Author Topic: Convicts on Top  (Read 12795 times)

Offline Kerry

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Convicts on Top
« on: June 22, 2008, 01:48:37 am »
Convicts on Top
of the World

From Sydney's Sunday Telegraph
Sunday 22 June 2008


(May be necessary to scroll over to see full pic --->)

The trophy cabinet at the Australian Rugby Union might be empty but at last Rah Rah fans have a world championship-winning team to cheer for.

In a moment that had Sydney's Oxford Street's late-night bars buzzing, the Sydney Convicts captured the Bingham World Cup in Dublin last week, seeing off the challenge of London's Kings Cross Steelers for gay rugby union's highest honour.

At 18-3, this was no fightback victory, but coach Bronnie Mackintosh said the teams camaraderie got them through a tough tournament, stating on the team's website, "The boys played quick-running rugby all week."

Goooooooooooo, Convicts!!!

For more information about the Sydney Convicts, go to their website at http://www.sydneyconvicts.org
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injest

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #1 on: June 22, 2008, 02:00:05 am »
oh! I thought Kerry had done started the "Naughty Club"

 ;D ;D

congratulations!!!

Offline David In Indy

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #2 on: June 22, 2008, 02:12:20 am »
Congratulations to Australia and the Sydney Convicts on their win!!  :D

That's wonderful news Kerry. Thanks for sharing it with the rest of us! :)

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Offline ZK

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #3 on: June 22, 2008, 04:29:36 am »
Well done!!

Aussie Aussie Aussie OI OI OI

(oops sorry if I spelt oi wrong Kerry)

Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #4 on: June 22, 2008, 09:23:52 am »
oh! I thought Kerry had done started the "Naughty Club"

 ;D ;D

congratulations!!!

Haha, I wouldn't need much encouragement to start a "Naughty Club" with any one of those big, beefy Rugger men, Jess!   ;)   :laugh:
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Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #5 on: June 22, 2008, 09:27:45 am »
Congratulations to Australia and the Sydney Convicts on their win!!  :D

That's wonderful news Kerry. Thanks for sharing it with the rest of us! :)


I'll pass-on your congratulations when I have my next date with the team captain, David!  :D

(Yeah, I wish!)  ;)   :laugh:
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Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #6 on: June 22, 2008, 09:30:41 am »
Well done!!

Aussie Aussie Aussie OI OI OI

(oops sorry if I spelt oi wrong Kerry)

They'll be taking on the All Blacks next, Matt!  :o

Rah! Rah!  :laugh:
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Offline Artiste

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #7 on: June 22, 2008, 10:08:36 am »
Kerry, did you say that all those men are gay ?

Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #8 on: June 22, 2008, 06:17:00 pm »
Kerry, did you say that all those men are gay ?

Yep! They GAY!   :D
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Offline brokeplex

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #9 on: June 22, 2008, 06:19:47 pm »
why do they call themselves "convicts"?

Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #10 on: June 22, 2008, 07:12:09 pm »
why do they call themselves "convicts"?

Sydney was originally founded as a British penal colony in the late 1700s.  The British called such felons "convicts." These people were not criminals as we know them today. In those days, one could be executed for what we today would call a minor crime. Certainly, serious criminals such as murderers never made it to Sydney. They were executed in England. The sort of convicts transported to Sydney were convicted of minor crimes such as stealing bread to feed their starving families. Lots of the so-called "crime" was a result of poverty. To give you an example, the part of Sydney where I live was once owned by an emancipated ex-convict who had been transported for stealing lace. I guess she didn't need the lace to feed her family, but that'll give you an idea of how strict the legal system was back then. Australians wear their convict heritage as a badge of honour. It's always very exciting to find a convict in your family. They've taken on folk-hero status. Mainly because they were transported for such trivial "offences." Lots of Australians trace their families in the hope that they'll find a convict ancestor. It can sometimes backfire on you, though. I remember once reading about a woman who was very excited about discovering she had a convict ancestor and went to a great deal of trouble researching the history of the case. She finally tracked down the original London court records and was shocked to find that her convict ancestor had been transported to Australia for having "carnal knowledge" with a sheep! Oops! Sometimes it's best for the past to stay in the past! Haha!   :o

