The Twilighter Rugby Club is celebrating 40 years of fun and fraternity with its sister club from Japan this Sunday.
The Osaka Gentlemen RFC, along with a travelling team of players from other Japanese oldtimer rugby clubs, are in town this weekend to help celebrate the anniversary with a game against the Burnaby Lake Rugby Club’s over-40 element and friends.
The Twits, as the Twilighters are affectionately called, will host a pair of games at Burnaby Lake Sports Complex-East this Sunday against their Japanese visitors, beginning at 1:30 p.m.
A special over-60 match between a Lower Mainland squad and players comprising Japan’s Osaka Gentlemen, Fuwaku, Nagoya Towaku, GIFU Wak Wak, Utsubuki, Rakuwaku and Santyome clubs will take place at 2 p.m. An over-40 game is scheduled to follow at 3 p.m.
Spectators are welcome to come out and see what old boys’ rugby is all about and experience the Fuwaku spirit of masters rugby, said Steve Baron, past president of the Twilighter club.
The Twits were formed in 1975, one year after the first Canadian over-40 rugby team travelled to Japan to play against their Asian counterparts.
Over the years, teams of Twits have hosted and travelled the globe, competing in friendly fixutures against like-minded teams from all over Canada and Taiwan, England, Wales, Scotland, Australia, New Zealand, France and the United States.
As one of the founding members of the Pacific Northwest league, the Twilighters originated the World invitational rugby festival at Burnaby Lake, which continues to this day.
While Baron concedes it is the challenge of continuing to play the game that compels a 70-year-old to lace’m up every weekend, it’s also about giving back.
The Twilighters club volunteer a lot of their time to fundraising efforts and promoting the sport through youth development. Many are also involved at the provincial and nationals levels.
“It’s why we do it,” said Baron. “Off the field, it’s probably one of the most social sports in the world.”
