Americans Overseas - Manoa Brightest StarMore and more American players are going overseas, but getting playing time is both always easy. There are restrictions on the number of non-local athletes who can play, and plenty of competition for places . The player who is probably the biggest star right now is Samu Manoa. At Northampton, Manoa has been seeing time at No. 8, rather than lock, which is where he has normally played for the Saints in recent years.
A Look at USA Rugby's 2013 Finances
USA Rugby’s 2013 tax report is not out yet but the audited financial statement is, and it spells out the story of an organization that is growing.
USA Rugby’s total revenue for 2013 was just under $12.2 million, a massive increase over the years previous, where budgets sat around $8 million. USA Rugby’s 2012 budget was $10,240,934.
The major sources of the increase in funding are: sponsorship - up 15%, which is about $240,000; events, up 72.5%, or just under $800,000; and fundraising, which increased 420% from $38,384 to $199,629.
Overseas Latest - Wins Everywhere
League play started for most of the USA players playing overseas, and it was win day for everybody.
In the Aviva Premiership in England, Blaine Scully started on the wing for Leicester as they beat Newcastle 36-17. For Newcastle, Eric Fry did not play. Still, it was a big day for Scully as he started in the team’s opener and seems to be poised to factor greatly in the team’s plans.
It was a quiet day for the Americans at Saracens, as non played while Sarries beat Wasps 34-28. While Cam Dolan didn’t get a look for Northampton, Samu Manoa started at No. 8 and was a big influence in the Saints’ 53-6 destruction of Gloucester. Manoa has been playing a lot of No. 8 of late, and it makes sense as he is a force with the ball at the base of the scrum.
Thiel Joining Saracens
Former Life University men's player and Traverse City Alliance HS player Phil Thiel has signed with English pro club Saracens.
The hooker, who has been capped 22 times for the USA, arrived at the club on Sunday and will be there on a short-term contract while Schalk Brits is away with the South African national team.
The move comes at a crucial time for Thiel, whose form was not at its highest this past summer. Thiel is a tough, intelligent hooker with World Cup experience, but balancing a career and working in club rugby is not always easy when you play international rugby, and a full-time training environment may be exactly what he, and the USA National Team, need.
Overseas Latest - Preseason Game ActionIt’s almost time for the regular season for Americans playing pro overseas, and most of the players have seen pre-season action.
In the Aviva Premiership, Both Samu Manoa and Cam Dolan started at No. 8 for the Northampton Saints. That’s an impossibility unless you’ve got split-squad games, which is the case. The saints beat Leinster with Manoa and Mosely with Dolan (who set up a try).
In the Aviva Premiership, Both Samu Manoa and Cam Dolan started at No. 8 for the Northampton Saints. That’s an impossibility unless you’ve got split-squad games, which is the case. The saints beat Leinster with Manoa and Mosely with Dolan (who set up a try).
Combine Provides Link to Top Pro Club The upcoming combine at Arizona State University, which will include coaches form the ACT Brumbies of Super Rugby, is more than just a recruiting vehicle for ASU. Brumbies Head Coach Stephen Larkham said in an upcoming RuggaMatrix America podcast said that the combine will also be an opportunity for up-and-coming American players to get seen first-hand by a top pro team, and perhaps get something out of it. Larkham told RuggaMatrix America hosts Alex Goff and Bruce McLane in an interview that if a player shows promise, the Brumbies will look to get that player down to Australia’s capital of Canberra to train with the Brumbies and explore playing opportunities there.
IRB to Change Name to World Rugby
The International Rugby Board has announced that it will change its name to World Rugby November 19.
Given that the name "IRB" or International Rugby Board, doesn't exactly mean anything to the average rugby player or sports fan, and given that the IRB does oversee the game around the world, the move seems logical. The new brand, including a new logo, will be launched at the IRB World Rugby Conference and Exhibition in London on November 17-18.
Sources - Palamo to Extend Saracens Stay
Former Utah All American and surest USA player Thretton Palamo has reportedly signed an extension with pro club Saracens in England.
According to sources close to Palamo, the former USA U20 star and 7s and 15s Eagle will be staying at Saracens for the next six months, at least. Palamo, who got his start in rugby with the SFGG club working his way through the age groups, has been at Saracens on a short-term trial.
