Absolutely loved this documentary! The stories of these individuals, what they've been through, what they've overcome and how they all come together to form this fantastic rugby team was just so well told. It was emotional, heartbreaking and uplifting. 10/10.
Steelers: The World's First Gay Rugby Club
2020
Action / Documentary
Steelers: The World's First Gay Rugby Club
2020
Action / Documentary
7.0Keywords: sportslgbtgaylgbt interestnew zealand
Plot summary
Told through the eyes of an Australian television reporter who moved to the UK to escape depression, we learn that sometimes you can find happiness where you least expect. We follow the journey of 3 characters in the club: the lesbian coach fighting misogyny, even in the gay world. The semi-pro player who spiraled into a depression after his coming out didn't go as planned. And the prop who discovered he was a drag queen through the club.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
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Movie Reviews
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Powerful documentary
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Bit dull
As a gay man who loves sport I'm afraid I found this a bit dull and uninspiring to be honest. Personally I would like to have learned about more of the players. Focusing on just three people left me a bit disconnected. There was also far too much time spent on the coach (and far too many tears) and yet we were never told why she was moving on? I was interested In Simons story but that was about it. I feel like the documentarian wanted to connect with the viewer emotionally but he needed to dig a lot deeper for that.
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Rugby is not a gentle sport
Steelers: the World's First Gay Rugby Club (2020) is an English documentary written and directed by Eammon Ashton-Atkinson.
Rugby is a very physical game, and the players don't wear protective gear. If you have the stereotype that gay men can't play rugby, think again.
The Steelers are an all-gay team, and they are tough. Director Ashton-Atkinson is a member of the team, but an injury kept him from playing for the Bingham Cup, which is the most important tournament in gay rugby.
We follow, two players--Simon Jones and Andrew McDowell. Most interesting to me was the coach, Nic Evans. She is a former rugby player and a lesbian. However, she encounters misogyny even from the gay men.
The question to be answered is whether the Steelers can win the Bingham Cup. They were the first gay rugby club, and they're an excellent club, but they've never won the Bingham Cup.
We learn at the start of the movie that the Steelers reached out to straight rugby clubs at the beginning. However, they were rebuffed. Now they apparently play only other gay teams.
I learned from Wikipedia (not the movie) that gay clubs do play straight clubs, and that some clubs are "inclusive." Rugby is definitely not my sport, but movies help you learn about matters outside your comfort zone.
We saw this film as part of Rochester's great ImageOut LGBTQ Film Festival. It doesn't yet have enough ratings to be meaningful. I liked it, and rated it 8.