Brits United

[Morrus]

There was always a dog. Whether school rugby or uni rugby. Always a dog. Why?
Not the same dog, obviously, and no special theme of breed, size etc. just always a dog. Watching the rugby. Bizarre. Never seen a dog at Twickenham, but I always gave the game my best shot, because I figured that if the dog bothered to come along, the least I could do was put in a shift. Always a dog.

Fortunately not my dog. He would join in. Ball you say? Mine!

 

[jian]

Of course, one of the amusing things about playing sport, in my case rugby, to University level is when you talk to Americans and casually mention, “I played rugby for my university”, their eyes light up and they picture you running out in huge stadiums, with tens of thousands of fans.
My rugby for my University was usually in front of a few girlfriends, a few mates, couple of injured teammates, a few random people and a dog.

There was always a dog. Whether school rugby or uni rugby. Always a dog. Why?
Not the same dog, obviously, and no special theme of breed, size etc. just always a dog. Watching the rugby. Bizarre. Never seen a dog at Twickenham, but I always gave the game my best shot, because I figured that if the dog bothered to come along, the least I could do was put in a shift. Always a dog.

BTW I love US College football. I went to a Bowl game between the Longhorns and the Razorbacks in Houston. It was amazing.
And I did get into a conversation in the bar with an American, and mentioned that I played rugby for my university. He was impressed. I didn’t mention the dog.

A couple of friends of mine have had much more enthusiastic reactions to the phrase “I fenced for Oxford” than was justified.

 

[GuyBoy]

Fortunately not my dog. He would join in. Ball you say? Mine!

It was actually Southampton Uni, so your dog would have been welcome……if he’d been around in the early 1980s!

 

[General_Tangent]

Of course, one of the amusing things about playing sport, in my case rugby, to University level is when you talk to Americans and casually mention, “I played rugby for my university”, their eyes light up and they picture you running out in huge stadiums, with tens of thousands of fans.
My rugby for my University was usually in front of a few girlfriends, a few mates, couple of injured teammates, a few random people and a dog.

There was always a dog. Whether school rugby or uni rugby. Always a dog. Why?
Not the same dog, obviously, and no special theme of breed, size etc. just always a dog. Watching the rugby. Bizarre. Never seen a dog at Twickenham, but I always gave the game my best shot, because I figured that if the dog bothered to come along, the least I could do was put in a shift. Always a dog.

BTW I love US College football. I went to a Bowl game between the Longhorns and the Razorbacks in Houston. It was amazing.
And I did get into a conversation in the bar with an American, and mentioned that I played rugby for my university. He was impressed. I didn’t mention the dog.

I'm trying to find the reference where in a rugby game the ball struck a spectators dog and the referee had to make a ruling as to whether the dog counted as an obstacle which could prevent a try being scored.

 

[Arakhor]

First, my credentials - I was born in the North (north of Chester!) but have lived in the South basically all my life.

Secondly, for the rugby reference:

In November 1886, an unusual series of events led to special consideration being given to the question of whether a dog could be considered a spectator at a rugby match. A south coast derby between Victoria of Portsmouth and Trojans of Southampton threw up the odd question, when a stray dog was hit by the ball during a passage of play. Having seen the ball diverted, a Victoria player seized on the opportunity to gather the ball and score a try.

Trojans objected to this on the grounds that, having struck a spectator, the ball was dead and insisted that the try be disallowed. Victoria disagreed and the matter was ultimately referred to the Rugby Football Union committee.

Trojans, however, were to be disappointed. The RFU overruled their objections and the try stood. The dog in question had been reportedly 'straying' about the place and seems to have taken no active interest in the game. Presumably, therefore, it could not be described as a spectator.

Since then, Trojans seem to have recovered from their disappointment. Formed in 1874, in 2024, they will celebrate their sesquicentenary as a club.