Triumphant again

The Sydney Convicts will turn their attention to an unprecedented third consecutive gay rugby world title after easily defending their Bingham Cup title in Dublin over the weekend.

The Convicts beat London’s Kings Cross Steelers 18-3 in the grand final on Sunday night our time, adding to the runners-up trophy the Convicts 2 side chalked up in the Bingham Plate division.

Convicts captain Charlie Winn said the side had to work hard for the victory, not only taking on a string of teams from around the world, but also the weather.

I’m proud of the strength and determination shown by the boys today and in the lead-up games to the final, he said. The team’s thanks also goes to the Bingham Cup organisers for their amazing efforts and to the entire Convicts community both in Dublin and back home for their loyal support.

Special thanks to the Convicts head coach Bronnie Mackintosh and head physiotherapist, Simon Raftery, for their incredible contribution to the Convicts.

Mackintosh said she was impressed the side had managed to go through the tournament undefeated.

The boys played quick running rugby all week, and went through to the final undefeated, she said. They trained hard for this tournament and their camaraderie supported them through with a win.

The Convicts are the first team to win back-to-back Bingham Cups. Despite the success, team spokesman Iain Jepsen said there were no plans to bid for the 2010 cup to be held in Sydney.

I don’t think any of us want to think about the Bingham Cup for at least the next couple of months, he said.

Winning back-to-back cups has been a huge achievement and for our second team, which was only formed in 2006, to make the final, we are just stoked.

Jepsen said the Convicts celebrated their victory in true Sydney style and hoped the win would encourage the formation of other gay rugby teams.

It should bolster the club and encourage it to keep going and hopefully will see the development of other gay rugby teams in the southern hemisphere, he said. I mean, where are South Africa? Where’s New Zealand? They’re two of the biggest rugby nations in the world and they don’t have teams.

The Convicts 2 side came out runners-up to the World Barbarians in the Bingham Plate division.

Convicts 2 captain Simon Thompson said he was proud of the team’s performance and the legacy the Sydney Convicts are helping create in the world of gay rugby.

Convicts’ team members will arrive in Sydney progressively over the next two weeks after which a party is planned to celebrate their success.

We really want to express our deep appreciation and gratitude to everyone and every organisations that supported us, Jepsen said. We could not have done it without them.