The rules of the game are quite similar to that of American football. Teams play 15-on-15, and use a field that’s a shade wider than the gridiron variety and a ball just a bit bigger and more round than the pigskin. Rugby teams attempt to score five points (called a “try” when they are successful) and then execute a two-point conversion with a place- or drop-kick through the uprights. They can also be awarded three points when they execute a successful drop-kick after a penalty. Oh yeah: Rugby folk don’t need no stinking pads, either.

Those scrums so often associated with the game are the result of an unintentional penalty, a restart of sorts akin to a jump ball in hoops or a face-off in hockey—except that, in this case, eight players on each side push and batter each other for control of the ball.

Lest you think the game is chock-full of meatheads hell-bent on punishing their opponents, know that most of its ranks are populated by college-educated blokes who picked up the game on American campuses, though the clubs are open to all newcomers. The rosters of many Chicago clubs include doctors, lawyers, firefighters and traders.

Sponsorships from local physical-rehab clinic AthletiCo, Jack Daniel’s and Goose Island (near-perfect fits, don’t you think?) might help defray some of the expenses for traveling teams, but competitors still pay to play.

Terry Connors, 43, is another of the “old boys”—those hearty (some might say insane) souls who continue playing for the 35-and-older squad. He’s battling for the Lions’ biggest rival, the Chicago Griffins, who themselves have been around for 33 years. Both clubs field teams in the Midwest Division I (made up of ten teams in six cities) of the USA Rugby Football Union. For Connors, the game has meant so much because the aggressive competition suits his personality and has given him the opportunity to travel. He nearly got misty-eyed when recalling a match the Griffins travel team played on the practice field next door to Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh, Scotland, home to the legendary Scottish national team. After being allowed to use the stadium’s locker rooms and charge out of the hallowed halls to take on a Scottish club team, he admits the Griffins “played great for 20 minutes and then got smoked.”

Connors is beginning to feel the wear and tear during practices: “I have to admit, just in the last couple of years, when I see some enormous 23-year-old running at me, it’s like, Oh fuck. Run around me. Do anything. Make a move. Wiggle your head and I’ll go for it. Those guys inevitably run right into me.”

The friendships forged with fellow ruggers are a lasting part of the game. “A rugby person is a special breed of person,” Hall says, stating the obvious. “You kind of remember highlights, but generally, people will tell you a story about that weekend—the bus breaking down, etc. It’s just really good fun.”

The Lions take on the St. Louis Bombers and Scioto Valley in Lemont on Sat 30. Visit www.chicagorugby.com for more info on teams and schedules.