UW Rugby Club carries tradition on broad shoulders

SEATTLE -- As the minutes go by, it’s easy to tell this isn’t an ordinary group of University of Washington students.

Talk of scrums and line-outs on the white board are the giveaway.

But talk isn’t happening in a classroom. It’s in a meeting room for UW’s Rugby Club.

Head Coach Brian Schoener said not only is it a popular club, it’s also one of the school’s oldest.

“It’s the oldest club at the university, besides rowing which is now a varsity sport,” Schoener said.

The club started in the 1963. Now the club is continually supported by its rugby alumni, growing over the years into something of a powerhouse.

“Not very many people do it in the state, so there’s a brotherhood in and around it,” Husky player Konstantin Rehbein said.

The team is 4-and-1 this season, and likely playoff bound, coaches said.