The Sydney Convicts asserted themselves as the dominant power in gay rugby, winning their fourth Bingham Cup last week. They crushed the Brisbane Hustlers, 31-0, in the Bingham Cup final. It was the first time a home team won the Bingham Cup.
The Bingham Cup takes place every two years in honor of Mark Bingham, one of the men who took down United flight 93 on Sept. 11, 2001. Bingham played rugby at the Univ. of California and with the San Francisco Fog.
From the Bingham Cup:
In front of the largest crowd to ever attend a grand final for the Bingham Cup, The Sydney Convicts beat the Brisbane Hustlers 31-0 to win the world cup of gay rugby. The results of the state of origin style match surprised many in the crowd given the Brisbane Hustlers beat the Sydney Convicts earlier this year at the Australian cup of gay rugby.
An estimated 6000 people came to watch the grand finals, including numerous sport and elected officials. This included the CEO of Australian Rugby Union Bill Pulver who at the start of the tournament announced new policies to address homophobia. Also watching the games was Federal Communications minister Malcolm Turnbull, American ambassador to Australia John Berry and sporting stars such as Australian rugby league legend Steve Mortimer and openly gay Olympic gold medallist swimmer Daniel Kowalski.
Other VIPs who came to watch the games over the three day tournament included Australia's head of state, Governor General Sir Peter Cosgrove as well as two rugby world cup winning captains John Eales and Nick Farr-Jones.
"We saw a spectacular game of rugby in the final and we had a very successful three days at the tournament, and ultimately that's what is important. In some respects the Southern Hemisphere dominated, winning the top three trophies: the Sydney Convicts A team won the Bingham Cup, the Melbourne Chargers won the runner up prize which is called the Bingham Plate, and the New Zealand Falcons won the lower-tier competition, called the Bingham Bowl. The Sydney Convicts C team also won the runner-up in the lower-tier, called the Bingham Shield," says Bingham Cup President Andrew Purchas, an out gay rugby player and founder of the Sydney Convicts.
Other final results included:
Bingham Plate: Melbourne Chargers 31, San Francisco Fog 10
Bingham Bowl: New Zealand Falcons 25, Dublin's Emerald Valkyries 19
Bingham Shield: Sydney Convicts C 12, Chicago Dragons 5
Check out video from the Bingham Cup Finals:
