Mark Hill (Dublin)

This weeks Player profile comes from Mark Hill in Dublin, Mark is a Jugger that I am proud to call friend. I first met Mark and the core group of Irish Juggers at the Berlin Meisterschaft in 2008 when we took the first Australian Redbacks team to compete and learn what Jugger was on the other side of the world. In what has been a repeating theme of my experience of Jugger we were heartily welcomed by the German Juggers and especially by the Irish who, when they were not busy throwing their bodies into game after game, stood by the sidelines and cheered on our fledgling team while we came to grips with strange rules and tactics.

Immediately after the tournament we were invited "back to their place" and so two weeks later we found ourselves in Dublin on an unplanned leg of our trip making solid friendships. Since I first got to know Mark I have had numerous 'discussions' about the nature of Jugger and directions we would like to get and heartily agreed and disagreed on many elements of the game. Mark is someone who to this day I have a great respect for because of his passion and dedication to the game and life in general. I look forward to many more years of debate on which direction the game should develop and what the way is forward and hope that we are both surprised and pleased with what comes next.

I hope you all enjoy the interview.


The Person

Who says Jugger has no classy side

Photo: Anni Salminen

What...is your name?

Mark Hill

What...is your quest?

To never stop learning.

What...is your favourite colour?

Blue

Right, off you go.

Let’s hear some more about you

What year did you appear on our glorious little planet ?

February 1982

What Country / City are you from and where do you play?

Ireland, Dublin,

When and how were you introduced to Jugger?

I lived in Hamburg, Germany and a friend (Pierre) of my girlfriend asked me to come along and give it a go. So I did and I loved it! That was way back in 2004! I joined Gorditos Cojones, a very strong team,and learned all positions and most weapons from some of the best players in Germany. I was really really lucky! Then when I returned to Ireland I founded Jugger Ireland in the art college I was attending and we have been growing ever since.

What is your Sporting background before starting Jugger?

I love sport and I have been playing rugby, soccer and showjumping all my life. In the last couple of years I have started tag rugby and training Mixed Martial Arts as well which really helps while playing Jugger! Next is Lacrosse!

Has Jugger had an influence on your interest in Sports and fitness?

Sports and fitness came before Jugger for me but it has added a different dimension to training and fitness for me. Jugger is a sport played by non sportsmen/women so it is very difficult to get the discipline and commitment across to people about how important it is to do the simplest of fitness drills or even stretching. So I have been trying to find ways to trick people into doing fitness or make fitness a lot more fun. With mixed results.

We all know that Jugger is the centre of the universe but some people persist in having interests outside of Jugger, so what do you do for fun when there isn’t a Jugger game available?

Well if I am not playing sports, I love creating art, doing photography or illustration, going out with friends or staying in to read a book or play a board game. I do have a love of craft beer as well :)

The Juggers of Dublin defending their city by night

Photo: Mark Hill

The Game 

How would you describe Jugger (as in game play) to someone in three sentences or less?

Jugger is a five person to a team field sport, which combines Rugby, American football and martial arts together. Four people on the team have padded weapons the other is a runner/qwick. Only the qwick can hold the ball/dogs skull and score. If you are touched on the body by one of the other weapons then you are out of the game for a limited time. (So that’s four sentences sue me!)

What is your favourite part of the game / position on the field / weapon?

I love being a Qwick, it is the most useless and the hardest position in Jugger. You have no weapon so you must use your own skill and team work to get anywhere in the game. I can play all positions but after Qwick I love the staff. It takes a lot of skill to use the staff and there are so many good staff players out there you are always tested.

Which weapon do most enjoy going up against, which weapon do you least enjoy going against, and why?

Again I love running/Qwicking and there is nothing better than beating another Qwick 1 on 1 with your own skill. Good chain players like yourself Adam are a bitch to play against but then again shit chain players are great fun to play against! :) 

My most hated weapon would be the Q-Tip with the range and jabbing in effect I find that weapon has an unfair advantage. Though it is good to test yourself against!

If you could add/change/remove any rule what would it be, and why?

From learning Jugger in Germany then coming back to Ireland I was not in love with some of their rules and as a group we decided to drop and modify some of those rules. The first rule to be dropped (through a vote) was the runners tackling rule. In Ireland you can tackle with caution from shoulders down to feet and you do not have to stop before you make contact (Though as in all Jugger you should only use enough power to beat someone no more) And then the double rule. We changed the double rule from half a second to being a perfect double (hitting exactly at the same time) this way helps promote a faster game and encourages all players to work harder, to get better and become more skillful.

What is it about Jugger that keeps you coming back?

The people who play are the nicest fun loving people you are going to meet and out of all the Juggers I have met 99% of them have been fantastic people. Everyone will open their homes to any travelling Juggers and are always up for a laugh. There is a great sense of community worldwide now with Jugger and I know this will only grow and grow in time.

Where would you like to see Jugger go?

I would like Jugger to keep growing and become a household name as a sport and very importantly I would to see Jugger as a viable choice for school children while picking a sport to do in school. I love soccer and rugby, hockey and cricket but not everyone does. and it is generally the people who do not like these sports who play Jugger, but after they have left school. I would love to see Jugger in secondary schools to give the alternative school children an activity that is safe, supportive and most of all that will help with team building group skills and get them fit and healthy.

The Experience

What is your favourite Jugger story?

I remember when the Setanta team went over to Hamburg, Germany for the first International Jugger Tournament there was a player called Elaine and she almost holds the world record for scoring a point against her own team!!!! It was a chaotic game and poor Elaine got very confused she started running towards her own goal to score and the whole crowd of people start screaming at her to stop and turn around! She heard them just in time and turned around and ran the other way :) It was close though!

Why did you pick your team to join?

Well I didn't really pick my team, I founded it. Setanta has changed since it started but mostly they are all the same great people. As for when I joined Gorditos Cojones that was a no brainer! They were the most successful team in Jugger history and the players were some of the best to have ever played. In saying that they were also a big bunch of grumpy old men!! Who I love dearly.

What makes your team special?

We are the first ever Irish Jugger team, it is special to me because I founded Setanta years ago and helped them become one of the top 4 club teams in Europe. We would be nothing without each other and though some of us might not be the closest off the pitch but when we step on it we give everything for each other and I love that fact. Another thing I love about Setanta is that we play as hard and aggressively as any other team but we do it within the rules and I take pride in that! There is no greater compliment than when you just beat a team and then they come up to you and tell you how much they love playing against you. That is a great feeling.

What is your favourite Jugger memory ?

Now I might get in trouble for this so I will state this, this is how I remember these events from my point of view

One of my favourite Jugger memories would be beating Rigor Mortis in the 2004(I think) All German Championships Final in Berlin. I was playing as Qwick for Gorditos Cojones from Hamburg. One of the best Jugger teams (in my opinion) and most successful to date. I had only joined the team at the beginning of that season and I heard stories of Rigor cheating and bullying, being Irish this did not sit well with me and I trained hard for the entire season to get as fit as I could and with the help of my team mates learn as much as I could about the sport of Jugger. Literally every training session we were focused on the final in Berlin in September.

When the tournament finally came both teams played fast aggressive unforgiving Jugger. It was my first ever major final. I did not know what to expect, I had never played a Jugger game so fast, so hard before. Little mistakes were punished mercilessly by both sides and the whole game was a close affair. The crowd cheered every time we scored and booed every time Rigor did. They applauded good fair play and jeered anytime a fight broke out. This was the first time that the replay rule (to my knowledge) came into effect, we had a strategy to stop any cheating, if anyone thought that their opponent was cheating then that person would stop playing put their hand up and called for a replay. So the game was not pretty but it was intense one the most intense sporting finals I have ever played.

Every point was bitterly fought over. I had my own personal battle with the Rigor Mortis

SCORE!

Photo: Christian Garcia

Qwick. I wanted to settle the score Qwick to Qwick, Rigor knew I like to dance around other Qwicks to score ( I have a motto if you can score without being touched that is the perfect score). So to combat this, their Qwick ran back to goal and waited for me. This gave me no space to step and I couldn't draw their Qwick one way or the other to beat them. He was bigger and heavier than I was so it was a good tactic. With no room to manoeuvre I had only one option. Run at full tilt straight at him, put the shoulder in and knock him down! Then score(Indecently this is where the no contact at speed rule came from, after this game).

In the last 30 stones of the whole match we were tied, that is when Peter our inside staff said that he didn't feel the pain in his foot he was carrying for most of the tournament. With that knowledge we decided to "barn doors" (this is where the two centers double their opponents or everyone double opening the centre of the field open) and leave the new runner to me (the original Qwick subbed out of the game) I beat the new Qwick and we scored 3 more points to win 18 – 15 (I think that is what the score was! I'm old give me a break!). The feeling of joy was matched by that of relief, if I am to be honest. I know at that time Gorditos Cojones would do anything for me and I them so I didn't want to let them down.

When the final drum beat was struck and the crowd roared the largest feeling that welled up inside was that of relief! Rigor had been beaten on the largest stage and Gorditos Cojones played and won together for the last time as we disbanded soon after. I was late to the victory feast that evening because I could not walk only shuffle in pain, I had given everything to my team to win and now my body was making me pay for it. As I walked in everyone gave me a standing ovation, clapping and cheering. That was the greatest memory of Jugger that I have by far.

BONUS QUESTION SECTION

If you could sit down for 5 minutes with a jugger you have never met what would you ask them / want to know?

Are you happy with Jugger ?

How can we make it better?

How far would you go to play Jugger?

We have played below freezing Jugger in the snow and Ice that was fun!


Meanwhile in the big bad world...
There is news of Jugger coming to the United Kingdom more details as our agents track down news.

Upcoming tournaments from Jugger Projekt

22nd June - Schleswig-Holstein Meisterschaft
6th July - Hessische Meisterschaft
13th July - Württembergische Meisterschaft
19th July - National Tournament of Spain
27th July - Berlin Masters

3rd - 7th July - Ziemie Jałowe  (Postapocalyptic convention in Poland)