The Newts Are Back in Town: Haverford Rugby Returns After a Brief Hiatus

On Haverfest weekend, May 3rd, Haverford College welcomed back over 20 alumni– former members of the Haverford Rugby Team–to play in a game against current students. This event was more than just a return to campus for these alumni; it was a return to the rugby community that was a hallmark of their Haverford experience.

Rugby was present at Haverford since the 1970s, but the club faded out in 2022 due to the combined impact of the pandemic and player graduations. “When I would come back on campus, I didn’t feel like I was all there because the rugby team was missing,” said former team captain and President of the Alumni Association, Drew Evans ’19.

Prior to 2022, the rugby team was one of the most successful teams on campus. They regularly beat both neighboring colleges and local men’s club teams. The team competed in the Mid-Atlantic Rugby Conference and won their division in 2017 and 2018, going undefeated despite competing against schools much larger than Haverford.

Despite the on-the-field success, rugby was more than just another club sport to Evans and his teammates. Going to battle with each other forged bonds that will last a lifetime. Evans remembers “the goal-line stands where the opposing team would be mere feet away from the goal line, and we would stop them. Repeatedly pushing them back and refusing to break. The refusal to back down–even when someone twice your size is running at you.”

The team also bonded through their many off-field traditions. The rugby team was steeped in rituals like “shooting the boot,” where players drank from their cleats after scoring their first points, and rallying around their mascot, the Newt—a tradition that began in the 1970s when fans brought an inflatable alligator to early games, which was mistaken for a newt.  Traditions such as these “mean a lot to take part in,” said a current team member, Henry Davidson ’28, who continued to say it “made him proud to be a Newt”.

Rugby wasn’t just important to the team on the field; it was a larger part of the Haverford social community. The team would regularly host parties, creating a tradition of rhyming themes such as Flannels and Danimals, Scrummies and Gummies, and Lobsters and Mobsters. The team member responsible for planning and hosting these events was known as the social captain and arguably held the most important position on the team. This Haverfest, social captains from different years debated over who hosted the best events. 

Having the team re-emerge has galvanized the rugby alumni network. Despite being far removed from Haverford, both physically and in terms of age, alumni gathered on campus to support the club, which encouraged current rugby team members Davidson and Aaron Nyhan ‘28. Davidson said that meeting the Haverford rugby alumni was “incredible,”  noting that despite his having never played rugby before, all the alumni were “incredibly enthusiastic and supportive.”

The enthusiasm for the team was demonstrated in the alumni-versus-students match, affectionately dubbed the Dirty Old Newts vs. the Angry Young Newts. This game marked the revival of an annual event played since the early 2000s. This game holds significance to the alumni, allowing them to return to the Haverford community and connect with current students and fellow alumni. The sense of connection was clear when an alumnus from the 1980s and another from the 2010s realized they had both lived in the same dorm room in Gummere 3/2, or when current students and an ‘80s alum realized they had all taken classes with Professor Linda Gerstein.

Despite the friendly nature of the game, it is not an event that both sides take lightly. The alumni view the game as a chance to prove they still “have it,” which caused an alumnus to tear his bicep in a game in 2008. On the other hand, the students view it as a chance to “beat up some uncs” as Nyhan put it, referring to the alumni’s older age. This swagger was evident despite this year’s crop of students having less than two months of rugby experience, with the alumni game marking the first time they had ever played organized rugby.

On seeing at least 25 students show up to either play or watch, Evans exclaimed, “Seeing a new group of kids be so excited about rugby at our alumni game this Haverfest was a feeling that only compares to winning our first conference title!”

The alumni’s encouragement motivated Nyhan and Davidson to continue rebuilding rugby at Haverford. Davidson noted that he is “excited about the club’s future” and that he “hopes to share rugby with more people and have more events like [the alumni game].” Similarly, Nyhan said that he is “looking forward to the club becoming more serious and helping it grow over [his] four years here.”  With a new leadership structure in place and a group of eager freshmen ready to continue to rebuild Haverford club rugby, more Haverford students will be able to participate in this community and form the same lifelong bonds that Evans was able to. “It’s a truly beautiful game,” Evans stated. “Whether I’m playing it with my brothers or sharing it with the future team, nothing means more to me.”