Rugby
Three teams: Varsity 1st XV, Varsity 2nd XV, & JV (Soph/Fresh)
Each team plays roughly 8-12 matches during the spring starting mid-March through to early June. The season consists of preseason friendly fixtures and a regular season commencing after the Easter Break. Strength and Conditioning begin in early February.
The Varsity squad tours every Easter - internationally or domestically. Previous trips include England (2017), Texas (2018), Ireland (2019), France & Spain (2022) & Argentina (2023), California (2024) and Italy (2025). More information on tour location and details coming soon.
Schedules & Coaches
- Registration
- Annual Rugby Dinner
- Program Highlights
- Varsity Schedule
- JV Schedule
- Coaches & Staff
- Program History
- Social Media & Photos
- FP Rugby Apparel
Registration
2026 Fordham Prep Rugby Registration Form LINK HERE
USARugby/RugbyXplorer LINK HERE
Video Guides:
- If you do not have a USA Rugby profile please see the YouTube guide on how to create profile - Video guide link here.
- Register with Fordham Prep Rugby Club – select High School Varsity Initiative from the drop-down list even if you are JV. - Video guide link here.
For those players that may have registered with clubs or teams OTHER than FP Rugby over the summer/fall (e.g. Lansdowne, USA Rugby etc.) the process to transfer a player registration from one team/club to FP Rugby is detailed below.
The process is outlined in the links below and ensures that the ORIGINAL team releases the player, the NEW team accepts the player and NY State Rugby approves the transfer.
You will need to login to Xplorer first - Rugby Xplorer Auth
Please see detailed article and video
- https://help.xplorer.rugby/s/
article/Applying-for-Domestic- Clearance - https://help.xplorer.rugby/s/
article/Domestic-Clearance- Video.
Annual Rugby Dinner
Program Highlights
2025 - First XV tour to Italy
Fordham Prep Rugby consists of 3 teams for the 2026 season. Varsity 1st XV, Varsity 2nd XV and J.V (Soph/Fresh).
Each team plays roughly 8-12 matches during the spring starting mid-March through to early June. The season consists of preseason friendly fixtures and a regular season commencing after the Easter Break. Strength and Conditioning begin in early February.
The Varsity squad tours every Easter - internationally or domestically. Previous trips include England (2017), Texas (2018), Ireland (2019), France & Spain (2022) & Argentina (2023), California (2024) and Italy (2025). More information on tour location and details coming soon.
Program Highlights
Varsity 2025 Season - Northeast Jesuit Cup tournament, Tour to Italy, New York State Varsity Tier 1 runners-up in final vs. Xavier (24-27)
Varsity 2024 Season - Northeast Jesuit Cup tournament, Tour to California, New York State Varsity Tier 2 Champions
Varsity 2023 Season - Northeast Jesuit Cup tournament, Tour to Argentina
Varsity 2022 Season - Northeast Jesuit Cup tournament, Tour to France & Spain
Varsity 2021 Season - Team member Seb Hickey selected to All American High School Squad
JV 2021 Season - Largest registration pool in program history. First ever win over Xavier HS in the program
Varsity & JV 2020 Season - Cancelled due to COVID-19
Varsity 2019 Season - Northeast Jesuit Cup Runners-Up, Tour to Ireland, New York State Varsity Tier 2 Champions
Varsity 2018 Season -Northeast Jesuit Cup Champions, Tour to Dallas & Houston TX (Varsity went 2-1 with victories over Arrow Schoolboys Select Side & Cy Fair plus boys rebuilt houses decimated by Hurricane Harvey through Rugby Relief / AmeriCorps)
Varsity 2017 Season - New York State Varsity Tier 1 Runner-up, 2nd Place Northeast Jesuit Cup, Inaugural Tour to England
Varsity 2016 Season - New York State Varsity Tier 2 Champions
JV 2016 Season - New York State Champions - Undefeated Season
Varsity 2014 Season - 3rd Place finish in NY State, 1st Place finish Jersey Cup Tournament, 3rd Place finish Jesuit Cup Tournament
JV 2014 Season - 1st Place finish Jersey Cup Tournament, 3rd Place finish Jesuit Cup Tournament
Click to HERE view article on the History of FP Rugby by Rugby Alum Carlo DiNota ’85.
