{"id":2446839,"date":"2019-07-26T19:12:00","date_gmt":"2019-07-27T01:12:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/breck-rugby-team-eyes-a-rebuild-as-it-hosts-ski-town-tournament\/"},"modified":"2019-07-26T19:12:00","modified_gmt":"2019-07-27T01:12:00","slug":"breck-rugby-team-eyes-a-rebuild-as-it-hosts-ski-town-tournament","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/breck-rugby-team-eyes-a-rebuild-as-it-hosts-ski-town-tournament\/","title":{"rendered":"Breck rugby team eyes a rebuild as it hosts Ski Town tournament"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"swift-gallery p402_hide\" readability=\"6.4294670846395\">\n<ul id=\"imageGallery-310152-852\" class=\"gallery list-unstyled\">\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/BreckRugby-SDN-072719-1-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/BreckRugby-SDN-072719-1.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Courtesy of the Gentlemen of the Blue Goose Rugby Club |\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"-2\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"7\">\n<p>Courtesy of the Gentlemen of the Blue Goose Rugby Club<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/BreckRugby-SDN-072719-1.jpg\" alt><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/BreckRugby-SDN-072719-1-1-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/BreckRugby-SDN-072719-1-1.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Courtesy of the Gentlemen of the Blue Goose Rugby Club |\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"-2\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"7\">\n<p>Courtesy of the Gentlemen of the Blue Goose Rugby Club<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/BreckRugby-SDN-072719-1-1.jpg\" alt><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/BreckRugby-SDN-072719-1-2-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/BreckRugby-SDN-072719-1-2.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Austin Colbert\/The Aspen Times | The Gentlemen of Aspen Rugby Club hosts Breckenridge on Saturday, June 29, 2019, at Rio Grande Park in Aspen. (Photo by Austin Colbert\/The Aspen Times)\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"0\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"11\">\n<p><strong>The Gentlemen of Aspen Rugby Club hosts Breckenridge on Saturday, June 29, 2019, at Rio Grande Park in Aspen. (Photo by Austin Colbert\/The Aspen Times)<\/strong><br \/>Austin Colbert\/The Aspen Times<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/BreckRugby-SDN-072719-1-2.jpg\" alt=\"The Gentlemen of Aspen Rugby Club hosts Breckenridge on Saturday, June 29, 2019, at Rio Grande Park in Aspen. (Photo by Austin Colbert\/The Aspen Times)\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"caption-toggle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/sports-news\/breck-rugby-team-eyes-a-rebuild-as-it-hosts-ski-town-tournament\/?#\" class=\"show-captions\">Show Captions<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/sports-news\/breck-rugby-team-eyes-a-rebuild-as-it-hosts-ski-town-tournament\/?#\" class=\"hide-captions\">Hide Captions<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">For the first time in six years, Breckenridge\u2019s Gentlemen of the Blue Goose Rugby Club will host the annual Ski Town Rugby Tournament today. The tournament, which will run from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Kingdom Park Turf Field, is a rotating annual event that pits rugby clubs from ski resort towns \u2014 such as Vail, Aspen, Glenwood Springs and Steamboat Springs \u2014 against each other.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The tournament is a summer high-point for the Gentlemen of the Blue Goose, which were able to rejoin the Rocky Mountain Rugby Summer League after not taking part last summer because of a lack of players.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The storied club, which has been a staple of the Breckenridge community since 1974, is working to rebuild and recruit players, said Ohio native Mike Williams, 36, who serves as club president and lives in Silverthorne. Williams said the team has been able to recruit as many as 17 players this summer after a season when the program struggled to field 15 players consistently, sometimes pulling players from other clubs.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cWe are trying to become a place where people can come and play rugby from any level,\u201d Williams said. \u201cIf they want to learn this sport or have been playing for years, we\u2019re welcoming, and you\u2019re probably going to get playing time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Williams said the transient nature of Summit County caught up with the club last summer, when players moved away and forced the team to drop out of the Mountain League. This summer, Williams said, the team has a good mix of new players and more experienced players, including former members of the University of Colorado and Colorado State University rugby clubs.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cWe\u2019re always looking for players of any skill level,\u201d Williams said. \u201cI started three years ago, never played rugby before in my life, and now I\u2019m running it. We\u2019re very accepting of people of all skill levels. We help people understand the game of rugby so they can step up and play.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Unlike High Country rival teams like Aspen and Vail, the Blue Goose have been without an official coach since 2014, though team members have stepped up to help guide the team in player-coach style.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The team takes part in touch sessions at 5:30 p.m. each Monday evening at Kingdom Park\u2019s turf field in Breckenridge and welcomes anyone interested in taking part, even if they are trying out rugby for the first time. Williams, who plays some back and wing for the Blue Goose, said the team mentality and camaraderie are what keep him coming back.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cJust how accepting of everybody we are \u2014 there\u2019s a spot for every type of person on the rugby pitch. And as soon as you play rugby, you get out on the field and knock around with others, almost immediately you\u2019re a part of the family that plays rugby. And you realize, it doesn\u2019t matter what team you play for, as long as you\u2019re playing rugby, you\u2019re part of family.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Williams said current members and a few of the club\u2019s \u201cold boys\u201d \u2014 rugby slang for the older players \u2014 pitched in this past winter to rent turf time indoors in Breckenridge to keep the club\u2019s touch sessions alive.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The Gentlemen of the Blue Goose have been aided this summer by sponsors and club supporters, including Napper Tandy\u2019s in Breckenridge \u2014 which will host a post-tournament social Saturday after matches conclude \u2014 Northside Pizza and Wood Mechanical.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cIt\u2019s tradition,\u201d Williams said about recent efforts to maintain and rebuild the club. \u201cThere\u2019s been an adult men\u2019s rugby team in Breckenridge for a long time. It\u2019s a history, and we just want to keep that going.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText Tagline\"><a href=\"mailto:aolivero@summitdaily.com\">aolivero@summitdaily.com<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/sports-news\/breck-rugby-team-eyes-a-rebuild-as-it-hosts-ski-town-tournament\/?\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">via:: The Aspen Times<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Courtesy of the Gentlemen of the Blue Goose Rugby Club Courtesy of the Gentlemen of the Blue Goose Rugby Club The Gentlemen of Aspen Rugby Club hosts Breckenridge on Saturday, June 29, 2019, at Rio Grande Park in Aspen. (Photo by Austin Colbert\/The Aspen Times)Austin Colbert\/The Aspen Times Show CaptionsHide Captions For the first time [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2446839","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-24 02:22:59","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSPN The Valley&#039;s Quality Rock","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2446839","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2446839"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2446839\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2446839"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2446839"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2446839"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}