Couples find their perfect match with Edinburgh's rugby leagues

Published on Monday 8 February 2010 10:16

IT'S hardly the most romantic of settings to meet your future husband or wife-to-be.

• Jarlath and Gillian Flynn met at a touch rugby game in 2004

But Cupid has nevertheless been shooting a few arrows across Edinburgh's touch rugby leagues.

Former Scotland rugby internationalist Sean Lineen recently revealed that since he started the first Edinburgh touch rugby leagues in 1995 – featuring women's, men's and mixed gender competitions – there have been several weddings as a result of couples meeting on the pitch.

Touch rugby player Gillian Flynn said she knew of at least five couples – including herself and husband Jarlath, 31 – who met on the pitch and have married over the last three years, with another couple set to follow suit in September.

The 33-year-old, who lives in Abbeyhill, married Mr Flynn in April 2008 after meeting him at an informal touch rugby match at the Meadows in 2004.

They were both playing in the Brewin Dolphin Edinburgh Touch League at the time, although Mrs Flynn was just starting out in the sport.

She said: "Folk can just turn up at the Meadows and play, so we both turned up to play on a Sunday afternoon and that's how we met.

"We were friends for a while through the social circle that you tend to make playing touch. We met up regularly through the various social get-togethers and probably 18 months after meeting, we started dating."

The educational psychologist added: "Because it's a mixed sport it makes it particularly sociable, unlike other sports. There are lots of opportunities to chat while playing and the whole set-up is really sociable.

"A lot of the teams in touch, including the mixed teams, have social events, too."

Touch rugby is similar to rugby but without the tackling, scrummaging, rucks, mauls, lineouts and kicking. The sport replaces tackling with a simple touch, which is the only contact made between players.

Susan and David Short, who live in Craiglockhart, were also united through the sport.

The couple married at Edinburgh's St Andrew's Church in December 2007 after meeting in May 2005, and had a baby girl, Ciara, in June last year.

Mr Short, 33, said: "I was the head coach of the Scotland touch team at the time and we were going round the touch leagues to recruit new players.

"Susan was playing in the Brewin Dolphin Edinburgh Touch League at the time and she was running about and was clearly a good athlete. I went over to her and asked if she would be interested in getting involved and we got chatting, and that was that. She was quite attractive so that was a good reason to go and speak to her as well!

"One of the unique things about touch is that it's a team sport that you can play in mixed teams, so you get the chance to play together on a level playing field."

Several other couples in Edinburgh have also got together through the sport, but haven't married.

Viki Mendelssohn is the organiser of the Brewin Dolphin Edinburgh Touch League, which has about 1,800 players.

Miss Mendelssohn helped to start the first Edinburgh leagues with Lineen in 1995.

She said: "Over the last 15 years, God knows how many Edinburgh couples have met through touch rugby. It seems to be a very good way of meeting a potential partner. It's a really good chance to become social within a team, rather than on a dating site or something like that.

"At a normal sports club, you would play for a men's team or a women's team and the two never meet. But in touch, everybody plays together."