A 60-year-old rugby trophy's discovery -- in a trash can -- could help to boost Spring Break business for Bermuda.

The Intercollegiate Rugby Football trophy was returned to the Bermuda Rugby Football Union recently and turned over to the Department of Tourism this week after being discovered in a trash can two years ago.

Local rugby player Keith Cassidy uncovered the identity of the trophy when he got his hands on the cup and removed years of tarnish from its surface.

The trophy was presented by the Bermuda Government to the winning US college team in a locally-held annual tournament between 1935 and 1955.

BRFU president John Williams, who presented it to Department of Tourism Sports Promotion Manager Wayne Smith this week, told The Royal Gazette : "It is ironic that this trophy should surface now.'' Mr. Smith agreed: "This is very timely. It is the icing on the cake.

"John and I have been talking since last year about putting together a rugby tournament during Spring Break,'' he explained.

The discovery of the trophy will provide the hook needed to attract US teams to the Island, the two men predicted.

The aim now is to reintroduce the presentation of the trophy by way of an annual Spring Break rugby tournament.

"I think it will get them down here,'' said Mr. Williams.

"The trophy gives us a nice platform for us to launch a rugby tournament from. I think it is great. I think this is something I can sell. The trophy has a lot of history and I believe this tournament will be prestigious,'' said Mr. Smith.

The original tournament was played from 1935 to 1940 and then from 1947 to 1955. Yale and Princeton won the tournament six times apiece, Harvard twice and Cornell and Dartmouth once each.

"We owe it to our forefathers who had the vision to organise a rugby tournament back in the 1930s. We owe it to them to reintroduce this and build on it,'' said Mr. Smith.

Present plans are for the tournament to kick off in March of next year. The BRFU is set to organise the event and run it.

The Department already has Spring Break packages in place with US tour operators which travelling rugby teams can take advantage of.

The Tourism Department tries to attract sports teams and specialist programmes including art and crafts during the Spring Break period.

For sports it targets rugby along with tennis, golf, soccer, track and field, field hockey and lacrosse, said Mr. Smith.

It has enjoyed modest growth, he continued, but the Department was not satisfied. Only two rugby teams came to the Island this Spring.

"This year we had teams from Babson College and MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) but their dates did not coincide so they played local sides,'' said Mr. Smith.

"We will get in touch with the Northeastern Rugby Football Union and get a date for when the maximum amount of teams can come to Bermuda and play for the trophy.'' Mr. Smith said he hoped the introduction of the rugby tournament and a similar scheme involving sailing would help the Department develop its programme in the future.