Having said all that, I suspect another reason why the Convicts rugby team call themselves that is because it sounds sooooo butch!   ;)   :laugh:
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Offline ZK

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #11 on: June 22, 2008, 11:56:59 pm »
They'll be taking on the All Blacks next, Matt!  :o

Hey now that would be a match worth watching.  ;D ;D

Offline David In Indy

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #12 on: June 23, 2008, 12:15:47 am »
Sydney was originally founded as a British penal colony in the late 1700s.  The British called such felons "convicts." These people were not criminals as we know them today. In those days, one could be executed for what we today would call a minor crime. Certainly, serious criminals such as murderers never made it to Sydney. They were executed in England. The sort of convicts transported to Sydney were convicted of minor crimes such as stealing bread to feed their starving families. Lots of the so-called "crime" was a result of poverty. To give you an example, the part of Sydney where I live was once owned by an emancipated ex-convict who had been transported for stealing lace. I guess she didn't need the lace to feed her family, but that'll give you an idea of how strict the legal system was back then. Australians wear their convict heritage as a badge of honour. It's always very exciting to find a convict in your family. They've taken on folk-hero status. Mainly because they were transported for such trivial "offences." Lots of Australians trace their families in the hope that they'll find a convict ancestor. It can sometimes backfire on you, though. I remember once reading about a woman who was very excited about discovering she had a convict ancestor and went to a great deal of trouble researching the history of the case. She finally tracked down the original London court records and was shocked to find that her convict ancestor had been transported to Australia for having "carnal knowledge" with a sheep! Oops! Sometimes it's best for the past to stay in the past! Haha!   :o

Having said all that, I suspect another reason why the Convicts rugby team call themselves that is because it sounds sooooo butch!   ;)   :laugh:

It does sound very butch Kerry! I like the name. :)

Do you have any convicts in your family? Have you performed any research to find out?

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #13 on: June 23, 2008, 03:06:13 am »


Brad

injest

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #14 on: June 23, 2008, 07:27:30 am »


Brad

LOL!! Took me a minute........ ::) ::)

what can I say? I am slow...

Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #15 on: June 23, 2008, 08:35:26 am »
Hey now that would be a match worth watching.  ;D ;D

If I were a betting man, it saddens me to say I'd have to go with the All Blacks in such an encounter, Matt.   :'(  I think the Convicts'd give NZ a run for their money, though!  ;)  :D  Whatchareckon?   ;D
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Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #16 on: June 23, 2008, 09:09:40 am »
It does sound very butch Kerry! I like the name. :)

Do you have any convicts in your family? Have you performed any research to find out?


I keep promising myself I'll do some genealogical research, David, but time keeps on getting away with me. And God knows, researching your family tree sure is a time consuming activity. Maybe when I retire. :-\

One of my cousins did some research and claimed we were related to the colonial artist, John Glover, on my mother's side.   :D  I don't know how much truth there is in it.  :-\

John Glover was a free settler, not a convict. Quizzically, he was a painter and calligrapher, which coincidentally happen to be two of my fortes. It could be that I carry his genes?  ???    ::)
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Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #17 on: June 23, 2008, 09:19:34 am »


Brad

No need to post doctored  pics, Brad.  ;)   ;)  Go to the Convicts website at http://www.sydneyconvicts.org and you'll see real-life  pics of big, burly, Rugger lovelies hugging, kissing and marching in Sydney's Gay Mardi Gras Parade.  :D

Oh, and there are also several hundred pics of them playing excellent Rugby, too, haha!  ;)   :laugh: 

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pnwDUDE

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #18 on: June 23, 2008, 02:23:44 pm »
Go to the Convicts website at http://www.sydneyconvicts.org and you'll see real-life  pics of big, burly, Rugger lovelies hugging, kissing and marching in Sydney's Gay Mardi Gras Parade.  :D

Oh, and there are also several hundred pics of them playing excellent Rugby, too, haha!  ;)   :laugh: 


Wow! Sign me up for 'boot camp' man. Thanks for the link.

