The Seoul Survivors won the penultimate tournament of the touch rugby season in Seoul over the weekend, as ten teams played in swampy field conditions along the Han River in good spirits.
It was the Survivors’ first appearance this summer, with rugby commitments preventing the club taking part in the first three events, which were dominated by Island Stylez.
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Pauline Stokes, of the Island Stylez touch team seeks to evade Tara Tasi’s tackle. (Erik Sorenson) |
But a new victor emerged when the Survivors beat the Korean Kingkas 2-0 in a close-fought final at the Jamwon rugby pitch.
Island Stylez were missing some key players, but still put in strong performances, on their way to taking out the bowl final, while the Sentinels were the plate winners.
Teams from around the greater Seoul area braved sometimes wet conditions to compete in the event run by the Korea Touch Association.
KTA chairperson Theresa Tupuola is pleased with the growing number of teams turning out.
“We’ve definitely built on last year. We’re really focused on encouraging new players, guys and girls of all ages. We want to start at a grass roots level and then it’ll only get stronger,” she said.
The sport is easy to learn and non-contact, so it’s safe and suitable for men and women. It’s also a fast game which relies on passing and teamwork.
The local touch scene is made up of expats from places like New Zealand, the United Kingdom and North America, along with an increasing number of Korean participants.
The introduction of a new rule this year which requires all the teams to have at least two women on the field has also brought about a new dynamic, with women’s touchdowns being worth double points.
Traditionally the Survivors have run all-men’s teams at the tournaments but adapted well to the mixed format and captain Jeff Rands from New Zealand believes it’s a good development.
“I think we utilized our female players really well; they scored a bunch of touchdowns. It’s a good initiative. It adds more variety to the game,” he said.
Thomas Thomson from Scotland, who played with the Exiles team on Saturday, is a relative newcomer to touch rugby and says it’s a very social game.
“Usually I’m really competitive but touch is truly a team sport and you have to get everyone involved, and I think it makes it more fun when it’s mixed,” he said.
There’s one more opportunity to give touch rugby a go this year with the final tournament being held on Oct. 6.
The KTA is also expecting a team from Fukuoka, Japan, to enter and it’s a long-term goal of the organization to have more teams from Asia attend an annual tournament in Seoul.
In the meantime, social touch is held most Saturday mornings at the Jamwon rugby pitch near Apgujeong for an easy introduction to the sport.
For more information, visit the Korea Touch Association on Facebook or at www.koreatouch.com, or email the association at koreatouch@gmail.com.
By Bridget Tunnicliffe
The writer is a journalist from New Zealand currently teaching in Korea. ― Ed.
