1970s

In The Beginning….

(As told by Dr. Robin Tattersall, founding member & Godfather of BVI Rugby)

"The whole point of Rugby is that it is, first and foremost, a state of mind, a spirit.” - Jean-Pierre Rives.

The history detailed below is mostly true. Any variation on dates, names and circumstances can be blamed on concussions and alcohol consumption….

As far as we can recollect, the first match of the BVI Rugby Club involve four men: Robin Tattersall, Robert Dick-Reid, Peter Armor and Joe Giacinto. It occurred in the late 1960s when the Royal Engineers arrived to rebuild the Beef Island Airport.

Up until that point, there were keen rugby players on the island - just not enough to pull off an actual match. So, when the Royal Engineers arrived, it took no time at all to organize a game at the Beef Island air strip.

On this momentous day, three games were played:

1. BVI Players against the Royal Engineers
2. Royal Engineers against BVI Players in a return match
3. England & Wales against the Rest of the World

While we cannot recall who actually won each match, by the end of the third match, all of the players had lost enough skin on their knees that the Commanding Officer was compelled to bulldoze the air strip in order to put a stop to the game.

These original members were keen to form a team whenever possible – usually when the British Navy would come ashore. It was a mutually beneficial friendship, as the Navy Team would bring the BVI players back onto their ship so that they could enjoy much merriment in the Petty Officers Mess Hall. You see, the ration of alcohol permitted to the Navy crew was dependent on how much they drank while ashore – something the BVI Rugby Players were more than happy to assist with!

Steadily the club grew until they had a core group of 8-9 members who showed up for weekly practice at the AO Shirley Grounds, and even larger numbers turning up whenever a game was held. Word of upcoming matches was often spread by word of mouth. In the late 1970s, Michael ‘Muffy’ Royle recalls being hailed on the VHF Radio while in port on the S/V Flying Cloud to see if he would be available to play.

In its infancy, the club did not have so much of a “Club House”, but more of a pub that they frequented. This pub was called “The Poop Deck”, located on Waterfront Drive. Later, in the early 1980s, they were asked to join the BVI Yacht Club and after a vote held by both the rugby and yacht club members, a merger was formed. It is suspected that the members of the Yacht Club came to regret this decision after a match with the British Navy left the club house epically trashed, including mysterious footprints on the ceiling.

By this stage, the Rugby Club had started to structure itself with official positions and Robin Tattersall became the first acting President.

In 1983, the BVI became an Olympic Nation. During this time, Robin Tattersall had just become an International Judge and was asked to participate in judging sailing at the Pan American Games. He recalled that when they got to Venezuela and the judges were asked to give their introductions, he proudly announced that he was the President of the Rugby section of the BVI Yacht Club. Later, Robin represented the BVI in the 1984 Olympics along with Keith Thomas and Elvet Myers. All three men were members of the BVI Rugby Club.

It was a small club, but a fun one! A regular rivalry was set up with a team in St. Thomas, USVI, and they enjoyed away games to farther locations such as St. Croix, Barbados, Miami and St. Maarten. Outside clubs would also venture to the BVI to play and it should be noted that if there was ever a brawl or two, it was usually with St. Maarten. The club was very lucky to have their own surgeon on hand as Robin was known to stitch up a player or two on the pitch sidelines.

For games played in St. Thomas, getting there was half the fun. Private boats were often loaded up with far more people than they perhaps should have been, and there was certainly a time or two when these vessels required a tow back to shore.
In the late 1980s the club moved from the Yacht Club to Fort Burt, just outside of Road Town. This was not just a meeting house for after matches, but also a place where rugby fans assembled to watch international games. Unlike today, when fans can watch matches streamed live, in those days, rugby fans of the BVI would have to patiently wait for a VHS tape of the match to be mailed out. It was around this time that Robin Tattersall’s oldest friend, Peter Brook became president of the RFU. Peter arranged for the BVI to be registered as an Overseas Member of the RFU. He then became the first guest speaker at the Annual BVI Rugby Dinner.

The BVI Rugby Club Dinner perhaps deserves its own historical review, once known for food fights, that one occasion someone threw-up on the Governor’s wife, and an infamous joke told every year that most certainly cannot be repeated here. These days we must admit it has become much tamer affair.

Up until the late 1990s, the most important match of the year was the Boxing Day Ladies Game. The rules were simple - the women could do whatever they wanted and the men, wearing dresses, were not allowed to run. It was through this match that club secretary, Ann Jackson, regularly beat out every male player to win Most Brutal Player of the Year. The men were not to be out done however, as they implemented their elaborate play, The Refrigerator, whereby Brian Jackson was given the ball, then lifted and carried across the field. The most dubious play went to Joe Giacinto, who would play the whole match with a goose head and neck inside his pants, resulting in a most unfortunate encounter with one unwitting female player who accidentally pulled it out mid-tackle.

The BVI Rugby Club has certainly been home to a collection of characters over the years, from Olympians to Michael Donovon, AKA Gorgeous Mike. Mike was an American football player who fell so deeply in love with rugby that he went on to found Rugby Town USA after becoming the mayor of Glendale, Colorado.

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