Brad

Offline Shakesthecoffecan

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #19 on: June 23, 2008, 02:31:52 pm »
I enjoyed their website Kerry, and see that they won the Bingham Cup in Ireland. I had not heard about it before and did a little investigating and confrimed my suspition it was named for Mark Bingham, the Gay Rugby player and P.R. Executive who died on Flight 93 on 11 September 2001.

http://www.binghamcup.com/content/view/2/52/lang,en/
"It was only you in my life, and it will always be only you, Jack, I swear."

pnwDUDE

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #20 on: June 23, 2008, 02:37:45 pm »
Oh, and the pic I posted wasn't doctored. It was staged, for sure, as a publicity add:

http://www.print.duncans.tv/2007/rugby-players-kiss-in-paris/

Brad

Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #21 on: June 23, 2008, 06:19:21 pm »
I enjoyed their website Kerry, and see that they won the Bingham Cup in Ireland. I had not heard about it before and did a little investigating and confrimed my suspition it was named for Mark Bingham, the Gay Rugby player and P.R. Executive who died on Flight 93 on 11 September 2001.

http://www.binghamcup.com/content/view/2/52/lang,en/

The Bingham Cup is, indeed, named after the late, great Mark Bingham, one of the heroes of Flight 93. He was one of the ones who was instrumental in organising the passengers on that ill-fated flight to make a stand against the terrorists. Mark Bingham is believed to have joined Todd Beamer and other brave souls in their rush on the cockpit, in an endeavour to re-take control of the aircraft.  Todd Beamer's rallying cry of "Let's Roll" has since become the stuff of legend.

Mark Bingham, a true-life gay hero we can all be proud of. 
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Offline ZK

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #22 on: June 23, 2008, 09:10:16 pm »
If I were a betting man, it saddens me to say I'd have to go with the All Blacks in such an encounter, Matt.   :'(  I think the Convicts'd give NZ a run for their money, though!  ;)  :D  Whatchareckon?   ;D

I reckon I'd like to listen whats said in the scrum. Actually I think I'd like to be in the scrum LOL  :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #23 on: June 23, 2008, 11:55:50 pm »
I reckon I'd like to listen whats said in the scrum. Actually I think I'd like to be in the scrum LOL  :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

Two of my brothers played Rugby. One was captain of a representative New South Wales team that toured Tasmania in the 1950s. He was also gay and is now deceased. Following my mother's death, I found his captain's badge, from that long-ago Tasmanian tour, which I now very much treasure.

As a small child, I remember watching my big brothers coming off the field, covered in mud and blood; our poor, dear mother nearby, in floods of tears. Rugby always was a tough game, but it seemed to be even more brutal way back then, before it was gentrified for the television camera.

But I digress! Back to the subject at hand - SCRUMS!!!  :P   :D

I, too, Matt, have had fantasies about having my head stuck in one of those heavenly scrums!   :-*   :-*   :-*

I don't fancy the resultant, mandatory cauliflower ears, however!   :laugh:

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Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #24 on: July 10, 2008, 09:19:48 am »

Movie stars? Models? Porn stars?   ???

Nope.  :-\

They're Aussie Rugby players (the straight variety), participating in a PR exercise at the beach.  :-*   :-*   :-*

Enjoy!   ;D

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Offline David In Indy

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #25 on: July 10, 2008, 04:16:02 pm »
Movie stars? Models? Porn stars?   ???

Nope.  :-\

They're Aussie Rugby players (the straight variety), participating in a PR exercise at the beach.  :-*   :-*   :-*

Enjoy!   ;D



Are you sure they're straight Kerry? Or do they just SAY they're straight? Take a look a the blond guy. It looks like there might be some excitement just south of the equator.

