I founded the Rainbow Rexes with Harry Dobson a year ago, back in July 2018. The idea was really quite simple; lacrosse is a sport we both loved and enjoyed, and we wanted to make sure as many people as possible could access it.
In this day and age any rainbow branded entity comes under a lot of scrutiny; is it just a PR ploy (*cough* Starbucks *cough) or an exclusive 'gays only' affair? We wanted neither so were careful with the terms we used to promote ourselves.
We call ourselves an inclusive team. We don't list all the people we welcome rather we list the people we exclude: bigots. It really is that simple
We are lacrosse teams. First and foremost we are here for the lax, Mens, Mixed and (as of September 2019) Womens.
We are a touring team. We want as many players from all over the UK (and beyond) so have not entered any of the regional leagues. This way we have players from Ireland, England, Wales and Scotland who will all get to represent the Rainbow at some point in their lacrosse career.
So, what have we done this year? Our Mens' squad played in 2 major tournaments (Bath 8's and Bluesfest). I mean, we didn't win them but for a team that doesn't have training - we were legitimately learning names as we ran onto the pitch for Bath - we held out own. Mixed have had a phenomenal start, with a win against Wales prior to their European lacrosse appearance, and winning the Imperial cup undefeated with a nail biting final against Cambridge (silverware below)
Incredibly, we have grown from 10 blokes meeting for the first time in Somerset (I spy a film franchise) to having 80 members representing new players to international veterans. The support we've had from lacrosse teams and players across the world has been phenomenal as well, even in the face adversity. I also had a couple of media appearances making into onto the Stonewall website with some help from Erin Walter-Williams (Stonewall UK legenado and Wales lacrosse goalie) and BBC LGBT Sport podcast.
Edmund Connolly is the co-founder of the Rainbow Rexes
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