Cape Fear Rugby Football Club Receives Extra Assistance in Hurricane Relief

Sat, Dec 1, 2018, 11:13 AM
AB
by Ashley Brooks

Cape Fear Rugby Football Club in North Carolina is still rebuilding from the devastation of Hurricane Florence back in September. In addition to the significant impact the hurricane had on many of the team's players, it also left an unfortunate effect on the club's training equipment and pitch. After hearing about the destruction, USA Rugby connected with a longtime partner, World Rugby Shop, to provide replacement training and field gear that had been lost or destroyed in the storm.  

Nate Nemec, Cape Fear club's president, shared how his initial reaction to the storm's damages was nothing shy of astonishment, "I will never forget walking out on the pitch after the storm and just looking around at the surrounding tree line, our storage container, the pitch, everything, and being like, 'Wow, Florence really messed up this city.''

However, despite the damage created, the club still found the motivation to continue to compete this season as the club is currently 3-1.

As USA Rugby heads into this weekends' College Fall and National Championship which will take place in Charlotte, North Carolina, the focus turned back to the region and relief efforts still in need.

"Our club is our family. We have an obligation to our alumni, ourselves, and the future of this club to keep trucking along' Nemec explained as one of the major reason why the club didn't give up on competing this season.


"Another reason we stayed motivated to compete was that rugby was the only thing that felt normal. Our houses were damaged, roads were closed, work schedules were messed up, stores and gas stations had to limit their services…things were not normal. Rugby is our second home and our escape from the current chaos of the world outside the pitch.'

The club's perseverance in spite of this adversity is proving to be beneficial for the team's overall comradery, "There's the obvious physical damage to our pitch/facilities/property that we are still trying to navigate around, but aside from that we are closer than ever' Nemec said. 

"When you have groups of guys show up to your house to assist you with a disaster it really hits home and makes you want to be there for those guys as well. That chemistry shows on the pitch.' He continued.

When Nemec first heard that USA Rugby and World Rugby Shop were going to assist the club by donating rugby gear his reaction was nothing short of heartwarming, "I broke the news to my board first, then the rest of the club. The reaction was the same with everyone. We're all ecstatic to hear that USA Rugby and World Rugby Shop are willing to help us. It feels good to know that our voice is heard and we're eternally thankful for them'.

"Honestly, it has given us a breath of fresh air as well. Recovery efforts have been long and draining' he continued. However, Nemec is confident that this storm will not hold the club back from being on the pitch, "We have an additional bullet point on the wall to play rugby, to show that we are stronger than some storm.'

If you would like to assist Cape Fear with Hurricane Relief efforts, you can give to their GoFundMe page HERE.

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