By DR. J. ZIMMERMAN

The sport of rugby is pretty much played all year. Like other sports, there is a rugby “season.” The only difference is that there are three seasons per year: spring, summer and fall. And, if we are dealing with international rugby, we could add a fourth season into the mix that overlaps the other three seasons.

Here is the breakdown.
For local rugby, it’s pretty simple. The fall is when the club teams (such as our Jersey Shore Sharks squad) compete in their union’s divisional play. The goal is to make the playoffs in the spring and then work toward the national championship.
The spring season is called the “friendly” season. Club teams schedule matches for fun with teams that might not be in their fall division.
Club teams will also enter tournaments in the spring or even tour other countries and play foreign teams at their same competitive level.
Hopefully, the spring season will end with a run in the playoffs and lead to competing in the national championship series. Spring season is also when high school rugby competes. High school rugby only plays one season a year in order to not interfere with fall season high school sports.
Lastly, professional rugby in the United States takes place in the spring season. Currently, there is a six-team professional league with plans to expand to 10 teams next year.
The summer season in rugby is 7s season. Sevens rugby is the seven-man version of the sport. Quick and exciting, games only last for 14 minutes.
Since I mentioned professional rugby, let’s talk about that. There are multiple professional leagues that compete overseas. The northern and southern hemisphere each have various competitions for their professional teams.
In Europe, there is the Guinness Pro 12, the English Premiership, The European Cup and the French League.
Down south, New Zealand has the ITM 10 Cup and the Mitre Cup. Australia has Super Rugby, and South Africa professionals also compete in a Super Rugby competition. These competitions start in the fall and continue into the spring.
In some instances, pro teams are playing in two competitions at once. What makes professional rugby very interesting is that at various times throughout the year, players are called up to represent their countries in international competitions such as the Six Nations, the Quad Nations, the World Cup or the Olympics.
There are even “friendly” international seasons that take place in the summer and fall. For example, England may play South Africa as a friendly in the summer. And as is the case this fall, New Zealand will play Ireland and the USA will play the Maori All Blacks at Soldier Field in Chicago this November.
Team USA just finished their summer friendly season, losing to Italy 24-20 and beating Russia 25-0. One of the exciting facts about USA Rugby is that virtually any player from all of the local club teams across the country is eligible to play for team USA’s national rugby squad, the Eagles.
For example, let’s say that we have athletes on our Jersey Shore Sharks squad who are really good players. Our Sharks players have a chance to move up the ladder to the national team. How so? There are many camps and tryouts held each year for players of skill and talent to showcase their abilities to national coaches. Also, when a team makes the final eight for the national club championships, there are plenty of scouts around.
A player could get a call-up for a tryout to the national training camp. In addition, there are scouts from all over the world, including the United States, who are looking for prospects for professional teams.
Three players from my alma mater, Life University, are playing professional rugby in Europe. And there at least 16 players from the United States team playing professional rugby overseas.
As I said, the fun fact about rugby is that if you are a good athlete and have the desire to excel at the highest level, rugby has a pathway to success.
Our Shark’s team has actually had two of its players represent our country at the highest level and play for the USA Eagles. Bill Regotti was one of the founders of the Jersey Shore Rugby Club and was a Rugby Eagle. Tony Flay, another one of our players, not only captained the Sharks but played for team USA on multiple occasions and even competed in the 1993 Rugby World Cup.
In addition, many of our players have represented the Sharks playing for various regional all-star teams.
In some instances, age isn’t even a barrier. Ed Logue and Paul Pate represent the Sharks on an over-55 all-star team called the Virginia Cardinals. They compete nationally in Old Boys competitions.
Rugby is an incredible sport that is played year-round at many different levels. So, if you happen to see it on TV or are driving through Galloway, where the Sharks play, stop and give it a look!

Dr. J. Zimmerman is the president of the Jersey Shore Rugby Club Board of Directors. He is the men’s club head coach and director of youth rugby. Dr. J. is also the team chiropractor. For more information on Jersey Shore Sharks Rugby or if you are interested in playing, visit www.JerseyShoreRugby.com or on Facebook at Jersey Shore Rugby Club or call 609-652-6363, e-mail: Jerseyshoresharks@gmail.com.