Drag queen rugby team has a ball on Arms Park pitch
DRAG queens swapped their 7in heels for studs as they took part in a rugby match with a difference at Cardiff Arms Park yesterday.
The Diff Drag, a side made up of the capital’s finest drag acts, sported fabulous frocks, colourful wigs and miniskirts as they competed against gay and inclusive rugby union team Cardiff Lions RFC, which has been in existence for 15 years.
The aim was to raise awareness of the drag queen community and also raise money for mental health charity Mind.
One of the drag queens, Mary Golds, 65, from Cardiff, praised people like Gareth Thomas for giving people the confidence to come out as gay.
She said: “Last year it [the match] was to raise money for the charity and raise awareness of our community. It helped bring members of the community together too, because the queens don’t all work together, so it was nice.
“It’s an amazing way of raising money. Our community is massive so we should all support each other. It’s important to show that we can come together and talk to each other – social media is great, but this is different.
“No matter who you are, how you live your life, everyone faces some sort of discrimination. It’s not often drag queens come together and play rugby, in fact never, so why not come together and have a laugh?
“The importance of today is throwing down those barriers. You look at Gareth Thomas and what he’s done for these communities, it inspires us and other gay people.”
The drag queens got ready at Mary’s bar on St Mary Street, before walking over to the stadium in their outfits.
Around 100 people were in attendance, cheering on the queens and showing their support.
They huddled near the changing rooms, practising a few dance routines before heading out on to the pitch with “Eye of the Tiger” reverberating around the ground.
Drag queen Amber Dextrous, 46, from Cardiff, said: “We are very segregated and we don’t tend to cross over, but when there’s events like this or Pride, it brings us together. Most of us didn’t finish work till about 3am last night so we’re all knackered, but it’s important to show support.”
She added: “The event is open to everyone, we don’t want anyone to feel segregated. It has interested people because they don’t expect us to play rugby – that’s what makes it fun.
“No-one is going on the pitch to kill the other players. We’re drag queens – we don’t take anything seriously.”
Nicki Knockers, who works at a Cardiff bar, has been a drag queen for nearly four years, but this was the first event she had attended.
She said: “Everyone has an idea of a drag queen that they are only on stage or they’re good at performing, but this shows that we can do much more than that and we can think outside the box.
“It’s all a laugh and it’s for a good cause, and we need more events like this not just to raise money, but also raise awareness on our community.”
On the opposing team, players from Cardiff Lions RFC enjoyed the event – despite getting tackled by handbags.
The side was admitted as a member of the International Gay Rugby Association board in 2006, and some of the team members say they know how hard it is to be in a minority community.
Money raised will go to mental health charity Mind, which advises those with mental health problems and lobbies government and local authorities on their behalf.