Ashfield Takes Eagle Helm and Looks to Stabilize the Ship
Ashfield Takes Eagle Helm and Looks to Stabilize the Ship
Under the gun somewhat differently than others in USA Rugby's High Performance drama, interim Women's 15s Head Coach Rich Ashfield will have to think very short term, at least for now.
While in our interview with Men's 15s (interim) Head Coach Scott Lawrence was more about looking ahead, Ashfield has just a couple of months before he has to assemble the USA team play its first games since the Rugby World Cup last year.
He has to move quickly, but can't ignore the future at the same time. So, yes, even with the interim tag (or because of it) there's a special kind of pressure on the coach. And the future-vs-present conundrum goes double when it comes to selections.
"I know the current players in the pool but I’m looking at this team with fresh eyes and a different perspective," Ashfield told GRR. "We definitely need to shake things up a bit and make some changes to take the team to the next level, but with potential games scheduled less than three months away, and a large core of players currently overseas, I’m figuring out how to strike the right balance. I can’t start completely fresh with the current time constraints so there will be a combination of using some of the current framework that [previous coach] Rob [Cain] put in place, while layering in both new, up-and-coming talent and adding new concepts to build from."
Through World Rugby's Regulation 9 the USA players playing overseas, and there are a lot, will be made available for the spring test match window. That's a good thing because no one is really playing at the moment except for the Premiership in England and other European leagues.
(Four Eagles are playing for Exeter on Saturday, with captain Kate Zackary slotting in at center instead of at No. 8.)
"Some college games will start again this month but there is no WPL until April," said Ashfield. "I will have to rely on previous scouting networks in the short term. I’ve already reconnected with the pathway coaches who have highlighted some real talent from both the U20 and U23 teams, and had productive conversations with Em Bydwell in 7s about some of the talent that may be available to us."
That's a change right there, as there seemed to have been a bit of a wall between 7s and 15s the last year or so. The Eagles program can't afford that division.
"If we look around the USA rugby landscape there is no shortage of athletes; we have big ball carriers, speed, and aggression," Ashfield continued. "The challenge is to harness all that athleticism in a productive sense and develop strong rugby knowledge. Those playing in the Allianz 15s are getting exposure to different international players and the challenges of a full-time environment and that is an immense advantage for their development. But outsourcing the continued development of our top tier players is a short-term solution."
So Ashfield is accepting that short-term solution for now, but the domestic competition, and supporting that domestic competition, is hugely important.
"What we need in the US is a robust women’s competition to identify and develop the players earlier. COVID has really hurt the WPL, but it is not the only show in town. A strong D1 and strong college competitions will mean we keep strengthening the pipeline for the future," said the coach in voicing a very different attitude than his predecessor. "How do we do that? That's the age-old question. I guess the simple answer is money but then there needs to be a governance and management structure that makes it sustainable, that promotes coach education, referee development, youth development etc. But as the saying goes 'money doesn't grow on trees.'"
But an endorsement from the national team coach has enormous influence. If Ashfield as interim Head Coach, or Ashfield or someone else as long-term Head Coach supports the WPL, NIRA, D1 Elite College, and D1 club competitions and scouts talent therein, the talent will work harder to be seen and will have more faith in what they do.
Before all that happens, there needs to be some confidence in the process.
"With Rob stepping away there were a lot of questions," said Ashfield. "I am here to stabilize the ship and keep us moving forward during this transition. We are less than 3 years from the next World Cup so there is no time to waste. We have players at various stages of their rugby journeys and I need to support them."
