It was the biggest, and more important, best-ever showing for the Chicago Dragons in the prestigious Bingham Cup, held May 27-29 in Nashville.
The Dragons traveled to the rugby tournament with two teams for the first time ever. The A-side participated in Division 1 and the B-side participated in Division 3, meaning 45 players wore the Dragons' jersey, with a fairly even split of Bingham newcomers and Bingham returning players.
There were 20 teams in the top-tiered Division 1, 16 in Division 2 and nine in Division 3.
Overall, the 2016 Bingham Cup attracted about 1,000 players.
Dragons head coach Mackenzie Doolittle said the teams' showing at the Bingham "was all great."
"A number of trophies are awarded throughout the tournament," Doolittle said. "The teams' A-side, after [struggling in] pool-play, ended up playing in the Hoagland Cup/Plate bracket, [which is] the top hardware for Division 2 teams. This is when we really started to play our best rugby, [including] an awesome, gritty match against the San Diego Armada. James Loehr, one of the leaders on the pitch, really stepped up in that match and I think pushed us over the hump to a victory. We won our next match in a solid, well-rounded, team effort against the Manchester Village Spartans, which was exactly what we needed to do knowing that we would be playing for the Hoagland Cup in our final match of the tournament.
"We ended up losing that match, but saved our best rugby for the end of the tournament."
The B-side was resilient all weekend, especially being thin on numbers and limited in experience. But, "I think being at Bingham was not lost on them and [after] a slow start, the [team] hit their groove later on in the weekend and ended up winning the Challenger Julep against the New York Gotham Knights," he said.
"It was the first time in Dragons history that we left the Bingham Cup with hardware. It was awesome."
The B-side was led by captains Jon Allen and Bobby Schumacher, and other standouts included Tony Furnas, Kyle Loehr, DJ Spaulding and Red Biller, among others.
"For the A-side, I think our success was driven by our depth and flexibility," Doolittle said. "We had a couple injuries; we had some things that just weren't working for us and we had to adjust throughout the tournament. [The] guys took on whatever role they were asked."
Doolittle, 27, who lives in Chicago's North Center neighborhood, was emotional, teary-eyed throughout the event—like all participants.
"Two years ago, at my first Bingham, I didn't know what to anticipate and was overcome with an awesome sense of being part of something so much bigger than myself or a game," Doolittle said. "So this year, I knew what to anticipate and still had chills running up my spine consistently, nervous before matches. After our A-side lost our final match of the tournament, everything hit me at once: pride, exhaustion, disappointment, happiness and I cried."
The 2016 Bingham was "very emotional, but absolutely one of the greatest experiences I have the privilege of being a part of," he said.
Red Biller, 29, lives in Andersonville and is in his second term as president of the Dragons and also the team's representative to IGR ( International Gay Rugby )—and he's been playing rugby for 13 years.
"From the administrative side, this [tournament] has been over two years in the making, so there were a lot of emotions. Even some of our own members don't understand the amount of effort that goes into putting on an event of this magnitude, [which includes] recruitment, fundraising, coordination and logistics. Tensions were high in the days leading up to it and we really owe it to our all-volunteer board/administration, coaching staff, general volunteers and fans for making this possible.
"Both on and off the field the camaraderie and sense of brotherhood is like nothing I've experienced. It's amazing to see the aggression in which people play on the field juxtaposed with the friendship off the field. It's really something to see guys on the verge of a fistfight during the game, sharing a beer and singing drinking songs together as they walk off."
He added, "What I think was the most powerful for me this year was seeing what this event meant to our rookies and [the] old boys. We had so many younger players who were new to rugby and team sports; seeing their excitement and energy was really something. Then you had the old boys and founding members beaming with pride seeing the results of their years of service and commitment to the team."
Eric Ruble was a bright spot for the A-Side, as well as Gabe Spellberg.
"With the numbers we have right now, and the way we've been retaining players, it speaks to the long-term potential of the club," Doolittle said. "I also think it speaks to how the gap between the Dragons and clubs that were, previously untouchable, is dwindling. We're going to be the next club to join the ranks of the elite IGR teams."
The Dragons are now starting their 7's season and training for the fall season. "I think everyone is kind of riding the crest of this wave and just wants it to continue into the fall and keep competing [against] the other clubs right in our own backyard," Doolittle said.
The Dragons, playing since 2003, are part of the USA Rugby organization, the Midwest Rugby Union and the Chicago Area Rugby Football Union ( CARFU ). The Dragons are the first predominantly gay rugby team in the Midwest and the first team in the Midwest to formally join International Gay Rugby ( IGR ).
"I can't say enough how proud I am of everyone on this team," Doolittle said. "We didn't just have a strong showing at Bingham. … We had, arguably, our strongest showing of any season ever. We won a handful of matches against teams that had previously mopped the floor with us. These guys deserve every bit of credit. They worked so incredibly hard all season long, the way they all held one another accountable for getting better was amazing. I am so incredibly proud to be a Dragon and share the pitch with this group of guys."
The Dragons will be marching in the annual Chicago Pride Parade.
