Women’s club rugby held their first practice on March 9, 2026. Mbu started the St. Thomas Women’s Rugby Club after playing for the Twin Cities Amazons. (Evan Neubauer/The Crest) 
Captain Suzie Mbu gets to know her new team. (Evan Neubauer/The Crest) 
Twin Cities Amazons player and UST women’s rugby athlete Rachel Placeway teaches new athletes a basic rugby pass. (Evan Neubauer/The Crest)
Junior Emily Juneau had never played rugby –or any contact sport– before stepping on O’Shaughnessy Stadium field on the evening of March 9 to tackle a club sport that hadn’t taken the field since 2016.
Juneau was one of 18 women who attended the Women’s Rugby Club’s first practice, just days after they watched film on how to play. Its co-president, Suzie Mbu, hopes this semester can be an opportunity for women to understand the rules of rugby and build a team culture.
“A big tactic that we use this semester was that you don’t need experience; this is exploratory. You don’t need to know how to play rugby, we’re gonna teach you,” Mbu said. “We’re just hoping to create a really strong foundation so that we can build up from that and hopefully be competitive in the fall.”
The Women’s Rugby Club has gained popularity throughout the years at St. Thomas. Club Sports Director Kevin Manson said that in the past, juniors and seniors have tried to restart the club, but did not provide enough time to build interest and secure proper funding before graduation.
“We’ve had two attempts to bring it back in the last three to four years,” Manson said.
But for a sophomore like Mbu and her fellow co-president, Isa Akimoto, Mbu thinks they have garnered enough interest this spring to officially compete in the fall.
Juneau said Mbu “brought the whole sport to life” for her.
“Coming from someone who has very little experience with other sports, especially not a contact sport, not a lot of people have prior experience,” Juneau said. “They’re giving us the building blocks, so that is making it a lot more accessible for anyone to join.”
Juneau said women’s rugby is growing in popularity in the United States, especially because there are few contact sports for women.
“People didn’t grow up playing this — they play soccer or hockey or something like that,” Juneau said.
Some of the difficulty in learning rugby, according to Mbu, stems from it not having a clearly related sport, with it being a “little mix of soccer and football, in terms of positions and running with the ball.”
For a player like Mbu, who has prior experience playing with the Twin Cities Amazons, even she recognizes the learning curve new players face.
“In all honesty, to become a good rugby player, it takes you a while,” Mbu said.
The Women’s Rugby Club has not only earned support from its participants, but also from the Men’s Rugby Club. The Men’s Rugby Club, created in 2011, has assisted the women’s team by reposting content on their social media and sharing coaching resources.
Cadman Foley, sophomore representative for the Men’s Club Rugby E-board, said the men’s team plans on having joint fundraisers with the women’s team, splitting field time during practice and connecting Mbu with other coaches.
“They’re all very excited about the Women’s Rugby Club,” Mbu said. “It’s nice to know that we have their support and their excitement, and they want this to happen too. It’s nice to share rugby with everyone.”
“The support of the rugby community stems beyond gender— it’s a niche sport,” Manson said.
Juneau said that bonding with her teammates made the first practice a positive experience, and that forming a team mindset helped her shift into the perspective that “these are the girls you’re going into battle with.”
“Inviting– that’s what I want to bring here to St. Thomas, that feeling of this is a sisterhood,” Mbu said. “I can rely on these people to have my back physically and emotionally, too.”
Mbu hopes that this “foundational season” can be a launching pad to compete next fall.
Grace Woelfel can be reached at woel8456@stthomas.edu.
