Tucumán Rugby Club

Tucumán Rugby Club, is an Argentine sports club based in the city of San Miguel de Tucumán. Although other sports (such as tennis and field hockey) are practised in the institution, Tucumán is mostly known for its rugby union team.

Tucumán rugby team is a member of the Unión de Rugby de Tucumán and one of the most successful teams in the province, having won the provincial title 20 times and reaching the final of the Nacional de Clubes on two occasions.

History

Tucumán Rugby Club was founded on September 5, 1942, by students and employees of the Bank of London branch in San Miguel de Tucumán. At first, most members were English expatriates and the club became known as "El Club de los Ingleses" (The Club of the English).

For the first few years the club didn't own a ground and had to play rugby in public parks. By the end of the 1950s the club purchased a 3 hectares plot of land in Salas y Valdez and started building its own installations.

Tucumán won the first ever Torneo del Noroeste title in 1944, the first of Tucumán Rugby Club's 20 provincial titles. At the national level the club reached the final of the Nacional de Clubes twice.

Rugby football

Rugby football is a type of football developed at Rugby School in Rugby, Warwickshire, one of many versions of football played at English public schools in the 19th century. The two main types of rugby are rugby league and rugby union. Although these two forms share many elements, the two codes have gradually developed with distinct sets of rules.

Forms

History

The Ancient Greeks and Romans are known to have played many ball games, some of which involved the use of the feet. The Roman game harpastum is believed to have been adapted from a Greek team game known as "ἐπίσκυρος" (Episkyros) or "φαινίνδα" (phaininda), which is mentioned by a Greek playwright, Antiphanes (388–311 BC) and later referred to by the Christian theologian Clement of Alexandria (c.150-c.215 AD). These games appear to have resembled rugby football. The Roman politician Cicero (106–42 BC) describes the case of a man who was killed whilst having a shave when a ball was kicked into a barber's shop. Roman ball games already knew the air-filled ball, the follis.Episkyros is recognised as an early form of football by FIFA.