January Alumnus of the Month: Robert Gault

Robert Gault is our January Alumnus of the Month

When did you play?
Michigan Rugby 1968-1971

What position did you play?
Hooker

What got you started?
I started rugby at Williams College, lucky enough to see a sign advertising rugby of which I knew nothing, and having lost any appetite for the drudgery of football or wrestling after high school, The club welcomed me and I found my perfect position as a hooker in a sport that offered so much fun and friendship. I immediately fell in love with the game and with the opportunity to make great friends from so many parts of the college community and to travel to so many places. I played at Williams in both the fall and spring seasons for 4 years, playing around New England and New York but also against British teams in London and various teams in the Nassau Rugby Festival. I then played for most of the six seasons during my 3 years at Michigan, playing throughout the Midwest but also in Toronto and at the Windsor rugby festival. After college, I played for Seattle RFC for 2 years while a law clerk in federal court there, playing many games in Vancouver and Victoria. After moving to Boston and joining a law firm, I played 2 plus more years for the Beacon Hill RFC with great sojourns to play against the Montreal RFC. At 75 years young, I can still walk (although not very fast), and although rugby may not have helped my joints, it certainly helped mold me into who I am today and I will be forever grateful for that.

Special honors:
My memory has faded after 50 years, but I do not recall any specific honors I received, although I would say playing with my teammates and making such great friends was the best honor anyone could want. Perhaps of note, I do relish the rousing toast given to me by a Vancouver team after I returned from the emergency room with some Canadian stitches in my head from a nasty collision with some Canadian cleats. (I did finish the game!)

Favorite memories or teammates:
Lots of memories here. I recall we had a wild-haired Irish coach (Doc Robson) with energy beyond imagination and a captain (Ross Vickers, a.k.a. “Super Ross”) who worked us to exhaustion in warm-up workouts and sprints before even beginning our Tuesday and Thursday evening rigorous scrimmages. I remember the guys around me, too. I spent lots of time as hooker secured between Jeff Grill, loose head prop, and Bob “Jag” Jagunich, tight head, both pictured (above) in front row. We were, acknowledging that players have grown a bit over the decades, a strong front row for those days and did our best to use that. I unfortunately missed the 1969 game in the Big House against Missouri due to an intensive court competition in law school, but I am sure my teammates were grateful for that experience. I remember some others on the team like Dave Mildner and Hank Lukaski, and I met up with Tom Fagan about a year ago, since he was also a lawyer in the Boston area and we had that in common. Also, of course, Max Gail (who became “Wojo” Wojciehowicz on the Barney Miller TV Show), with whom I played at both Williams and Michigan, but my aging mind, and some hazily memorable parties, keep a lot of the names hidden from me. Then again, after something like 150 or so rugby games, I fortunately do have a memory!

What have you been doing since Michigan Rugby?
After graduating from Michigan Law, I clerked in Seattle in federal court and then practiced law in Boston for 41 years before retiring. I have two daughters and a son who bring me great pride and an RN wife braving work during the pandemic. Of note here, for some years I watched my son Matt, now a grad student at Michigan’s Ross School of Business, play college rugby and become captain. But I now sit at home reliving (or perhaps imagining) my glory days, drinking from my Michigan Rugby mug and wearing my Michigan Rugby hat.

Congratulations to Bob as our Alumnus of the Month for January 2021!