Lelo: Georgian Rugby

By chance the ecology manager of Batumi's Oil Refinery shared my compartment last night on the train back to Tbilisi. After finding out I was Australian he asked me if I had watched Georgia's national rugby union team play at 2003 Rugby World Cup in Sydney. I diplomatically avoided talking about big scores some teams notched up against Georgia but tactfully added that Australians love backing the underdog. We both agreed it was a great achievment that Georgia actually qualified. He went on to tell me why Georgians love Rugby... Because it's similar to Lelo - a traditional Georgian game from Guria that's just as barbaric.