Mystic River Rugby Club
Encyclopedia
The Mystic River Rugby Club is a New England Rugby Football Union
(NERFU) club, founded in 1974, located in Malden, Massachusetts
and Melrose, Massachusetts
, who play Division 1 Rugby Union
in the United States
.
Their home field is located at Pine Banks Park. They are the current 2009 Division 1 New England Champions. Their primary sponsor is Miller Lite
.
The club evolved throughout the 1970s with the influx of younger players and Tours to Wales
and the former Soviet Union
highlighted these years. The Mystics were the first American team to play rugby in the Soviet Union. In the early 1980s the club saw a major turnover, a somewhat generational change, when several new players were attracted from local colleges. Old Boys rugby began to take shape and several of the original Mystics began playing a schedule of "over 30's" rugby. In 1986 the Mystics returned to Malden/Melrose where they were originally incorporated in 1976.
Coaches from overseas were then recruited. With several of the clubs players regularly representing New England and the East Coast in representative side play, the Mystics were committed to championship level rugby. Foreign touring sides from England
, Ireland
, Wales
and other countries also helped educate the boys.
After tours of their own to Wales, Russia
, France
, Argentina
and Australia
the club won in 1989 the first of seven straight New England championships. In 1992 the Mystics finished second in the USA, losing to the Old Blues from California in the National Club Finals. The 2007 Season saw the Mystics win their first New England title after twelve years, moving on to take the Northeast Division 1 Championship in 2008.
New England Rugby Football Union
The New England Rugby Football Union is a stand-alone union for rugby union teams in New England.NERFU had been a local area union , and part of the Northeast Rugby Union , which is the governing body for three LAU's The New England Rugby Football Union (NERFU) is a stand-alone union for rugby...
(NERFU) club, founded in 1974, located in Malden, Massachusetts
Malden, Massachusetts
Malden is a suburban city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 59,450 at the 2010 census. In 2009 Malden was ranked as the "Best Place to Raise Your Kids" in Massachusetts by Bloomberg Businessweek Magazine.-History:...
and Melrose, Massachusetts
Melrose, Massachusetts
-Government:Robert J. Dolan is the mayor. Melrose is represented in the Massachusetts House of Representatives by Paul Brodeur . Katherine Clark is the state senator for wards 1 through 5 and Thomas McGee is the state senator for wards 6 and 7. Melrose is part of the seventh Congressional...
, who play Division 1 Rugby Union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Their home field is located at Pine Banks Park. They are the current 2009 Division 1 New England Champions. Their primary sponsor is Miller Lite
Miller Lite
Miller Lite is a 4.2% abv pale lager brand sold by MillerCoors of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Sibling beers include Miller Genuine Draft and Miller High Life.-History:...
.
History
The club was founded in 1974 by 32 members of the Boston Rugby Club.The club evolved throughout the 1970s with the influx of younger players and Tours to Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and the former Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
highlighted these years. The Mystics were the first American team to play rugby in the Soviet Union. In the early 1980s the club saw a major turnover, a somewhat generational change, when several new players were attracted from local colleges. Old Boys rugby began to take shape and several of the original Mystics began playing a schedule of "over 30's" rugby. In 1986 the Mystics returned to Malden/Melrose where they were originally incorporated in 1976.
Coaches from overseas were then recruited. With several of the clubs players regularly representing New England and the East Coast in representative side play, the Mystics were committed to championship level rugby. Foreign touring sides from England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and other countries also helped educate the boys.
After tours of their own to Wales, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
the club won in 1989 the first of seven straight New England championships. In 1992 the Mystics finished second in the USA, losing to the Old Blues from California in the National Club Finals. The 2007 Season saw the Mystics win their first New England title after twelve years, moving on to take the Northeast Division 1 Championship in 2008.
Mystic Eagles (USA National Side)
- Alec Montgomery (Fullback, 6 Caps) Represented the United States from 1986 to 1992.
- Richard TarditsRichard TarditsRichard Tardits , is a former American football linebacker for the New England Patriots of the National Football League...
(Flanker, 19 Caps) A former U-21 French international rugby player, Tardits was a walk on for the University of GeorgiaUniversity of GeorgiaThe University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
football team where he held the record for most career sacks (29) until it was broken by David PollackDavid Pollack-Injury:In the Bengals' September 17, 2006 game against in-state rival Cleveland Browns, Pollack suffered what was later determined to be a broken sixth cervical vertebrae on a first quarter tackle on running back Reuben Droughns. He reportedly suffered no paralysis, but was taken off the field on...
(Cincinnati BengalsCincinnati BengalsThe Cincinnati Bengals are a professional football team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the AFC's North Division in the National Football League . The Bengals began play in 1968 as an expansion team in the American Football League , and joined the NFL in 1970 in the AFL-NFL...
) in 2004. He played in the 1999 Rugby World Cup1999 Rugby World CupThe 1999 Rugby World Cup was the fourth Rugby World Cup, and the first to be held in rugby union's professional era. The principal host nation was Wales, although the majority of matches were played outside the country, shared between England, France, Scotland and Ireland...
for the United States after four seasons in the NFL with the New England PatriotsNew England PatriotsThe New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
and Arizona CardinalsArizona CardinalsThe Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in Glendale, Arizona, a suburb of Phoenix. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. His debut as an Eagle was in 1993 against Australia. - Jake Sprague (Prop, 2 caps) active player on the USA roster. Made Eagles debut vs Uruguay in a world cup qualifier
Notable International Players
- Declan Brady - Ireland (Rugby LeagueRugby leagueRugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
) - Steve BrainSteve BrainSteve Brain is a retired rugby union player who played hooker for Coventry R.F.C. and represented England in over a dozen international matches, including three Five Nations, now the Six Nations Championship, between 1984 and 1986....
- England - Molibi Maphanyane - Botswana
- Herman Mostert - South Africa
- Edwin Shimenga - Kenya
- Alfred UluinayauAlfred UluinayauAlfred Beranaliva Uluinayau is a Fijian rugby union player currently coaching professionally in Japan. He has represented his home nation as a fullback and is also a former Auckland player and All Black trialist....
- Fiji - Kyle Winter - Indonesia
Honors
- New England Champions (1989–1995, 2009-2010)
- Northeast Champions (1989, 1991, 2008, 2010)
- Eastern Champions (1991)
- National Finalist (1992, 1998)
Tournament Championships
- Bull Moose Champs (2003-2006, 2008-2009)
- Middlesex 7's (2009)
- Middlesex Tens (2009)
- Springfield 7's (1999, 2006)
- New England Tens (2006-2007, 2009-2010)
- Montreal Irish Tournament Champs (1999-2000, 2003)
- Austin Tourney Runner-Ups (2002, 2006)
- New England Club Champions (1995, 1999)
- Portland 7's (1999)
- Harvard Business School 7's (1980, 1992, 1996)
- Portland Tourney/Maine Invitational (1981, 1987, 1989, 1991-1993, 1995)
- Beacon Hill 7's (1992)
- Saranac Lake Over 35's Champs (1989)
- Milwaukee Labor Day Tournament (1987)
- Savannah St. Patrick's Day (1983)
- Worcester Sevens (2009)