Varsity Schedule
JV Schedule
Coaches & Staff
Coaches & Staff
Jerry Wolf - Director of Rugby
(Parent Volunteer)
Jerry has been coaching the FP Rugby Team since its rebirth in 2011. Approached by the group of seniors that launched the team, Jerry jumped in as a backline coach, league coordinator and spokesperson, taking on the role of Director of Rugby in 2016.
Originally from Australia, Jerry played both rugby league and rugby union while in high school. His sons Austin ’12 and Sam ’16 have both proudly represented FP Rugby, then went on to play in college.
Adrian Newell - Varsity Rugby coach,
Assistant Athletic Director
Coach Adrian “A-Train” Newell has been playing the game of rugby for the past 11 years. His career in rugby started at SUNY Albany where he graduated with a Bachelors degree in Communication in 2013. Shortly after, in 2017, he graduated with a Masters's degree in Physical Education from Columbia University. He is currently playing with Old Blue Rugby Football Club here in NYC. He plays #6 and enjoys the love for the game with his Old Blue Brothers.
Charlie Bedford - Varsity Rugby Coach
Charlie Bedford was introduced to rugby for the first time as a freshman at the Royal Hospital School in England. He quickly fell in love with the game and as a school boy he had representative honors for England counties and led both School and Regional teams to National competitions. Having been given the opportunity to attend University in America, he played in the Collegiate National Championships going on to be selected for numerous Regional All Stars teams.
In London, he played with Wasps, Saracens and other clubs in the Championship League. In California, he played with Belmont Shore, and with Durbell in Cape Town. He has coached several High School and Men's teams in these countries and led Oakland High School to a State Championship in Tennessee. Charlie's passion for the game lives on and he loves to share the culture and attributes of the sport with others; the values of hard work, discipline and the attitude of putting the team's goals first; which leads to fun and success on the field . He believes the uniqueness of rugby is so magnetic because of the way it allows players to challenge themselves against an adversary during the game and then respectfully share a handshake and a meal afterwards.
Rich Mundy - Coach
Rich Mundy was first introduced to Rugby his freshman year of college at New Paltz University in New York. He realized after his first year of training that this was a sport he wanted to help socialize among fellow classmates. He recruited several star players who have gone on to have great playing careers competing in the NYC metro area.
Rich played four years as a back at New Paltz and has spent time training with various clubs in the US and abroad. He most recently played Scrum Half for Sagene IF in Oslo, the top Men's team in Norway. Rich is looking forward to continuing to develop the rugby tradition here in the US while helping players reach their maximum potential. Rich's passion has grown over the years through playing and networking with fellow players who have been positively impacted by the game of Rugby.
Jack Murphy
Jack is from Fairfield, Connecticut, and began playing rugby at Fairfield Prep. Jack is currently a senior at Fordham University in the Gabelli School of Business, and has been a starting Flanker since his freshman year, with additional experience at number 8 and lock. He has experience playing 15s and 7s, both with Fordham U and his hometown club, the Fairfield Yankees. He is currently the Vice President of Fordham U Men's Rugby Club and is a National Collegiate Rugby Scholastic All-American. Jack's experiences at Fordham University and Fairfield Prep have made him passionate about the game of rugby, and he believes that playing rugby can be pivotal in the development of young boys into strong men of character. His goal at Fordham Prep is for the boys to develop a love for rugby, so they can get the most out of it as possible, on and off the pitch.
Seb Hickey
Seb’s rugby career began in 2013 at Saint Ignatius College, Riverview in Sydney, Australia, where he also competed with Hillview Rugby at the club level.
After relocating to New York City in 2015, he joined Manhattan RFC (now Play Rugby USA) before enrolling at Fordham Prep. During his four years at Fordham, Seb continued to develop as a playmaker and earned selection to the USA U18 Winter Camp. This opportunity led to his recruitment as a fly-half at the University of Arizona, where he competed for three seasons while completing his bachelor’s degree in Communications.
Jack Golden - Coach
Jack is from Boston, Massachusetts and started his rugby career at Boston College High School where he began playing flanker and lock. Jack is currently a senior, majoring in Finance, at Fordham University. He was selected to be Captain of the Fordham Men’s Rugby Club for the Fall 2024 season. Jack has found success on the field at Fordham and has been starting at lock since his sophomore year. In 2023, Jack earned a spot on the All-Conference first team honorable mention list and was also named one of the top 100 players in D1A collegiate rugby by Goff Rugby Report. He is excited to coach the Fordham Prep boys and is looking forward to helping them become better rugby players.
