[2][3] In 1952, Camron organised independent Israel's first rugby match, between a group of South Africans, and a team of parachutists in the IDF.

[3] Camron made an attempt to get the IDF to adopt the game, but was unsuccessful due to institutional bureaucracy.

[3] This was a bitter blow to his campaign, and led to him taking a more passive role in Israeli rugby, until his death in 2007.

[1] A major focus for the Israeli game was the Kibbutz Yizre'el (Hebrew: יִזְרְעֶאל) near Afula in the north west of the country, which had a number of South Africans living in it.

[1] It also garnered an interest in areas with large English-speaking populations such as Ra'anana (Hebrew: רַעֲנָנָה) in west Central Israel and Jerusalem.

[1][4] The high point of Israeli rugby has been seen as their shock 67–8 win against Hungary in the World Cup Qualifiers, which did much to promote the sport within Israel.

[1] In 1989, Chris Thau claims that Israel had eight clubs (a figure which has remained fairly steady), and around 400 players (a number which has increased somewhat).

Rugby is most popular amongst English speaking immigrants, particularly those from South Africa, Australia, and the UK, and a lesser extent New Zealand and North America.

With the exception of Beit Jala Lions, based in Bethlehem, there is little rugby to speak of in the West Bank or Gaza, and contact with neighbouring Arab communities is low.