The UNM rugby team is going national — or trying to, anyway.
With some help from Coaches Sports Grill, rugby team members are having a fundraiser tonight at the UNM-area sports bar.
Alex Melad, three-year UNM rugby team member, said the team has never had local help.
“It’s great because in the past no one has really ever supported us,” he said. “We always try to find ways to earn money for ourselves. To have Coaches help us, this is just a great opportunity for us.”
From 6-9 p.m., a percentage of Coaches’ food sales will be donated to aid the UNM Rugby team to travel to a Las Vegas, Nevada tournament Feb. 12-13.
The team does not receive financial help from the Athletics Department because Rugby is a club at UNM. The team members and coaches pay to play in games and tournaments in and away from Albuquerque.
The Lobos will compete in the 2011 USA Sevens Rugby Tournament. While teams from all across the United States will play in this tournament at UNLV’s Sam Boyd Stadium, young rugby players will also have a chance to watch national teams from around the world.
Drew Riordan, who has played for the Lobos for four years, will join Melad as one of the seven to make the trip.
Riordan said playing in the tournament will boost the Lobos’ national reputation.
“This tournament is a big deal for us,” he said. “We really want to make it, and we really want to get out there and show that this team has a lot to offer. We’re trying to show this University that we have got some pride.”
Usually, during a traditional rugby match, 15 men play at a time. The Sevens Tournament limits teams to players similar to the skilled players on an American football team (quarterback, running back, wide receiver, defensive backs).
Melad said there is a difference between 15-man and seven-man rugby: It’s the speed of the game.
“It’s a lot easier to score, and it’s kind of a whole different game,” he said. “With sevens, you have to be fast and quick because it will be the hardest 14 minutes you will play of rugby. You’re always running nonstop.”
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The 15-man UNM rugby team has showed success in the last year. Late in 2010, the team was ranked as high as No. 11 nationally.
If the seven members of the UNM rugby team qualify in Las Vegas, they could participate in the Division I Rugby championship tournament that is scheduled to start April 31, and the title game would be broadcast on television.
Before he graduates, Melad said he wants to play for a national championship.
“I haven’t been to nationals yet during my UNM career,” he said. “I am still waiting for that trip.”
