Mafia scrum A women's rugby team tackles the Cosa Nostra By Lorenzo Tondo
The Guardian Weekly|March 04, 2022
Gloria Mertoli's shift is over when the first light of dawn shines on the goalposts of a rugby pitch in the Librino district of Catania, a stronghold of the Cosa Nostra, the feared Sicilian mafia.
Mafia scrum A women's rugby team tackles the Cosa Nostra By Lorenzo Tondo

Since mobsters torched the clubhouse and team bus, players on the women's team of Briganti Librino have taken turns to guard the area overnight. Since the club started working to take children - easy targets for mafia recruitment -off the streets of Librino, the clans have tried to put it out of business. “Librino is a complex neighbourhood,” Piero Mancuso, one of the founders of the Briganti, said. “We knew it wouldn't be easy to work here.

These criminal attacks risked destroying everything we had achieved. But if I look at what we have done so far, I can say that these attacks have made us stronger. The story of the small Briganti team from Catania has received expressions of solidarity from England's national rugby coach, Eddie Jones, as well as from former England captain Bill Beaumont. Even World Rugby has expressed its support for the team. Last year, an amateur rugby team from Bolton, with a 150-year heritage, forged a partnership with the Sicilian team.

Denne historien er fra March 04, 2022-utgaven av The Guardian Weekly.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prÞveperiode pÄ Magzter GOLD for Ä fÄ tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra March 04, 2022-utgaven av The Guardian Weekly.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prÞveperiode pÄ Magzter GOLD for Ä fÄ tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA THE GUARDIAN WEEKLYSe alt
The Saudi football World Cup is an act of violence and disdain
The Guardian Weekly

The Saudi football World Cup is an act of violence and disdain

Well, that's that then. In the event there were only two notes of jeopardy around Fifa's extraordinary virtual congress last week to announce the winning mono-bids, the vote without a vote, for the right to host the 2030 and 2034 football World Cups.

time-read
3 mins  |
December 20, 2024
AI has made the move into video and it's worryingly plausible
The Guardian Weekly

AI has made the move into video and it's worryingly plausible

I recently had the opportunity to see a demo of Sora, OpenAI's video generation tool, which was released in the US last Monday, and it was so impressive it made me worried for the future.

time-read
3 mins  |
December 20, 2024
With tyrant Assad ousted, Syrians deserve support and hope
The Guardian Weekly

With tyrant Assad ousted, Syrians deserve support and hope

Last week, time collapsed. Bashar al-Assad's fall recalled scenes across the region from the start of the Arab spring almost 14 years ago. Suddenly history felt vivid, its memories sharpened. In fact it no longer felt like history.

time-read
4 mins  |
December 20, 2024
TV
The Guardian Weekly

TV

The Guardian Weekly team reveals our small-screen picks of the year, from the underground vaults of post-apocalyptic Fallout to the mile-high escapism of Rivals

time-read
4 mins  |
December 20, 2024
Albums
The Guardian Weekly

Albums

Murky love stories, nostalgic pop and an in-your-face masterpiece captured our critics' ears in 2024

time-read
10+ mins  |
December 20, 2024
Film
The Guardian Weekly

Film

Visual language, sound, light and rhythm are to the fore in the best movies of the year

time-read
10 mins  |
December 20, 2024
Hidden delights Our 24 travel finds of 2024
The Guardian Weekly

Hidden delights Our 24 travel finds of 2024

Guardian travel writers share their discoveries of the year, from LĂŠsĂž to Lazio

time-read
10+ mins  |
December 20, 2024
'It's really a disaster' The fight to save lives as gang war consumes capital
The Guardian Weekly

'It's really a disaster' The fight to save lives as gang war consumes capital

Dr James Gana stepped out on to the balcony of his hospital overlooking a city under siege. \"There's a sensation of 'What's next?'. Desperation is definitely present,\" the MĂ©decins Sans FrontiĂšres (MSF) medic said, as he stared down at one of scores of camps for displaced Haitians in their country's violence-plagued capital.

time-read
2 mins  |
December 20, 2024
Trailblazers The inspiring people we met around the world this year
The Guardian Weekly

Trailblazers The inspiring people we met around the world this year

From an exuberant mountaineer to a woman defiantly facing the guns of war, here are some of the brave individuals who gave us hope in a tumultuous 2024

time-read
10 mins  |
December 20, 2024
Votes of confidence
The Guardian Weekly

Votes of confidence

From India to Venezuela and Senegal to the US, more people voted this year than ever before, with over 80 elections across the world. With rising authoritarianism and citizen-led resistance revealing its vulnerabilities and resilience in the face of unprecedented challenges, has democracy reached its breaking or turning point?

time-read
8 mins  |
December 20, 2024