Cardiff Lions
Encyclopedia
The Cardiff Lions RFC is a gay
and gay friendly rugby union
football club based in Cardiff, Wales. The club was founded in 2004 and remains the only gay rugby club in Wales
. The Lions were admitted as members of the International Gay Rugby Association and Board
in 2006.
tournaments to date; 2005 in Montpelier
and 2007 in Copenhagen
and 2009 in London
.The 2007 tournament was a great success: Ten Lions players and Lions fans were joined by 2 of the Newcastle Ravens
and one player from the Bristol Bisons RFC
. The club recorded victories over NOP Amsterdam Rugby Club (35-5), Malmö Devilants
, twice, (30-5 and 35-0) and the Caledonian Thebans RFC (5-25), drawing with the Emerald Warriors 10-10 on the way. The club missed out in a tense final in Copenhagen to the Emerald Warriors RFC
10-5 after extra time.
2009 saw another successful year for the Lions in the Union Cup - taking part in the 10s tournament, the Lions played some superb running rugby to become undefeated 10s champions. They recorded victories over Kings Cross Steelers
2nd (19-0), Los Valents (26-12), Newcastle Ravens
(0-22) and Caledonian Thebans (0-26). This set up a final against the Steelers 2nds, in which the Cardiff Lions emerged 29-7 victors. A number of the squad also helped out with the Bristol Bisons RFC
who won the 7's tournamant. Cardiff Lions Captain Justin Gyphion also picked up the top try scorers award to crown a highly successful weekend.
where they came 6th in the Plate competition.
In June 2008 the Cardiff Lions travelled to Dublin for the 4th beinnial Bingham Cup hosted magnificently by the Emerald Warriors
. The structure of the competition and seedings put the Lions in the lower tier and competing for either the second tier Plate, third tier Bowl or fourth tier Shield. A travelling squad of 23 players and 6 support staff made a vast improvement on the previous Bingham Cup results:
Friday 13 June
Game 1, Cardiff Lions 41 Phoenix Storm 10
Game 2, Cardiff Lions 36 Copenhagen Scrum 0
Saturday 14 June
Game 3, Cardiff Lions 56 Manchester Village Spartans 2nds 0
Plate/Bowl decider, Cardiff Lions 31 Atlanta Bucks 0
Sunday 15 June
Quarter Final Plate, Cardiff Lions 21 Emerald Warriors
19
Semi Final Plate, Cardiff Lions 5 Sydney Convicts 2nds 27
These results left the Cardiff Lions in 3rd place in the Plate competition after winning the 3rd/4th play-off boat race at the closing ceremony against San Francisco Fog RFC 2nds. A huge improvement on the previous Bingham Cup and with a lot more teams taking part (32 from around the world).
. The club also has ambitions to expand and improve the squad, developing links with local clubs.
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
and gay friendly rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
football club based in Cardiff, Wales. The club was founded in 2004 and remains the only gay rugby club in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. The Lions were admitted as members of the International Gay Rugby Association and Board
International Gay Rugby Association and Board
International Gay Rugby Association and Board is the umbrella organization for the world's gay rugby clubs. It is dedicated to encouraging lesbians and gay men everywhere to play rugby...
in 2006.
Union Cup
The Lions have competed in the three Union CupUnion Cup
The Union Cup is a biennial European, non-professional, gay rugby union tournament, bringing together teams and joint teams from all over Europe.-Montpellier 2005:The first edition was held in May 2005 in Montpellier, France...
tournaments to date; 2005 in Montpelier
Montpelier
Montpelier or Montpellier is the name of several places:in Canada:* Montpellier, Quebec* Montpellier , a train station in Montreal, Canadain France:* Montpellier, a city in southern France** The University of Montpellierin Ireland:...
and 2007 in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
and 2009 in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.The 2007 tournament was a great success: Ten Lions players and Lions fans were joined by 2 of the Newcastle Ravens
Newcastle Ravens
Newcastle Ravens Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team located in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. The team was organised to help encourage gay people to take part in the sport. Dave Burke, who is the current chairman, founded the team in 2006 and it is run by a board of four elected members...
and one player from the Bristol Bisons RFC
Bristol Bisons RFC
Bristol Bisons RFC is an English rugby union club and claims to be an inclusive gay friendly team.- Club History :The Bristol Bisons RFC were established in 2005....
