Norwich Women's Rugby Hosts Australian Defence Force Rugby Union

October 6, 2016

Norwich Women’s Rugby Hosts Australian Defence Force Rugby Union

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Doug Coil

Norwich Women’s Rugby Hosts the Australian Defence Force Rugby Union at 4:30pm on Friday, October 7, 2016 at Norwich University Dog River Rugby Pitch.. This is the first stop of the ADFRU three week tour.

View video WCAX.com Mike McCune.

The ADFRU team is comprised of 24 members of the Australian military armed forces branches with the Navy, Army and Air Force.

The Australian Defence Force Tour will focus on the holistic development of the players and forging relationships between the US Military and ADF through sport.

Norwich University Women’s Rugby Head Coach Austin Hall said “We are honored to be hosting the Australian Defence Force here on campus. They’ve brought fun vibes from sunny down under and are adding a playful, yet hard working spirit to campus. We’re making international friends, expanding our cultural horizons, and sharing love and knowledge of the game.

It’s a beautiful aspect of the game of rugby that we make these friends, practice with them, and then we fiercely compete with each other for 80 minutes on game day. But, when the game is over, we go right back to our friendships and tell the stories of the match for years to come.”

The ADFRU team arrived in Vermont early Sunday morning and have participated with the Norwich University women’s rugby team in combined training sessions and in cultural community engagement activities.

The ADFRU team has been welcomed to campus by Norwich University officials and will meet with Norwich University President, Dr. Richard W. Schneider on Friday morning prior to the game.

The ADRFU will leave on Sunday for West Point, their next stop on its tour. They will spend a week at West Point and then another week in Annapolis at the United States Naval Academy.

The ADFRU women’s rugby program has previously toured internationally once before. The inaugural international tour was in 2012 when it went to the United Kingdom.