Benjamin Thompson - Coach
Benjamin is originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina, and has been playing rugby since he was six years old. He graduated from Greenwich High School, where he played, and is currently a Junior playing on the Fordham rugby team. He has experience playing most back positions. This past season, he played fly-half and center at the University. Benjamin has previous experience coaching at the youth level in Greenwich, and this will be his second year coaching at Fordham Prep. He is excited to continue working with the boys to develop their game and have a great season.
Conor Fitzsimons - Coach
14 Years of Rugby experience, Conor grew up learning to play rugby in Hong Kong before moving to Ireland and playing at Rockwell College.
He then moved to the USA and won a State Championship at Fairfield Prep (CT). Conor now plays Tight-head Prop for Fordham University and is looking forward to coaching high school rugby at Fordham Prep beginning spring of 2026
Andrew Torres - Coach
Born and raised in the South Bronx, and grew up playing football before discovering rugby in college when my school didn’t have a football program. Rugby quickly became my passion and has allowed me to travel across the country competing in the sport I love.
High School: Urban Assembly School for Careers in Sports (Mott Haven Campus) College: SUNY New Paltz
I’ve been playing rugby for 13 years across multiple codes. I began with Hudson Valley and White Plains, and I’m currently competing with Lansdowne 15s and the Brooklyn Kings 13s.With over a decade of experience across all codes of rugby, I’ve competed against some of the premier union clubs in the Northeast. I’m committed to helping athletes develop their 7s game while sharpening skills that translate to 15s and other rugby codes. My goal is to elevate the program, foster growth, and build a stronger rugby culture.
Program History
Rugby History at Fordham Prep
After a long hiatus, rugby has returned to the Prep! During the 2010-11 school year, a dedicated group of students, Anthony Bronzo '11, Alan Bronzo '11 & Mike Mahon '12, successfully petitioned the administration to re-establish a rugby team, and in the Spring 2011 season FP Rugby was reborn. With strong support from Fr. Boller, PlayRugbyUSA's Christian Mayo, Head Coach Ed Tweedy, Assistant Coaches Ciaran O'Hara, Jerry Wolf and Joe Costelloe, and the behind the scenes support of Team Parents Geraldine Stapleton and Linda Costelloe, the team enjoyed a successful first season back. We'd be remiss if we didn't mention the support of FP Rugby Alumni, friends and family of FP Rugby, and the local school teams in the area that helped us get started. The revamped program is now into its 10th season & getting stronger every year. From international tours & hosting overseas schools, to competing at Division 1 State Championships & our players reaching representative honors! The focus moving forward is building on the foundations left from those instrumental in getting the program to where it is today.
Click here for Carlo DiNota's article on the revival of the Fordham Prep Rugby program, published in Rugby Magazine April 2013.
FP Rugby Alumni, we would love to include your memories of the "early years" in this history section. Please forward your stories, photos, memories and musings to Kimberly Breen & Lisa Hickey
For a "less than academic" history on field positions, we offer the following:
It is largely unknown to players and followers of the modern game of rugby, that in the very early days it started off purely as a contest for forwards in opposition in line-outs, scrums, rucks and mauls. This pitted eight men of statuesque physique, of supreme fitness and superior intelligence in packs against one another. In those days, the winner was the pack that had gained most set pieces.
The debasement of the game began when backs were introduced. This occurred because a major problem was where to locate the next scrum or line-out. Selecting positions on the ground for these had become a constant source of friction and even violence. The problem was resolved through a stratagem of employing forward rejects, men of small stature and limited intelligence, to select positions on the field from where, when in receipt of the ball they could be guaranteed to drop it in a random pattern but usually, as far from the last set piece as possible.
Initially these additional players were entirely unorganized but with the passing of time they adopted positions. For instance, the half-back. He was usually generally the smallest and least intelligent of the backs whose role was simply to accept the ball and pass it on. He could easily (given his general size) have been called a quarter forward or a ball monkey but then tolerance and compassion are the keys to forward play and the present inoffensive description was decided upon. The five-eighth plays next to the half-back and his role is essentially the same except that, when pressured he usually panics and kicks the ball. Normally, he is somewhat taller and slightly better built than the half-back and hence his name. One-eighth less and he would have been a half-back, three-eighths more and he might well have qualified to become a forward.
The centres were opportunists who had no specific role to play but who were attracted to the game by the glamour associated with forward packs. After repeated supplication to the forwards for a role in the game they would be told to get out in the middle and wait for the ball. Thus, when asked where they played, they would reply "in the centre". And they remain to this day, opportunists and scroungers, men so accustomed to making excuses for bad hands and errant play that most become solicitors or real estate agents.
