Air Force rugby team continues successful streak Published Dec. 3, 2010 By Kim Dawley Air Force Materiel Command Public Affairs WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio (AFNS) -- The Air Force men's rugby team won its seventh consecutive Armed Forces Rugby Championship tournament Nov. 6. Players on the team are active-duty, Air National Guard and Reserve Airmen of all ranks and career fields from across the Air Force. They all play in local rugby clubs and on base intramural teams, but they only get together twice each year as a team. Each year in March, a large rugby tournament is held in Savannah, Ga., which serves as the trial for the Air Force team. "The tournament is mostly non-military teams, but we have upwards of 70 guys come to the trials in March," said Capt. Wayne Kinsel, who was the assistant coach of the Air Force team this year and will take over as head coach next year. "We hold two practices every day for a week, and then we select guys for three teams -- one in each division of the tournament. Every player who attends the trial event receives playing time." Captain Kinsel, who works as the Air Force Materiel Command Energy Team chief, started playing rugby at the Air Force Academy in 1997 and played for the Air Force team from 2000 until 2009. Based on the players' performances in the pretournament practices and tournament games, Captain Kinsel and the rest of the coaching staff select approximately 30 players for the Armed Forces Rugby Championship tournament, held in November each year. The Armed Forces tournament includes one team from each branch of the military and the Coast Guard. As with the Savannah tournament, the Air Force team has a week of two-a-day practices before the games. The games are held in a round-robin format, with each branch playing all the other branches. The two branches with the best record then compete in the championship game. This year, the Air Force beat the Coast Guard 56-8 in the championship, Captain Kinsel said. "In addition to winning the championship the past seven years, the Air Force team has won eight of the last nine championships and has been undefeated in the whole tournament the past two years," he said. Last year, the Air Force rugby team had another win to celebrate as well. After the Armed Forces tournament, the team played the Royal Australian Air Force rugby team -- and won, 34-18. "That was definitely one of the highlights of my career with Air Force rugby," Captain Kinsel said. "We also have approval and funding from U.S. Air Force Sports to take the team to Australia in the spring of 2011 for a rematch. We hope to play the New Zealand and Malaysian air force teams when we're there as well." Captain Kinsel credits the team's success, with so little time together, to having a consistent Air Force 'game plan' and having team members who are already in good shape and used to playing at a high level. "The Air Force has a game plan that the Academy, base intramural teams and the Air Force Rugby team follow," he said. "That consistency helps, and the training camps are a good way to get all the guys used to that strategy and to one another's playing habits." Capt. Tom Beers, who works at the National Air and Space Intelligence Center and has played with the Air Force team for three years, agrees that the camps are important, but also stresses the need for players who are not new to the game. "The week of practices helps the team gel, and in rugby you rely on all of your teammates, which is why experience makes all the difference," he said. "It truly is a team sport." "From top to bottom, we have depth in our player roster," said Capt. Reza Grigorian, a member of the Commander's Action Group at Air Force Material Command. "There was never a moment where a player couldn't step in and continue to play at a high level throughout the duration of the tournament." Learn more about Air Force Rugby at www.usafrugby.com.