April 4, 2005 Print this page

Something to Crowe about: Washington Township Student Represents U.S. in Australian Rugby Tournament, Meets “Gladiator” Star

Imagine the opportunity to travel to a beautiful country to participate in something you truly enjoy. Well, this was what happened to John Schultz, when he was given the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to travel down under to Australia to play rugby for three weeks. And meet actor Russell Crowe, who is a big rugby fan.

A senior history major at La Salle University, Schultz joined the rugby club at La Salle in his sophomore year and has enjoyed playing the sport ever since. Schultz was asked by the president of a local rugby team, called the USA Tomahawks, if he would be interested in joining a squad and traveling to Australia to play against professional rugby players. The sport originated in Australia and is as popular there as football is in the United States.

A resident of Washington Township, NJ, Schultz had to miss three weeks of classes at the start of the academic semester in order to take the trip.

“Most of my teachers were pretty accepting,” he said. “ I think they were happy for me that I got to experience this trip. When I got back, there was a lot of work to do, but it’s OK now.”

The rugby team of American players was put together for the tournament. None of them had ever played together. They played five games in the tournament over 10 days, and while the squad went winless, Schultz says the team got better and better as time progressed, both individually and as a group.

During the competition, Schultz and his teammates got a chance to meet Crowe, since part of the tournament was actually held on his property.

“Meeting Russell was really cool because he’s so down to earth,” says Schultz. “We got his autograph, took pictures with him. He even talked to me and my teammates individually.”

Normally, Schultz plays before small crowds in the U.S., but nothing could have prepared him for playing rugby in Australia where the local fan base was 8,000 people.

“We opened up for the National Rugby League, which is one of the professional leagues consisting of high-paid athletes, and had a crowd of 14,000 people. I’ll never forget the first game. The American national anthem was being played, and I was shaking inside,” he said.

The best part of this whole trip for Schultz was the reception that he and his teammates received from their hosts. They were treated as celebrities wherever they went.

“It was such a shock because over there people know rugby,” he said. “There were little kids asking us for autographs, people asking us for pictures, and complimenting and thanking us for coming to Australia every time we went out.”

“I can’t say one bad thing about the trip,” he added. “The people, the places we went, the beautiful country, and the laid-back atmosphere, were all fantastic!”

-- Krystin Thomas