I LOVE RUGBY!

Rugby has been a part of life for a very long time. Half of my family grew up in England and have been very much involved in this sport. My cousins and sisters all have played Rugby in the past, and that’s when I knew I had to follow their footsteps.

When I was younger I wasn’t the most athletic girl, I always tried out to teams (Volleyball, Basketball, Track and Field, ect.) and I NEVER made them, I always thought I was going to make it and once it came to the cut off sheet, my name was never there, sad but true. So when I found out that Streetsville Secondary School’s Rugby team had no tryouts, I was all game. I knew I was going to play because my older sister was on the team as well; she loves the sport almost as much as I do. However, when I was in grade 9, let me tell you that I was NOT the best player on the team, probably the worst you could say. But, over the years I fell in love with it, it is seriously the best sport in the world, it makes me feel thrilled, ecstatic, hyped up, any excited words you can think of and it makes me feel that I am finally good at something.

There was something about this sport that made me want to do better the next time, I always made that goal for myself to accomplish something by the end of the year. Yes, I have gotten some war wounds over the years (sprained ankle three times, broken nose, most of all bumps, scratches, and bruises) and I have done some damage to other people as well. The worst thing I have ever done to someone was cracked their skull and this was by accident I swear! It was a rainy, slippery, muddy game and I was playing Philip Pocock Secondary school (they were the team to beat) I tried tackling the scrum half and on the way down my chin smashed her head and cracked her skull! To make matters worse was that she has bleach blonde hair (was bright red after that) and I have met her in the past! I found out later that she had to get 7 staples on her head. I felt terrible... but she forgave me and she was actually on my team for the Blues first Senior Women's season. I set a goal for myself to win some sort of an award at the end of each season in High School. I was unsuccessful in grade 9 and 10 (that’s because I was a newbie and still had a lot to learn) so I set a goal to win MIP (Most Improved Player) in grade 11, I tried my hardest and the goal was accomplished! In grade 12, because it was my last year, I set a goal to win MVP (Most Valuable Player) the most important award to be given in my eyes. I worked so hard to get that award and in the end I GOT IT! Best time of my life, I was thrilled. My coach even said, “If someone came up to me 4 years ago and said that this girl was going to win MVP, I would have laughed in her face.” It’s true, I came a long way and all my hard work finally paid off.

When it comes to the Mississauga Blues Rugby club, I had to join. The love for Rugby was defiantly not gone after High School and I still need to play every year. My little sister started High School and she joined the Rugby team, so for her to talk about what she did that day and how well she played in her game; just made myself want to play even more. I am so grateful for the Blues, I never could afford and extracurricular activity so when the opportunity came up I took it in a heartbeat.

Rugby to me is a part of my life and will always be. As long as I am still standing I will be playing Rugby. I am just glad that I have the Blues. The Senior Women's team is like a family to me, it makes it that much easier to enjoy playing the sport I love with the people I love.

Mississauga Blues Sponsors!

When starting a team you have to think about how you are going to get started. What are the jerseys going to look like? How much money will the insurance be? Who will be the “go to” person? And the most important question is; who will be the sponsor for the team?

Mississauga Blues have been really lucky with the wonderful sponsors we have had over the years. They have helped us a lot with buying all the uniforms and program costs (for example, tournaments, field costs, ect.). Our jerseys were labelled like a hockey arena; we have so many different companies/business that are willing to help us. We want to thank every one of them for all their contributions and we appreciate everything they have done for us.

The Senior Women's team have been really lucky for Dominion Lending and Leasing services to sponsor the Women's team. This company is out of Brampton and has helped us out a lot with buying the uniforms and program costs for the Women's team.

Mississauga Blues wants to make sure that we acknowledge these sponsors, companies, and businesses, and let them know how grateful we are for what they have done for us. Last season (2011) the Mississauga Blues Senior Women's team gave Paul Sodhi (who partnerships with Mississauga Blues) and he was proudly amortized with a seasonal jersey and a plaque.

The Franklin Pourhouse also have been willing to let the Mississauga Blues club; dirty, sweaty, and loud, to come and drink and eat at their bar after every game and practice, and we love going there. It is like a taste a home, Mississauga Blues belongs there, and we want to thank them for letting us be ourselves; like true Rugby players do.

Potential Women’s Tour in the Future!

