Eagles & Collegians Alike Vie for Scion Spot
Part of the fun of the Las Vegas Invitational is sorting out where all of the talent is playing. Who’s taking the competition seriously and sticking with the elite levels, and who’s going the social route? Scion is another one of those all-star teams that has culled players from across the nation, pairing veteran Eagles alongside up-and-coming college players in the Women’s Elite 7s division.
Coach Joanne Lui is still sorting out the 12-player roster for the Elite squad, but she’s narrowed down the pool to 17 athletes (below). Fellow coach Farrah Douglas and player/coach Lynelle Kugler will also advise on the selections, which will be influenced by injury recovery and schedule.
Cima in Leicester for Academy Trial
Former High School All American and ongoing USA U20 flyhalf Ben Cima is on a one-week trial at the Leicester Tigers in England for their academy team.
ARPTC Residents Join Atlantis Women
The Atlantis Women are veterans of the Las Vegas Invitational, both in the Open and Elite 7s divisions, but that doesn’t mean the team lacks surprises. The Elite team has, as per usual, paired former 7s Eagles with up-and-comers, and some of these new players have a unique background.
Four of the players will be taking a break from their full-time residency at the American Pro Rugby Training Center (APRTC) in Little Rock, Ark. The Julie McCoy-run facility is a new feeder to the USA Women 7s team, and APRTC signed its first residents beginning in mid-December. The most familiar player is Lauren Rhode, an Emil Signes/Princeton alum who graduated to the WPL ranks with the D.C. Furies. She hasn’t quite cracked the national side yet, but she’s trained at the OTC plenty and has four Atlantis tours to her credit.
Wyles Big Day Highlights Eagles Overseas
The big star from the USA overseas this week was Chris Wyles.
Wyles was slated to be on the bench for Saracens this weekend in the 5th Round of the European Cup against Munster. But when a teammate couldn’t go, Wyles got the call. What did he do? Only score the opening try, and followed that up with a brilliant run and grubber through various Munster legs for Chris Ashton to gather and score.
Saracens beat Munster 33-10 to move to 4-1 in Pool 1 of the European Professional Club Rugby Champions Cup. They are in 2nd to Clermont Auvergne, and those teams play each other in France next weekend. The loser has an excellent shot at a wild card spot. The winner is for sure in the quarterfinals.
Bliss Taking His Shot
One of the dark horse players seeking a spot in the USA National Team could well be former USA U20 captain and scrumhalf Tom Bliss.
Bliss was born in New York but grew up in the UK. He played in the 2013 Junior World Championships, and after finishing his studies at Lougborough, joined pro club Wasps, where he has started in some LV= Cup games. He continues to think big, hoping to break into Premiership games with Wasps, and also the USA senior national team.
"Linking up with the US National side is something I'm discussing frequently with Coach Tolkin and is something I'd love to do, especially with the draw of the World Cup around the corner," Bliss told Goff Rugby Report. "Playing there would be a dream come true."
Meanwhile, there's the matter of getting time on the field for Wasps.
Americans Helping Trinity Win in IrelandDublin University’s Trinity Rugby Club is now 7-3-1 in the Ulster Bank League in Ireland having beaten UL Bohemian 32-13 Saturday. The Trinity team, which features three players with USA representative honors in their resume, is used to having Americans on the squad. The likes of Jacob Wassdorp, Volney Rouse, Angus MacLelllan, Colton Cariaga, Shawn Pittman, and Scott LaValla have played for them - LaValla for four years. This year there are three, with current Eagle wing Tim Maupin joining former USA age-graders Pierce Dargan (flanker) and Conor Kearns (fullback). All three have been hugely influential in a solid league season where they are 4th in Division 1B, but only four points out of 1st place.
Photos courtesy Trinity Rugby. Click on images to enlarge.
Maupin fighting through some contact.
Photos courtesy Trinity Rugby. Click on images to enlarge.
Maupin fighting through some contact.
NZ Rugby Academy Scholarship Opportunity
The Inside Running Academy based in Tauranga, New Zealand has a late opening for a half scholarship to their rugby academy.
The Academy runs for 40 weeks from mid January to late October each year. Players can come for as little as four weeks up to the entire 40 weeks, with most staying for 12 weeks. The normal cost to attend to the Academy is $800-$1000 per week depending on how long you stay, and that includes accommodation, most meals, training apparel, supplements, gym membership, coaching, travel to and from sessions.
Manoa to Toulon Next SeasonToulon owner Mourad Boudjellal has confirmed that his club has signed Northampton Saints and USA star Samu Manoa to a four-year contract.
