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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Spokane rugby club welcomes Barbarians


The  Razorbacks' Tom Richie corrals Saul Stevens of the University of Montana Jesters in Saturday's match at Franklin Park. 
 (Dan Pelle / The Spokesman-Review)

Local rugby fans, and even those will only a passing interest in the sport, should be in for a treat Tuesday evening, when the Spokane Razorbacks Rugby Club entertains the Queensland Barbarians in an international matchup at 5 at Franklin Park.

The Barbarians, a touring team of select players from the Australian state of Queensland, will make their stop in Spokane as part of a month-long tour of the United States and British Columbia. Razorbacks coach and team captain Rich Nay is hoping people will take advantage of the rare opportunity to see the sport of rugby as it is played Down Under.

“They’re not professionals,” Nay said of the visiting Australians, “but rugby is as popular down there as baseball is here, so they’re serious about it.”

The Barbarians will bring a traveling party of 30, including two coaches and a team trainer, on their swing through North America. They are scheduled to arrive in Spokane today and spend a couple of days touring the city before traveling to Missoula, along with the Nay and his Razorbacks, to compete in a tournament made up primarily of teams from the Montana Rugby Union, of which Spokane’s club team is a member.

From there, the Aussies will venture to Bozeman for another match before taking a sightseeing tour through Yellowstone Park and moving on to Las Vegas to sample nightlife on The Strip.

Players on the Barbarians’ roster range from 21 to 34 years. One is a computer engineer and another is a civil engineer. There are also college students, farmers and salesmen, but they all share a love for the sport of rugby.

Nay expects his Razorbacks to have their hands full at Franklin Park.

“I have a feeling they’re a little out of our league,” said Nay, whose roster includes players from ages 18 to 51. “They’re going to be better than us for sure, because their guys come from across the entire state of Queensland, not just from one town like ours.

“I was pretty astounded by their ages. I thought there would be a lot of older guys on their roster because of the commitment a tour like this takes, but they’re loaded with 21-year-olds. I think we’re going to get a lesson from them, but that’s fine. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for us to try to show these guys a good game – and show them a little bit of our town and its hospitality, too.”