In the 2023-2024 season, the Western Washington University men’s rugby team finished as Northwest Collegiate Rugby Conference champions in both fifteens and sevens and were the College Rugby Association of America’s D1AA West Region runner-up in fifteens as well as the CRAA D1AA national champions in sevens.
The 2024-2025 season began Saturday, Oct. 12, with a 55-0 drubbing of Boise State University at home, followed by a close 17-15 loss on the road at the University of Oregon on Saturday, Oct. 19.
Back home on Oct. 26 versus the University of Washington, the Vikings added to the win column by a score of 36-7, before losing back-to-back non-conference matches against Trinity Western University and Central Washington University.
Competing in the CRAA D1AA division, the Vikings’ conference opponents are the University of Washington, the University of Oregon, Oregon State University and Boise State University.
Overall, the Vikings have won the NCRC championship in the fifteens category eight of the last 10 seasons.
Charlie Funk is a senior wing for the Vikings. As a wing, he is one of two players on either side of the pitch closest to the sideline. His job is to get the ball from his teammates and use his speed to beat the defense down the pitch.
Funk attributes the consistency of the team’s success to the culture the program has built.
“It’s not really a team. It’s more like a family,” Funk said. “Even after you graduate, you’re still part of the family.”
At the core of that family is junior captain Harry Moore, who plays flanker for the Vikings.
As a flanker, Moore’s job is to hang off the side of the scrum — “the big pushy thing that you see sometimes” as Moore described it — and make as many hard tackles as possible once the ball is out of the scrum.
As captain, Moore prides himself on upholding the values that have been instilled in Western rugby culture over time. Moore learned from previous captain Max Stone’s style of leading by example, never asking anything of his players that he wouldn’t do himself.
“I love playing with Harry Moore,” Funk said. “He makes you work harder, but he definitely makes you wanna work harder for it.”
Team captain Harry Moore runs through a tackle against Boise State University as his brother, Fergus Moore, trails behind him on Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024, at Robert S. Harrington Field in Bellingham, Wash. This season is Moore’s first as captain. // Photo by Owen Wright
Liam Walsh, a junior who plays loosehead prop, echoed that sentiment. Playing loosehead prop, Walsh is at the center of scrum, pushing against the other team. Once the ball is out of the scrum, his job is to pass it out wide, then grapple with the other team and throw blocks to clear the way for his teammate with the ball.
“He puts his nose to the grindstone, and when he does speak up and say something, it has weight,” Walsh said. “I would certainly run through a brick wall for Harry.”
That sense of camaraderie gives the Vikings an edge over other teams on the pitch.
“I’m not saying they’re not as good as us, they just don’t have the bond that Western brings that makes us unique,” Funk said.
That bond can also play a key role in helping individuals become more comfortable with their college experience off the pitch, especially when it comes to transfer students like Walsh.
“I didn’t have a lot of friends before I joined the team, and the vast majority of my friends now are people on the team,” Walsh said. “It’s 40, 50 guys; it’s like a family and we all have each other’s backs.”
Despite an uneven start that has seen the Vikings saddled with more losses than they took all of last season, Moore isn’t overly concerned.
“You don’t learn everything from winning,” Moore said. “Losses or wins, it’s still fun to play rugby. That’s the most important thing.”
The Vikings got back on track with a 36-9 win against Oregon State University on Saturday, Nov. 16.
Looking ahead, the Vikings will attempt to carry their success at OSU into a home match against the University of British Columbia Okanagan Campus at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 23, at Robert S. Harrington Field in Bellingham, Wash.
“When you love the guy next to you, and they love you, and there’s fifteen of you guys on the field, a lot of good things can happen,” said Funk.
Sam Whitney (he/him) is a Sports and Recreation reporter for The Front this quarter. He is studying journalism with a public relations focus with hopes of one day working for a professional baseball team. In his free time, he likes to read about history and play pool with his friends. You can reach him at samwhitney.thefront@gmail.com
