An increasingly archaic view of athletics claimed that there were gentle athletic activities for girls and rough macho encounters for boys. Girls twirled and pirouetted while boys rumbled and rough-housed. Stylish Barbie Doll became the champion for the female set while rugged GI Joe filled the guys' heroic visions.

Anyone still believing in such outdated concepts need only travel to the nearby Poplar Field in Parkland, home of the Hibernian Rugby Club.

According to the published club history, the name comes from the Latin word hibernia, the term the Romans called the wild and unconquerable island of Ireland.

The present-day Hibernians boast three teams-the Bulls for boys under 19, the Banshees for girls under 19, and the Hibos for men of any age who refuse to give up the sport they love. All three teams certainly emanate that wild and unconquerable spirit so feared by the ancient Romans.

The Banshees play a brand of rugby every bit as intense and physical as their male counterparts.

Sommer Heffelfinger, a three-year veteran of the rugby wars, epitomizes the attitude of the female ruggers. She concedes that seeing high school girls playing rugby, "Catches people off guard. They don't expect that. You don't expect to see girls out there doing that.

"With guys, you expect them to be out there getting dirty and tackling each other. But no one thinks that of girls. They think you're afraid to break your nails. But we have some tough girls on our team.

"We're tough ladies." Sommer fell to the lure of the rugby world when only a sophomore at Pennsbury High School. She well remembers her initial exposure. "A friend of mine was on the guys' team. He lived down the street from me and he said they needed girls to play. He said I should check it out. "I went and watched practice and I thought I really want to do this. I went to my first practice and absolutely fell in love with the sport. I knew that this was what I wanted to do."

Now a senior at Pennsbury, Sommer acknowledges that her initial amour has evolved into a definite sports philosophy. "It's such a good sport. You play a sport that is so aggressive and you hit people left and right, but afterwards, you hang out.

"The teams meet and shake hands after the game. It's not a personal thing. You go out and have a good time. It just happens to be a rough time but we all have a love for the sport. There's such great respect. If you hit a girl and then help her up, that's awesome. It's a funny mentality to run into a girl and put her on the ground and then say I really liked her."

Sommer admits that the scrimmages turn into coed affairs that often carry well beyond the official 6 p.m. closing time. "We love to play so we'll often combine with the boys and play way past six o'clock. We never want to quit."

Practices show that tackling is probably the toughest skill to master. For Sommer, a player cannot be faint of heart to master this all important technique.

"Tackling is hard to teach. It seems difficult and awkward when you try to break it down. When you do it in slow motion, step by step, you get caught up in yourself and your own arms and legs.

When you are on the field and running at someone, it comes more naturally. You tackle without thinking about it. You just do it on instinct."

The instinct must be of the fear free variety. Sommer knows that she who hesitates in rugby will certainly be lost. "You can't be afraid. If you're scared about getting hurt, you will get hurt. More injuries and bad tackles occur when you're scared and tense up before you hit someone. You have to just hit low and commit to it."

Sommer's courageous attitude resulted in manning a position on the field that is usually at the heart of the action. Unlike some of the other position labels which bear such flamboyant monickers as hooker, scrum half or fly half, Sommer's spot is simply called Number Eight.

Number Eights assume the hard work of tackling, rucking and mauling. They need to possess an explosive pace and power. They also serve as potential target for the hooker on line outs.

Sommer defines her role, saying, "I'm the last man in the scrum. I'm the anchor and I drive forward. I'm also in charge of holding the ball and making sure it does-n't leave the scrum so my scrum half can get it out without having the pressure of losing the ball."

Should the ball leave the field of play, the teams form a line out. The ball is tossed to the jumper, who in turns passes it to her teammates. Sommer is the Banshee's jumper.

"I was a little hesitant at first. You form a pod which has a jumper and two lifters. It's really only bad if they drop you. I have to contest with the player from the other team. If I get it, I throw it out and we start a play."

In their March 14 scrimmage against Blackthorn, the Banshees showed they had really honed their skills in a short period of time.

Scoring several 'tries,' the battlers in black clearly dominated their Eastern Pennsylvania Rugby Union foe, a showing that left the veteran Sommer with a very positive felling.

"I was so happy and proud of my team-mates that day. We played so well as a team. We have a lot of new girls such as Avery Wunder and Dyana Henry. Dyana scored a try which was awesome. The new girls really got into it."

The showing bodes well for the coming season. Games are played every Sunday until late April. The Banshees take on such worthy opponents as North Penn, Archbishop Ryan, Doylestown and South Jersey.

"It's definitely good competition. Which team is strong varies from year to year. You can't tell who is going to be strong. You need to go into every game thinking you're going to win."

Though not predicting any outcomes, Sommer is sure of one certainty. She will be tired after every contest.

"It's pretty brutal. I bruise pretty easily. When I get off the field, I'm covered with bruises. This season I have gotten stepped on with metal cleats. I've had some knee issues but nothing serious."

Sommer would readily trade a few bruises for the thrill of playing rugby. Her love of her sport proves contagious.