game 1, Cardiff Lions 41 Phoenix Storm 10
Game 2, Cardiff Lions 36 Copenhagen Scrum 0
Saturday 14 June
Game 3, Cardiff Lions 56 Manchester Village Spartans 2nds 0
Plate/Bowl decider, Cardiff Lions 31 Atlanta Bucks 0
Sunday 15 June
Quarter Final Plate, Cardiff Lions 21 Emerald Warriors 19
Semi Final Plate, Cardiff Lions 5 Sydney Convicts
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
2nds 27
These results left the Cardiff Lions in 3rd place in the Plate competition after winning the 3rd/4th play-off boat race at the closing ceremony against San Francisco Fog RFC
San Francisco Fog Rugby Football Club (RFC), also known as "The Fog", is a rugby union football club in San Francisco, California. It is the first such team in the western United States established specifically to actively reach out to traditiona ...
2nds. A huge improvement on the previous Bingham Cup and with a lot more teams taking part (32 from around the world).
The future
Next up for the club will be the Hadrian Cup in February. This is the annual 10's competition hosted by The Newcastle Ravens. The club also has ambitions to expand and improve the squad, developing links with local clubs.
See also
References
{{Gay Rugby Clubs
International Gay Rugby member clubs
Rugby union teams in Wales