Lions to debut Chicago's Hope Field

Chicago's Lions will debut a new field and clubhouse Saturday with a match against the crosstown Griffins.

Hope Field, developed in conjunction with the Chicago Hope Academy, will instantly become a milestone for the storied Midwest club. Not only is the ground and its historic two-story building located within hailing distance of the city's famous Loop, but the 45-year-old outfit has struck an alliance with a well-regarded college prep school that has not previously featured rugby.

Leading American cities such as Chicago and New York are home to tens of thousands of recent college graduates, some who know rugby and some thinking of taking up new sports. But they are also pursuing new careers, and the logistical difficulties of training as well as the chronic lack of dedicated facilities discourages all but the most ardent.

Convenient, recognizable venues like the Near West Side's Hope Field or Rocca Field on San Francisco's Treasure Island not only provide rugby clubs with operating capacity, but also serve to legitimize the sport among the broader population. Working with local schools -- and in the process seeding a junior team -- can accelerate the dynamic.

'Partnering with a school with a noble mission makes our story that much clearer and understandable to people,' Lions president Keith Brown said in an interview.

Interestingly, the clubhouse began life in 1887 as an athletic and social club for ethnic Germans. One of 11 such facilities around Chicago, the 'Gut Heil' house is the last of its kind, and was scheduled for demolition in 2007 before local preservationists stepped in.

Also in 2007, the Lions fell just short of a first-ever 15s championship before going on to claim the 7s title, while last year Marty Wiggins' troops lost in the semifinals. The Griffins too were a 2007 playoff outfit, dropping a 20-17 semifinal contest to their Windy City rivals.

But both Chicago teams are new this year to the Super League's western conference, generally considered the more difficult of the national circuit's two eight-team groupings. In southern California last week, neither side managed a win, meaning the loser of Saturday's second-round match faces steepening odds of a playoff berth.

Inaugural Saturday kicks off with a Hope Academy scrimmage and then a ceremony to honor the 21 Lions who have been Eagles, including 1970s standouts Bill Fraumann and Gary Wilson and latter-day stars Phil Eloff and David Fee, each tied for second on the all-time try-scoring list.

Comments

[ed schram, sr.]

Congratulations to the Chicago Lions....a great rugby club doing the right things!

Having a permanent, centrally-located place to play is the foundation of successful rugby clubs the world over. It is also one of the keys to expanding youth rugby.

If some portion of the millions being spent by the foreign pretenders in Boulder were directed toward building for the future by aiding the development of club faciliites and youth rugby -- as opposed to chasing Eagle victories -- American rugby would be better served.

When is the Congress going to act and terminate these failures?

[Nothing but Love]

Congratulations to both Phil and David. Two great guys who played good rugby in the red white and blue.

Eloff was considered one of the best in the 2003 Rugby World Cup and I think David is giving back by coaching rugby. Well done fellas.

[Just a D2 rugger]

This is good news for Chicago area rugby. I think it is important for the flagship club of the area (not dissing the Griffins, I will actually be cheering for them this weekend, just recognizing the Lions are a little more established) to have a permanent, centrally located pitch to help showcase rugby in the area. Hopefully, other area teams such as the Griffins will be able to do the same.

Has anybody on this board seen the Lions new setup yet? Is is big enough for more than one pitch? I was wondering because I also think it would be good for Chicago area rugby if some of the local playoffs and tournaments such as the CARFU ball could be held there. Currently, a lot of those events are held in Lemont at the Blaze's field. The Blaze have a great setup, the only problem is that it is located in the outer 'burbs of Chicago and probably not as good as of a location to showcase Chicago area rugby as a location in the city.

[cement shoes]

This is possible in every single city in America. It takes vision and follow through, two things that are lacking in most rugby organizations. 3 cheers for the Lions, they certainly put in the hard yards.

Stop the insanity of playing rugby on burnt out park grounds. There are plenty of possibilities out there. USA Rugby should be all over this creating templates for success and mandatory Academy for all Super League squads. Pump them up with the HP that is wasted every year. If that were done, and there was a Nationalized Varsity Rugby organization lobby, we'd chase those poms back to England with their tail between their legs in 2011 and start taking some scalps by 2016.

Enough with the 25 year plan. Put a blindfold on the USArFU clowns and push them to the plank.

[Barbarians]

Denver Barbarians congratulate the Lions on their accomplishment, showing the way for advancement of our sport. We look forward to the Lions - Barbarian match in two weeks at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Denver, where a large crowd is expected for a historic event at the $131,000,000 stadium. Clubs are moving forward with partnerships that overcome facilities challenges and the Barbarians are proud of our brother super league club.

[ISP8]

The tough part of the model is sustainability. Washington was essentially moved off Hyde field after a few years.

Hopefully, the Lions can keep the relationship going, and establish their indispensibility to the school.

[ISP8]

http://www.midwestrugby.org/09lionsforhopeinvitation.htm

"Monies raised from this event will support the Lions home pitch/field rental fees for the 2009 season. The Chicago Hope Academy is a 501c3 not for profit organization. Your contributions are fully tax deductible."

If you are a member of the Lions (be it as a player, coach, fan, or admin), you derive a direct benefit from the fundraiser.

Therefore, a Lion might be on shaky ground trying to claim a tax deduction. Folks from the rest of the rugby community (i.e. non-Lions) probably have stronger legs to stand on.

Last thing the rugby community needs is a rep for being tax evaders. Or at least, don't officially provide tax advice that might be abused.

[tax man]

Lets not rain on their parade, they are obviously trying to pull in as many donations as possible and are using their 501(c)(3) as a hook to bring in more $$$$.

99.9% of American taxpayers are jumping through tax loopholes each April. At least this is for a good cause, and not just lining individual pockets with gold.

[Bear]

ISP8- Your line of thinking was correct but the details are wrong. Hyde lost access to their field and in turn Washington lost access as well.

[ISP8]

Bear,
Good point, I guess I was trying to point out that sustaining a field relationship is as hard as getting it.

The lessons behind keeping a field are just as important as promoting the "getting" the field.

Is paying field fees a sustainable model? When a small charter or private school gets bigger, do you then get crowded out by the growing school sports? Will your fees have to grow relative to the property rents & sales in the area?

Is providing coaching or teachers to the schools sustainable?

Does the club do direct field upkeep, does it pay $$ for the school to do it? Which is more effective in terms of building the relationship with the field entity?

I hope the Lions and every other team out there can keep their fields.

[playing by the rules]

The NFL is (as well as most elite athletic organizations) a tax exempt organization.

[ray cornbill]

Kurt:
no mention that the Hope Academy was founded by Columbia and Old Blue player "Muzz" Muzikowski.
Also congrats to those Chicago Eagles -- my pleasure to have been associated with almost all of them.
Ray