Framingham State Rugby Team Competes for League Cup Sunday

Originally posted Saturday. Updated for Sunday newsletter.

Framingham State University’s Men’s Rugby team battled their way to the top spot in the New England Rugby Football Union (NERFU) Men’s Collegiate Developmental League last month.

Sunday, the rugby Rams will be competing for the NERFU’s Development Cup when they scrum up against the second place team – Champlain College of Vermont.

Game is at noon at Keefe Technical School. The public is invited to attend.

This will be the second meeting between Framingham State and Champlain. The Rams were victorious the first time, winning 22-12.

America’s fastest growing sport, rugby is a full-contact, free-flowing game that requires a combination of strength, speed, and strategy to move a ball into an opponent’s territory.

Framingham State’s 22-man team is led by Team Captain and Senior Bob Rice and includes Alex Colon, Framingham High School Class of 2014.

Rugby has been played by Framingham State men since 1984. In 2010, Framingham State incorporated rugby into the school’s athletic department. The rugby program is overseen by Aynsley Rosenbaum, University Club Sports Coordinator and assistant football coach.

The men’s team is coached by Eric Olsen, a long-time resident of Framingham with more than 20 years’ of experience as a coach and 20 years as a player.

Noting the increasing popularity of rugby, Olsen hopes to establish a coed, non-contact “rookie rugby” program through Framingham’s Recreation Department in the summer of 2016.

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Photo courtesy