And perhaps it might just be my wishful thinking. lol ;) ;D

Jeez, EVERY guy in that picture is cute! "Off the charts" cute. Okay, now I'm getting all hot and bothered. :P :laugh:
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Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #26 on: July 10, 2008, 06:33:30 pm »

That's a very valid point, David.   ;) 

Certainly, a couple of years ago, Ian Roberts, one of Rugby League's most high-profile, ultra-macho enforcers (he represented Australia in international games), came out very publicly in the glare of an overtly head-hunting media frenzy. There was quite a fuss at the time. He survived and is presently working as an actor (he was one of the heavies  seen accompanying Lex Luther in the most recent Superman movie). It must have been a dreadful ordeal for him and his partner to go through at the time.

In the pic I posted, the guy I like most is Luke Ricketson. He's seen second from left in the red budgie-smugglers. He was voted the 2007 Sexiest Man in League. Go here to see more mouth-watering pics of him:

http://www.sexiestmaninleague.com.au/week3_3.php
 
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Offline ZK

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #27 on: July 10, 2008, 06:59:39 pm »
Two of my brothers played Rugby. One was captain of a representative New South Wales team that toured Tasmania in the 1950s. He was also gay and is now deceased. Following my mother's death, I found his captain's badge, from that long-ago Tasmanian tour, which I now very much treasure.
Sorry to hear about your brother, I am sure his badge is a treasure for you

I don't fancy the resultant, mandatory cauliflower ears, however!   :laugh:

Its not a look I want either

Are you sure they're straight Kerry? Or do they just SAY they're straight? Take a look a the blond guy. It looks like there might be some excitement just south of the equator.

Sorry, but there ain’t no such thing as a straight rugby team,





Certainly, a couple of years ago, Ian Roberts, one of Rugby League's most high-profile, ultra-macho enforcers (he represented Australia in international games), came out very publicly in the glare of an overtly head-hunting media frenzy. There was quite a fuss at the time. He survived and is presently working as an actor (he was one of the heavies  seen accompanying Lex Luther in the most recent Superman movie). It must have been a dreadful ordeal for him and his partner to go through at the time.


Ian Roberts wrote a piece about his "coming out", after reading so many doom and gloom stories his was a welcome relief with a really  positive outlook

Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #28 on: July 12, 2008, 10:10:45 pm »
That's a very valid point, David.   ;) 

Certainly, a couple of years ago, Ian Roberts, one of Rugby League's most high-profile, ultra-macho enforcers (he represented Australia in international games), came out very publicly in the glare of an overtly head-hunting media frenzy. There was quite a fuss at the time. He survived and is presently working as an actor (he was one of the heavies  seen accompanying Lex Luther in the most recent Superman movie). It must have been a dreadful ordeal for him and his partner to go through at the time.

In the pic I posted, the guy I like most is Luke Ricketson. He's seen second from left in the red budgie-smugglers. He was voted the 2007 Sexiest Man in League. Go here to see more mouth-watering pics of him:

http://www.sexiestmaninleague.com.au/week3_3.php
 

This is Ian Roberts.   ;D

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Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #29 on: July 12, 2008, 10:14:21 pm »

Ian Roberts wrote a piece about his "coming out", after reading so many doom and gloom stories his was a welcome relief with a really  positive outlook


Ian Roberts wrote a tell-all autobiography (with Paul Freeman) titled "Finding Out" through Random House publishers.
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Offline Kerry

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Re: Convicts on Top
« Reply #30 on: July 12, 2008, 10:28:30 pm »

Sorry to hear about your brother, I am sure his badge is a treasure for you


Here is a pic of my beautiful brother, Robert, taken in 1956, when he was 18.

He can be seen second from left in the middle row.

Robert was playing with the Manly Warringah District Junior Rugby Football League at the time, pictured here with their coach (left) and team manager (right).

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