You may ask, why wingers? The answer is simple. Originally these were players who had very little ability and were the lowest in the backline pecking order. They were placed far from the ball and given the generally poor handling by the inside backs, were rarely given the opportunity to even touch the ball. This is basically why, through a process of natural selection, they became very fast runners and developed the ability to evade tackles. But to get back to the name. The fact that they got so little ball led to the incessant flow of complaints from them and the eventual apt description "whingers". Naturally, in the modern game, the name has been adapted to become more acceptable.
Lastly, the full-back. This was the position given to the worst handler, the person least able to accept or pass the ball, someone who was always in the way.. the name arose because, infuriated by the poor play invariably demonstrated by that person, the call would come "send that fool back" and he would be relegated to the rear of the field.
So there you have it. The fact is that if a side does not have eight men of statuesque physique, of supreme fitness and superior intelligence then they might as well play soccer.
Social Media & Photos
Photos
Shared Google Drive of Photos....and there are thousands!! Click here
Former FP Rugby photosharing site: www.dropshots.com/fprugby
Password: fprugby
Fundraising Dinner 2015 click here
Photos thanks to Dr. David Gelpi
Fundraising Dinner 2013, Jesuit Cup and other games click here
Fundraising Dinner photos thanks to Christopher Lauber '79
High-quality game photos thanks to Tim Teran (parent of Hank '12).
More game photos, including State Championships click here -- Password: RugbyFP (case sensitive)
Many thanks to Theresa Gray for taking the photos and setting up the Shutterfly account!!
Game Footage
Spring 2018 Season
TEXAS TOUR - Fordham vs Arrow Schoolboys, Houston TX - 4/2/18
Varsity A click here
Fordham vs Oakdale Australia - 4-17-18
Varsity A click here
Varsity B click here
Fordham vs. Play Rugby - 4-21-18
Varsity A click here
Fordham vs. Harvey- 5-9-18
Varsity A click here
Spring 2016 Season
Fordham vs St. Joe's - 3/21/16
Varsity A click here
Varsity B click here
Fordham vs Harvey - 4/21/16
Varsity A click here
Spring 2015 Season
Fordham vs St. Anthony's - 5/3/15
Varsity A click here
Fordham vs. New Rochelle - 4/29/15
Varsity A click here
Fordham vs Pelham - 4/13/15
Varsity A click here
Spring 2014 Season
Fordham Prep vs. Harvey - 5/13/14
- Varsity A click here
- JV click here
Fordham Prep vs. St. Anthony's -- 5/3/14
- Varsity A click here
Fordham Prep vs. New Rochelle -- 4/28/14
- Varsity A click here
- JV click here
Fordham Prep vs. Wimbledon -- 4/18/14
- Varsity A click here
- JV click here
Fordham Prep vs. Smith Point -- 4/6/14
- Varsity A click here
Fordham Prep vs. Long Island Colts -- 3/16/14
- Varsity A click here
- JV click here
Fordham Prep vs. Fairfield Prep -- 3/22/14
- Varsity A click here
- Varsity B click here
- JV click here
Media Coverage
Front Cover of Alexandria Times 3/22/12 following Jesuit Cup 2012 click here
MSG Varsity Photos FP vs. Xavier 5/9/12 click here
MSG Varsity Video Coverage and Interview click here
Helpful Links
USA Rugby Spectator's Guide to Rugby click here
Great starting point for newbies!
Rules of Rugby click here
From the rules, to the positions to the equipment and the history, Rugby Union Rules will help you understand the game.
World Rugby Shop click here
For all your rugby needs. Great selection and quick delivery.
Soccer & Rugby Imports click here
Need something fast? Great selection right in Greenwich.....or shop online.
FP Rugby Apparel
FP Rugby apparel store for 2026 is now OPEN.
Please place your order sooner than later, as it will be shipped directly to your home address in the coming weeks. The LINK is below.
These are required items. Players are provided with jerseys on game day.
Players need:
- BOTH sets of WHITE as well as MAROON Shorts
- Maroon Rugby Socks
- FP Rugby Training shirt
Deadline February 4th, 2026
As always - No student will be excluded from owning clothing due to apparel pricing or financial constraints; if you require assistance with clothing item purchases, contact Adrian Newell - Newella@fordhamprep.org