But at 6-3, 235 pounds, with light feet and god ball and aerial skills, Palamo is a find, and the club instantly warmed to him.
"From a playing perspective the American players fit in so easily," said Saracens' Neil de Kock earlier this month. "We're excited to see what Thretton can offer - he's a scary human being."
Rugby Poised to Help Football Safety
Tackling in football is changing in large part as a response to the long-overdue increase in concern about concussions, and as those changes filter through the game, American football’s parent, Rugby Football, is stepping into the spotlight.
USA rugby Expands Background Checks
USA Rugby has announced that its background check policy will be changing.
The changes bring USA Rugby in accordance with the United States Olympic Committee's SafeSport Program, and means that not just coaches, but team staffmembers and rugby officials must undergo background checks every two years.
The new cycle will begin with this fall's CIPP registration (2014-2015). The screening will be conduction by SSCI (http://www.ssci2000.com/) which is a company that conducts background checks for youth sports.
Cariaga Callup for NY 7s
The New York team going to the World Club 7s in Limerick, Ireland, and London will do so without former United HS sensation Maka Unufe, who has been forced to pull out.
New York will instead go with former Life University captain Colton Cariaga, who has been studying and working at Dublin University. A shifty flyhalf/center who is tough on defense, Cariaga will play in the Limerick tournament, while Sean Rafferty will now extend his trip and play in both Ireland and London.
NY Sending Teams to Two World Club 7s
The New York City Sevens squads have been announced to compete in the Aviva Premiership World Club 7s events to be held at Thomond Park, Limerick August 9-10 and Twickenham, London on August 16-17. These tournaments will see the New York side drawn against international powerhouses such as Auckland, Western Province and Saracens.
The combined squad is comprised of twelve players from the Northeast Olympic Development Academy (ODA) based in New York and Boston, as well as six players from the USA Men's 7s program in residence at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, CA. As the USA Rugby National Club Championships fall on the same date as the Limerick Tournament, players from the top two Northeast clubs, Old Blue of New York and NYAC, are available for the Twickenham leg only.
Canada, England Added to Women's 7s Series
The IRB has expanded the IRB Women's Sevens World Series, adding Canada and England to the series and making it a six-event circuit.
The USA returns with their tournament in Atlanta, Ga. March 14-15 (slightly later in the year than last time), while Rugby Canada's facility, Westhills Stadium, in Langford, BC will host Round 4 April 18-19.
The Twickenham Stoop - somewhat more intimate than the massive Twickenham Stadium, hosts the new English leg in May.
The circuit will finish with a first-ever double-shot, with tournaments on consecutive weekends, in London May 15-16, and Amsterdam May 22-23.
Guangzhou, China is no longer part of the series.
Rugby and Football Combine in Seahawks Tackling
Pete Carroll, Head Coach of the Super Bowl Champion Seattle Seahawks, released a video on the team's website this week that has caused quite a stir among the rugby community.
In the video, Carroll maps out exactly how he and his coaches teach tackling, and how they use their tackling techniques to be effective, while taking the head out of the contact area. In the video, Carroll repeatedly mentions rugby as an inspiration for some of these techniques, and shows rugby, as well as football, video footage to show what he means. While his instructions don't always translate to rugby (tracking the near hip is nice, but easier in a game where the ballcarrier isn't expected to pass the ball), much of it does, and explains and illustrates how to play good defense in a contact sport.
Saracens Visit and Overseas Opportunities
USA players at Saracens are making a huge impact, so said Owen Farrell and Neil De Kock, two Saracens stars who, while on injury rehab, visited the training facility of their sister club in Seattle.
Farrell and De Kock are on a North American educational tour and spent much of Wednesday morning working with Seattle Saracens players as they prepare for the National Club 7s and the World Club 7s in August. But while there was a lot of talk about training ideas and fostering partnerships, in the backs of the minds of many young players in the area was the question of how they can get overseas.
“It’s always something you’re thinking about,” said Seattle and USA prop Olive Kilifi, who got his start with the West Seattle Stormers U19 team before switching to the Seattle Vikings.
