Great success for the seventh edition of the “Fede Ghezzi” Memorial, a touch rugby tournament organized by ASD Rugby Lyons in memory of the young Federico Ghezzi, a Juventus youth player who died at the age of 20 in a car accident in 2016. The tournament took place played on the afternoon of Saturday 8 June at the “Walter Beltrametti” Stadium in Piacenza, and saw a record attendance with over 200 athletes taking to the field and 16 teams registered, coming from all the teams in the Piacenza area and beyond. In addition to the teams made up of Rugby Lyons players, the representatives of Piacenza Rugby, Elephant Gossolengo and Codogno Rugby Club were also present.
For 7 years the Memorial has been the opportunity for a fun meeting for all Piacenza rugby players at the end of the season, in which to combine summer entertainment with the dynamism of touch rugby, a more inclusive version of rugby which does not involve physical collision, thus allowing also formation of mixed teams and without distinction of age. Precisely the spirit of inclusion and fun given by touch rugby are the perfect combination to remember Federico, a joyful boy who left everyone with an indelible memory and a painful mourning for his passing.
The vice-president of ASD Rugby Lyons Paolo Via, responsible for organizing the event, wanted to thank all the participating players, thus greeting this year’s edition of the “Fede Ghezzi” Memorial: “When we started with the idea of remembering Federico we imagined a day just like this, with friends and teammates who had shared the field with him, so many smiles, fun and joy that our sport can give us. Seeing different generations together on the pitch in memory of Federico is the best gift we can give to his loved ones, and never like this year can we say we have achieved the goal: from our former Old players to the Under 14 team, passing from the first team and from the cadet, our entire society came together for a day that for many will be unforgettable. A big thank you goes to all the guys who got involved, including from friendly clubs, bringing so many teams that we also had to review the regulations to allow for a more fluid organization.”
The victory of the tournament went for the second consecutive year to the Polpettine team, which brings together the Piacenza players of the Lyons first team, captained by Alessandro Via who won the MVP of the Tournament award named after his youth teammate Federico Ghezzi. The victory in the final over the “Invitational” team captained by the other first team scrum-half Andrea Cuoghi was decisive, in which the players from outside Piacenza were present. The occasion of the Memorial was also to reward Federico’s parents, Andrea and Elisabetta Ghezzi with the t-shirt and medal celebrating the promotion to Serie B won by the cadet team, the last Lyons team in which Federico played.
Final Ranking – 7th Memorial Federico Ghezzi
1st – Le Polpettine – Rugby Lyons First Team – Captain Alessandro Via
2nd – I Regaz – Rugby Lyons First Team – Captain Andrea Cuoghi
3rd – You Already Know – Rugby Lyons Cadet – Captain Eric Cobbah
4th – Branco – Rugby Lyons Cadetta – Captain Alessandro Moretto
5th – Youth Group – Piacenza Rugby – Captain Andrea Beghi
6th – The Pass – Rugby Lyons Cadet and Under 18 – Captain Lorenzo Solari
7th – Mamahuevos – Rugby Lyons Under 18 – Captain Sebastiano Bolzoni
8th – Steveless – Rugby Lyons Cadetta – Captain Marco Mozzani
9th – I Ciccioli di Ghezzi – Rugby Lyons Under 16 – Captain Leonardo Beghi
10th – Team Africa – Mixed Team – Captain Khadim Cissè
11th – The Fatfull Team – Rugby Lyons Cadetta – Captain Gianmaria Groppelli
12th – La Rapida – Mixed Team – Captain Giorgia Solari
13th – Johnny alla Trappola – Rugby Club Codogno – Captain Mattia Beghi
14th – Cheese Team – Rugby Lyons Old – Captain Massimo Rossi
15th – I Ghezzesi – Rugby Lyons Under 14 – Captain Andrea Ghezzi
16th – Rugby Lyons Touch – Rugby Lyons Old – Captain Stefano Valverde
