It was an unseasonably hot April 19 - 85 degrees. While their strength may have been sapped by the heat and effort, their mood was lifted by the score.

Brandywine beat Raleigh, 17-5, in the Mid-Atlantic Rugby Football Union playoffs. It advanced to the Division II National 16 with the win and avenged last year's playoff loss to Raleigh, the defending national champion.

Afterward, the team gathered at one end of the field with a few dozen friends, family members and fans. The players bond with teammates and opponents alike.

"It's a fraternity," said D.J. Jefferis, a Brandywine Club member and a past president. "If you wear a rugby shirt in any other town, you're assured to be a member of the family. If you relocate, they'll help you, and you'll have 30 new friends."

Rugby, a fast and physical game, is played with an oval-shaped ball with 15 people on a side, although there is a seven-on-seven version mainly popular during the summer. Matches are 80 minutes long, divided into two 40-minute halves.

The most popular method of scoring is a try, similar to a touchdown in football, and worth five points. A conversion kicked after a try is like an extra point in football, but worth two points. Three points are awarded for both penalty kicks and drop kicks.

A day after the Raleigh win, Brandywine beat Norfolk, 25-12, to earn the top seed in the USA Rugby Division II national playoffs in Austin, Texas, on May 17 and 18.

This is a milestone year for Brandywine. The club is celebrating its 25th anniversary. It's also the sixth year for the club's feature event - Scrum for Six - which honors former club member Michael Bartone and raises money for the Michael Bartone Memorial Foundation.

Bartone died from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, in 2002, and the Michael Bartone Memorial Foundation funds an annual scholarship and supports the fight against ALS.

"He was a quiet leader," Jefferis said. "He was an exceptional athlete in great shape. To hear he had ALS, it was heartbreaking."

The Scrum for Six - also known as the Michael Bartone Memorial Rugby Event - is scheduled for Saturday at the club's home pitch on Howellmore Road Field in West Grove. There will be four matches, beginning at 10 a.m.

Over the last five years, the event has raised an average of $13,500.

"Now you have players who didn't even know Mike," Jefferis said. "But they're all part of him and behind him."

Brandywine was born in 1983 when a group of West Chester University players decided they wanted to continue playing organized rugby locally. Scott Johnson is credited as the club's founder, and the first coaches were Lee Webb and Larry Wood, a Chester County judge.

"It's a proud history," said current president Chris Vely, a graduate of West Chester East.

Vely, 45, knows something about rugby history. He's been playing for 25 years and saw plenty of action in Brandywine's win over Raleigh against players half his age.

"He's George Blanda," said Jefferis, in reference to the former pro football quarterback/kicker who played past age 50. "Serious rugby players are trying to do the same thing as professional athletes at the highest levels."

Unlike professional athletes, however, rugby players usually have outside jobs and careers. Vely, who is married, is an account executive for an information technology company.

"All the players make a big commitment," Vely said. "[Captain] Owen Gardner is more devoted than anybody."

Brandywine has about 100 club members, and 40 are active players. There's also an Old Boys Team for those over 35. But Vely isn't ready to play with the Old Boys just yet.

Neither is Keith Cassidy, who is also 45. Cassidy's hair is graying, but he's still fit and fast. A graduate of Conestoga, Cassidy was also a top player at West Virginia University and the Philadelphia Whitemarsh Rugby Football Club. Brandywine is coached by George Betzler, who was also a highly successful coach at Philly Whitemarsh.

"It's hard to let go," Cassidy said. "It has a lot to do with staying fit. When my fitness starts to go, I'll go. I've had stitches here and there, but it's been a good ride."

Cassidy, an agent for an insurance company, is married with three children.

"I keep saying every year is my last," he said. "I'll wait until the end of the season. I feel like Brett Favre. This team reminds me of Philly Whitemarsh when we went to nationals in 1989. There's the same camaraderie and common goal."

Teams take gritty path to glory, in men's and women's local traditions.

What: The Brandywine men's and women's rugby clubs play Saturday at the sixth annual Michael Bartone Memorial Rugby event Scrum for Six at the home pitch.

Admission: $5 at the door and $10 for families at the Bartone event.

Where and when: The matches take place at 1830 Howellmoore Rd., West Grove. The first of four matches is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m.

For more information, including schedules of future matches, check the men's Web site at http://www.brandywinerfc.

com and the women's Web site at http://www.brandywinerugby.org.

Rugby 101

Some common rugby terms: a short, and not definitive, guide.

Pitch: The playing field. In rugby, the pitch is 100 yards by 75 yards.

Rugby team: A team is usually made up of 15 players. There are eight forwards, who concentrate on winning possession, and seven backs, whose chief job it is to advance the ball. All players, though, get involved in offense and defense. (There are times when seven-player teams are permitted.)

Advancing the ball: Players advance the ball by running with it or kicking it. Forward passes are illegal. All players on a rugby team have the opportunity to run or kick the ball.

Tackles: Only players in possession of and carrying the ball can by tackled by the opposing team. Once a player is tackled, play does not stop. The player must release the ball and roll away from it to allow other players on their feet play the ball.

Try: A try is scored by touching the ball down, with pressure and under control, in the opposition goal area. Tries are worth five points.

Goal. A goal is scored after a try, by kicking the ball over the opponents' crossbar and between the goal posts from the field of play by any place kick or drop kick. It is worth two points.

Touch: Out of bounds

Scrum: Method to restart play after a minor penalty or infraction has occurred.

Drop out: Method to restart play after ball has been grounded by defense in their own goal area.

Off side: Being in front of the ball when your team is the attacking team.

On side: Being behind the ball when your team is the attacking team.

Penalty kick: Method to restart play after a major penalty has occurred. Team awarded the penalty has the option to kick a field goal, kick into touch (and given subsequent throw-in), or decline kick and opt for a scrum. A field goal is worth three points.

Game length: There are two 40-minute halves separated by a 10-minute halftime. The referee is the sole timekeeper.

Substitutions: Seven substitutions per team. Once substituted, a player cannot retake the field unless the player was taken out for a bleeding injury, such as a cut.

Penalties: A yellow card is awarded for repeated infractions of the rules. The offending player is sent to the "Sin Bin" for 10 minutes while his team must play a man short.

Red cards are usually awarded for very foul play and result in the player's being ejected. Red-carded players are also suspended from league play for two or more weeks.