Who are the Baar Panthers?

We are a young but growing team, situated in Baar, only 5 mins drive from Zug. The team is half Swiss who are learning the game, and half ex-pats who have played in other countries; South Africa, UK, USA, Australia and Holland. We play in the Swiss Rugby Federation which offers us a full season of games. Plus we also cater for all ages.

The team. Well, part of it.	Baar Panthers in the press (we have new jerseys now)

Because of this mix, the skills are passed on to those who are learning from those who have played in high levels elswhere. The coach, for example, is an ex 1st Division Australian. As a consequence, even though made up of beginners, everyone is learning very quickly.

What is also very important is that everyone has fun and enjoys the sport. Training does include fitness as well as technique. And, although we have not yet had great succes on the field, we fully expect this to change in the coming year.

We also make everyone welcome. For those who are not sure about the sport due to its physical nature, we also play "touch rugby" where is it just about impossible to get hurt. So if you enjoy running and throwing a ball around, rugby is still for you.

If you want to know more, or just want to have a look, come along. We promise you'll have fun and will learn something new.

Who is the coach?

Chris Wilkins, an ex-1st Div player from Sydney, Australia, is the coach of the Baar Panthers. He has played rugby, on and off, for thirty years, and knows many of the finer parts of the game, what makes a good team , and, more importantly, how to play it in a good and safe way (he was even the second rower behind Tony Daly, ex-Wallaby prop, in a friendly once. Ooohhhhh).

Chris' view on rugby; "When people in Switzerland say to me that rugby is dangerous, my reply is skiing is dangerous. In all the years I've played rugby the worst thing that has happened to me has been a dislocated finger. Sure, there have been many bangs and bumps, but nothing anywhere as dangerous as skiing smack into a tree at 100 km/h. Rugby just looks dangerous. If you know what you're doing, it isn't."

Come and find out why he won the Old Ignatians Most Improved Player of 1990 out of a club of five teams / seventy players.

1990, Old Ignatians, 1st Div, 2nd Grade team. With a much younger Chris, 2nd row, 4th from left.	Chris' trophy, "Most Improved Player," OIRFC, 1990. One of his most prized possesions.

And who are the Old Ignatians and why was playing for them so character-building?

This is who they are, and this is where they play. This is important for you to know, that the coaching staff here do actually know the game, have played it at a high level, and are not people who learnt it from the back of a cornflakes packet. After all, "Swiss play rugby like Australians ski."