Internet International Returns

David Hodges’ professional rugby career began in Wales two years ago, with the help of the World Wide Web.

Today the Long Beach resident steps onto the worldwide stage when he takes the field for the United States against Ireland in an opening-round game of the 1999 Rugby World Cup at Lansdowne Road stadium in Dublin.

The United States is one of 20 teams in a tournament that ranks with soccer’s World Cup and the Super Bowl as one of the most-watched televised sporting events on the planet.

Rugby’s first World Cup was staged in 1987 and is played every four years. The United States played in the 1987 and 1991 tournaments but failed to advance beyond first-round play. In 1995, the first year teams had to qualify, the United States did not make the field after losing to Argentina in a qualifying match.

This year, the U.S. qualified by finishing third behind Argentina and Canada in the Pan American championships. The Americans also placed third in the Epson Cup last spring.

Hodges, 31, was a major contributor as a lock and occasional blindside flanker. At 6 feet 4 and 240 pounds, he is a fast, powerful and often intimidating player who favors a punishing style over pizazz.

“Rugby is no different than any other sport--there are guys that do all the flashy stuff and guys who do everything else that allows those guys to get those opportunities to be flashy,” said Jack Clark, coach of the U.S. team. “Hodgey can go in the air and get up and down and around the field. He does a lot of the dirty work.”

Hodges still finds it hard to believe that rugby is his sport.

“Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would be playing this game,” he said.

Hodges’ game was football. He played at Long Beach Wilson High, was a Division III All-American linebacker for Occidental College in 1989 and ‘90, and played two seasons for Hamburg in the World League.

He was exposed to rugby as a casual spectator while growing up in Long Beach. The Belmont Shore Rugby Club played at a local junior high, and Hodges and his friends occasionally stopped by to watch.

“We thought it was kind of a strange thing,” he said. “They were kind of crazy, running around, knocking each other around.”

In college, however, Hodges started playing club rugby to have some fun and stay in shape during football’s off-season. He was immediately taken with the unpadded contact and collisions.

When his pro football career ended, Hodges returned from Europe and went to work for his father’s business machines company. He played for Occidental’s rugby club on weekends, though, and during a tournament in San Diego was invited to join the prestigious Old Mission Beach Athletic Club, a perennial rugby power that included several members of the U.S. national team.

Hodges helped OMBAC win the 1996 national championship and played his first international game against Uruguay during a 1997 tournament in Canada. He also played against Canada and started twice against Wales.

The international experience was a wake-up call.

“I decided that if I wanted to keep my position, I needed to play at a higher level in a place that would allow me to concentrate on rugby,” Hodges said.

So, he clicked onto the Internet and typed “rugby” and “United Kingdom” into the search engine. He eventually landed at a Web site for Llanelli, a team in Wales.

“I e-mailed the team and said I was interested in playing and they got right back to me,” Hodges said. “They pulled out the tape [of his games against Wales] and offered me a contract.

“They kind of had it in the press over there that I was the first player signed over the Internet.”

Hodges hopes to return for another pro season in the United Kingdom, but first he wants to help the U.S. make a respectable showing in the World Cup.

Unlike the top teams in the tournament, which feature rosters entirely of professionals, the United States has a few pros, such as Hodges, playing with amateurs who juggle careers with their sport.

The United States’ other first-round games are against Romania next Saturday in Dublin and Australia Oct. 14 in Limerick.

“[Ireland] is definitely a good team and we’re an improving team,” Hodges said. “Hopefully, we can surprise a few people.”

Rugby Notes

Host nation Wales opened the World Cup with a 23-18 victory over Argentina at Cardiff, and Fiji rolled over Namibia, 67-18, in Beziers, France.