. The club recorded victories over NOP Amsterdam Rugby Club (35-5), Malmö Devilants
Malmö Devilants
Malmö Devilants RFC is a Swedish gay rugby union and volleyball club in Malmö. Malmö Devilants was founded 2004 and was the first gay rugby team in Scandinavia. Malmö Devilants are a member of International Gay Rugby Association and Board. Devilants have been playing in Union Cup in 2005 and 2007...
, twice, (30-5 and 35-0) and the Caledonian Thebans RFC (5-25), drawing with the Emerald Warriors 10-10 on the way. The club missed out in a tense final in Copenhagen to the Emerald Warriors RFC
Emerald Warriors
The Emerald Warriors are an Irish rugby team based in Dublin. They play in the Leinster Metro J4 Junior League and are members of the International Gay Rugby Association and Board...
10-5 after extra time.
2009 saw another successful year for the Lions in the Union Cup - taking part in the 10s tournament, the Lions played some superb running rugby to become undefeated 10s champions. They recorded victories over Kings Cross Steelers
Kings Cross Steelers
The Kings Cross Steelers are an English rugby union team, the first open membership gay and bisexual rugby club in the world.The Kings Cross Steelers are currently playing in the .-History:...
2nd (19-0), Los Valents (26-12), Newcastle Ravens
Newcastle Ravens
Newcastle Ravens Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team located in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. The team was organised to help encourage gay people to take part in the sport. Dave Burke, who is the current chairman, founded the team in 2006 and it is run by a board of four elected members...
(0-22) and Caledonian Thebans (0-26). This set up a final against the Steelers 2nds, in which the Cardiff Lions emerged 29-7 victors. A number of the squad also helped out with the Bristol Bisons RFC
Bristol Bisons RFC
Bristol Bisons RFC is an English rugby union club and claims to be an inclusive gay friendly team.- Club History :The Bristol Bisons RFC were established in 2005....
who won the 7's tournamant. Cardiff Lions Captain Justin Gyphion also picked up the top try scorers award to crown a highly successful weekend.
Bingham Cup
The Cardiff Lions travelled to New York, NY in May 2006 for the 3rd Mark Kendall Bingham Memorial TournamentMark Kendall Bingham Memorial Tournament
The Mark Kendall Bingham Memorial Tournament or the Bingham Cup is a biennial international, non-professional, gay rugby union tournament, first held in 2002...
where they came 6th in the Plate competition.
In June 2008 the Cardiff Lions travelled to Dublin for the 4th beinnial Bingham Cup hosted magnificently by the Emerald Warriors
Emerald Warriors
The Emerald Warriors are an Irish rugby team based in Dublin. They play in the Leinster Metro J4 Junior League and are members of the International Gay Rugby Association and Board...
. The structure of the competition and seedings put the Lions in the lower tier and competing for either the second tier Plate, third tier Bowl or fourth tier Shield. A travelling squad of 23 players and 6 support staff made a vast improvement on the previous Bingham Cup results:
Friday 13 June
Game 1, Cardiff Lions 41 Phoenix Storm 10
Game 2, Cardiff Lions 36 Copenhagen Scrum 0
Saturday 14 June
Game 3, Cardiff Lions 56 Manchester Village Spartans 2nds 0
Plate/Bowl decider, Cardiff Lions 31 Atlanta Bucks 0
Sunday 15 June
Quarter Final Plate, Cardiff Lions 21 Emerald Warriors
Emerald Warriors
The Emerald Warriors are an Irish rugby team based in Dublin. They play in the Leinster Metro J4 Junior League and are members of the International Gay Rugby Association and Board...
19
Semi Final Plate, Cardiff Lions 5 Sydney Convicts 2nds 27
These results left the Cardiff Lions in 3rd place in the Plate competition after winning the 3rd/4th play-off boat race at the closing ceremony against San Francisco Fog RFC 2nds. A huge improvement on the previous Bingham Cup and with a lot more teams taking part (32 from around the world).
The future
Next up for the club will be the Hadrian Cup in February. This is the annual 10's competition hosted by The Newcastle RavensNewcastle Ravens
Newcastle Ravens Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team located in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. The team was organised to help encourage gay people to take part in the sport. Dave Burke, who is the current chairman, founded the team in 2006 and it is run by a board of four elected members...
. The club also has ambitions to expand and improve the squad, developing links with local clubs.