Every athletes dream is to travel the world and play the sport they love playing in the country it originated from. In a previous post I talked about how the Senior Men’s team is going on a tour to England and Wales in the summer of 2012, yes we are all jealous of them, but we hope to have a Senior Women's tour in the near future! (The summer of 2013 to be exact; or we hope)

Like every team that Mississauga Blues has to offer, we are like family and we all have respect for each other, so how much fun would it be to go to a different country with the people you love? I don’t know how to picture anything better, all I know is that I really hope that Mike Curran puts it together and helps us fundraise and organize a potential Women's tour. It is only fair that the Under 18 girls and Senior Men are going; we have to experience what they have well!

Where I would like to go is New Zealand, Ireland, England, or Wales; or maybe all of them, just a tour around the world, WHY NOT!? However, either one would be a great experience. Rugby is so close to my heart and I would love to learn where it originated from, and learn from the people who have played all their lives. First of all, I know that Rugby is huge in these countries and it would just be a blast to party, drink, and play Rugby like the real pros do.

Now all we need to do to make this dream happen is to create awareness, let people know that this is what we want to do, and what we are hoping for in the near future. We need to ask for help, we can’t do this alone and we need your/family/friends help to fundraise and raise money for a Senior Women's tour 2013. I know that this would make me extremely happy as well as the other girls on my team, this is what we have been waiting for... and it is going to happen. I can feel it.

*The picture above was taken by my friend; she backpacked through Europe and this picture was taken in Ireland, and right away she thought of me because she knows how much I love Rugby.

Best Coach - Matt Piemontese

A coach is someone an athlete looks up to, someone that they want to impress, someone that is dedicated, and loves what they do. This is why I think that Matt Piemontese is the best coach that Mississauga Blues has. Now I say this because he is the only coach we have had for the past couple years for the Senior Women’s, and I know that the other coaches that Mississauga Blues has are the best as well, but for my personal experience (and I can speak for the other girls on my team), Matt “Peamont” is the best, most dedicated coach we’ve ever had.

Mississauga Blues practices two times a week and have our games almost every Saturday from June –August, and without a doubt Pe-mon, Pea, Peamont, and Piemontese (so many nicknames I can’t keep up) will always be there. He is the kind of person that you try your hardest to impress. For a Streetsville graduate, I know that I would want to impress Peamont because he is the coach for the Philip Pocock Secondary School girls’Rugby team and when I was in high school they were always the team to beat, they were amazing! When I found out that he was going to be the coach for the Mississauga Blues, I knew that he wouldn’t take any slacking off and he was the person to impress.

Rain or shine, Peamont will be there, practicing with us, doing all the drills with us, showing what to do; instead of telling us what to do. HE IS AMAZING! The best thing I love about Peamont is his voice, NO matter where you are on the field; you can be all the way across the field, you can hear him screaming. He will be shouting down the field, letting you know what to do next, what you are going great, and what you can fix (and yes this is while we are playing). Running back and forth with us, and just being the best coach that any team could have.

Now we have to say good bye, he isn’t moving away or going to a different team (let’s face it, I don’t think that he could stand to lose; because we are the first place team and will always be!) he is now just coaching the Under 18 team, and my team mates and I know that they are in very good hands. We are defiantly going to miss him. Thank you Matt Piemontese! You are the best coach Mississauga Blues Senior Women’s has ever had!!

Streetsville Secondary School = Mississauga Blues

Way back in the day when I was in grade 8 I knew that I was going to play Rugby, my sister that is 2 years older went to Streetsville and she was on the Rugby team, she loved everything about the sport. After that I knew that I was going to be on the Streetsville girls Rugby team. I’ve played on the team from grade 9 to grade 12 and by grade 11 everyone knew how dedicated I was to the sport. Mike Curran asked me to play for Mississauga Blues everyday because he knew how much I enjoyed the sport and how I would excel and be better at the sport that I love playing.

Streetsville is so closely intertwined with Mississauga Blues just because the person that made the team was a teacher at Streetsville Secondary School. Most schools have one sport that everyone loves, that everyone looks forward too, and is willing to wake up early, or stay out late to enjoy the sport that makes their school what it is. Rugby is Streetsville’s sport; everyone counts down the days when Rugby will start, because we know that everyone loves playing.

Mississauga Blues train and play at Streetsville Secondary School, Streetsville’s field is meant for a Rugby game, and it is big enough for Mississauga Blues many different teams to practice on. Streetsville Rugby is the largest highschool program for boys and girls in Ontario, so many students (big and small) join Rugby and love it.

Today, 70% of Mississauga Blues total membership is not tied with Streetsville Secondary School, when Mississauga Blues started 60% of the total membership were people who went to Streetsville Secondary School. Now that our club is getting more awareness, more people from different parts of Mississauga are joining, and this gives our club a variety of different people, with different skills. IT'S GREAT!