Defeat is certain.
But the Argentinian rugby women
put their minds to
be defeated with honour.

The terraces are filled only with relatives,
the match broadcast on a channel no one watches –
but the Argentinian mothers stand up and yell
wave the national flag.

They’ve followed their daughters
to the other side of the world
knowing they wouldn’t get past the first round.

The Argentinian rugby players display
el Sol de Mayo on their scrum caps
–their opponents tackle them without pity,
crushing them into the sludge.

The Argentinian mothers hold up:
they’ve dragged their husbands along,
the same men who’d refused to allow their daughters
to practise such a degrading sport.

The Argentinian mothers too
had disapproved at first.
Now they’re the best supporters.

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Audio

Julie Irigaray reads The Argentinian Rugby Women