Several news outlets in Europe have reported the signing, which notable in that Manoa is in the middle of his final year at Northampton, and because of the length of the contract. Rugby teams rarely sign players to contracts as long as four years, and, in fact, Boudjellal reportedly said Manoa was the firt player he had signed for four years.
Several news outlets in Europe have reported the signing, which notable in that Manoa is in the middle of his final year at Northampton, and because of the length of the contract. Rugby teams rarely sign players to contracts as long as four years, and, in fact, Boudjellal reportedly said Manoa was the firt player he had signed for four years.
USA Rugby Tenders Bid For 7s World Cup
BOULDER, Colo. – USA Rugby officially announced Wednesday a bid has been submitted to World Rugby to host Rugby World Cup Sevens, to be held in 2018.
USA Rugby, in conjunction with the San Francisco Giants, San Jose Earthquakes, and the Bay Area Sports Organizing Committee, plans for the proposed three-day tournament to be held in the San Francisco area.
“Hosting a Rugby World Cup in the U.S.A. would be a huge boost to the development of the game of rugby in the U.S.A. and support the goals of World Rugby to make rugby a truly global game,” USA Rugby Chief Executive Officer Nigel Melville said. “We are committed to delivering an unforgettable sporting experience for the teams and fans.”
Overseas Update - Big Euro WeekendUSA players overseas have been very active this December. In European Cup and domestic UK action, most of the players on contract have seen significant playing time. Samu Manoa may not have started for Northampton against Treviso in the European Champions Cup, but when he came on he scored three tries, so that was a productive day. Northampton won 67-0 and lead Pool 5 with a 3-1 record. One of Manoa’s tries was a classic burst up the middle and sidestep around the fullback - stuff centers would be proud of, but exceptional from a lock/No.8.
Rugby Holiday Shopping - Goff's Picks
It's Christmas shopping time again, and maybe you are stuck for some ideas for that rugby person in your life. We at Goff Rugby Report decided to come up wiht some ideas for you - not just any old rugby jersey, but something fun, interesting, or meaningful.
Here Editor Alex Goff has found 12 products you might like, or might like to get that rugby-mad person on your list.
And one extra - if you are stuck for Christmas Cards to send (and there's still time!!), try these:
Millard Leaves USA Rugby PostUSA Rugby’s 15 High Performance Director Billy Millard is moving back to the UK and has left his job with USA Rugby. The move is partially related to the fact that he and his wife are expecting a baby, and Millard was announced as the Cardiff Blues head of elite performance Sunday. The Australian Millard coached at Cardiff a few years ago before moving to the USA, where he filled several roles, including Head Coach of the USA U20 team. Millard ran the U20 camp around Thanksgiving and was expected to coach the team in 2015, but in the last week or so changed his plans. “It all happened very quickly,” said USA Rugby CEO Nigel Melville.
Latest from Dubai - World Series StandingsSouth Africa beat Australia in a pulsating Emirates Airline Dubai Sevens final to claim the second title of the HSBC Sevens World Series. In doing so Neil Powell's side closed the gap on leaders Fiji, who finished third in Dubai, in the race to secure the top four places on the Series and qualify directly for the 2016 Olympic Games. Kwagga Smith, scorer of a hat-trick in an impressive 28-0 win over New Zealand in the semi final, put in a commanding performance against Australia and was aided by wing Seabelo Senatla scoring his sixth and seventh tries of the weekend. "We didn't play our best in Australia but this was a fantastic event for us," South African captain Kyle Brown said.
Rugby/Soccer Field to Honor Officer
EAST PALO ALTO, Calif. – The Rich May Foundation announced today that they have reached their goal of raising $1.5M to complete Phase One of the Rich May Field Project.
The plan is to build an all-weather, turf field for the youth of East Palo Alto in slain Officer Rich May’s memory. This field will be the only full sized lighted soccer/rugby field in East Palo Alto.
Longtime rugby man Frank Merrill was Officer May's stepfather and serves as President of the Rich May Foundation.
IRB Becomes World RugbyThe International Rugby Board (IRB) has officially changed its name to "World Rugby" effective today. World Rugby launched its new logo, website, and brand at the blouse of the 2014 World Rugby Conference and Exhibition in London. As stated in the official announcement: "At the heart of the brand is a distinctive positioning, expressed visually through a modernised and progressive logo that embodies World Rugby’s mission statement to grow the game globally, retaining a link to the organisation’s heritage through its blue and green colour scheme. With Rugby continuing to inspire and engage new audiences and players around the world, the launch is the culmination of a rebranding process undertaken with the assistance of FutureBrand.
