The Pittsburgh Steeltoes will be hosting their first home tournament this weekend on Sunday, July 23 at Highmark Stadium. The Steeltoes formed earlier this year and are an expansion team to the Premier Rugby Seven, a first-of-its-kind rugby competition in the U.S.
David Hightower, one of the founding players of the Steeltoes, said the name of the team is dedicated to the city’s steel past.
“It's a working class city, you know. It's people who put their head down. It's people who work hard their whole life.” Hightower said. “It’s people who do the small stuff every day and that makes big things happen. And that's what life is all about.”
The Steeltoes men and women’s teams are currently in third place in their conference. If the teams win their respective games in the tournament this weekend, they’ll have a guaranteed spot in the PR7 Championship taking place on Aug. 6.
Hightower said the goal is to keep the team alive long after its establishment in the rugby world.
“It’s been exciting more than anything. Bringing guys together to create a new franchise and we are the spearhead and basically the founders of it,” Hightower said. “What happens after us, it becomes the legacy. So, we're trying to put our best foot forward on both sides, men and women, just to make this legacy last.”
