Credit: RCL
Rugby Club Luxembourg (RCL) has announced that the Terres Rouges Mixed Touch Rugby Festival, hosted in Luxembourg, was a “resounding success”.
Luxembourg’s national touch rugby club has only been in existence for nine months, and yet it hosted the Grand Duchy’s first international touch rugby tournament, with teams from England, Holland and Germany. Men, women, boys and girls aged twelve to 60, played a tournament celebrating the unique, inclusive nature of the sport of touch rugby.
Local touch rugby team, Terres Rouges Touch, lost in the final against a Trier Touch barbarian team. The GrowthStages team made up of RCL’s Junior players made it to the 3rd/4th play-off game, losing in the end to Eindhoven Touch in a closely fought-out game.
In the final, RCL Lightning lost 7-1 against a very good representative side from the South East England Touch Association (SETA). With a mix of experienced internationals and development players, these players had come not only to win but more importantly to help develop touch rugby in Luxembourg. This group of young women and men had a “breathtaking pace, an effortless flow that made the game look so easy,” RCL noted.
With the junior and more social teams, they let them play but when faced by Luxembourg's Touch World Cup Mens 30’s team in a practice game, they showcased their skills in a fast and exciting encounter, which they won. While it may sound like a mismatch to have a mixed team playing a men's team, in the world of touch rugby, skills and teamwork trump speed and force, RCL emphasised.
When asked why she enjoys playing mixed touch, Wales international Amy said: “The best part of mixed touch is the equality between men and women.”
The final game of the event showcased women’s touch rugby, with two select teams made up of a mix of the 25 players who participated in the mixed tournament.
