Two Deserving Recipients for USRF Nelson College Scholarships
Two Deserving Recipients for USRF Nelson College Scholarships
Brian Vizard, US Rugby Foundation President, has announced that instead of awarding one 2023 Scholarship to Nelson College in New Zealand, the Foundation will be awarding two.
The goal of the Foundation’s High School Rugby Scholarship Program is to advance the personal, cultural, and academic development of the scholar athletes while also giving them the opportunity to become better rugby players and use their experience in New Zealand to influence and help elevate the play of their high school teammates when they return.
The Selection Committee received nineteen applications and after the review process concluded that two applicants stood out academically and athletically from the others. Fortunately, key Nelson College Scholarship benefactors stepped up with donations to enable the Foundation to expand this opportunity to include both players.
Max Doerfler
A 16-year-old Junior at Saint Thomas Aquinas High School, an academically demanding high school in Overland Park, Kan., Max Doerfler is straight-A student. Doerfler started playing rugby at St. Thomas three years ago and also plays on the high school football and soccer teams. St. Thomas rugby finished 4th in the US this past year. In the summer of 2022 Max played with the Eagle Impact Rugby Academy (EIRA) U16 and U17 teams on their Ireland Tour, where he excelled.
In that linked report GRR wrote that Doerfler was "[a] tough, hardworking, and consistent presence at second row, he showed leadership skills as well in what was a tough game for the tourists.”
Oliver Kirk
A 16-year-old Junior at Walter Payton College Preparatory High School, a selective enrollment magnet high school, in Chicago, Oliver Kirk is a straight-A student. Kirk started playing rugby as a 5-year-old for the old Chicago Wapiti Club, which eventually merged with the Chicago Lions Youth Club where he is a back row standout and their starting No. 8.
Kirk coaches the Lions Rookie Rugby program for kids ages four through ten and plays on his high school soccer and volleyball teams. In the summer of 2022 Oliver played with the Eagle Impact Rugby Academy U16 and U17 teams on their tour of Ireland.
Nelson College
Nelson College is an all-boys boarding school in Nelson City on the Northern shore of New Zealand’s South Island. Founded in 1856, Nelson College is the oldest state secondary school and the school where rugby in New Zealand was started. Located on the shores of Tasman Bay, Nelson is a small city with a vibrant and diverse culture. Known as the sunshine “capital” of New Zealand, the area is blessed with stunning natural landscapes.
The Nelson College 1st XV Rugby Team completed a very successful season in August by winning the Quadrangular Rugby Tournament, the oldest High School competition in the Southern Hemisphere. The team also won the Crusaders First XV Tournament Championship placing seven players on the Crusaders’ Regional High School Team. Four players went on to New Zealand National Team honors. The program is run by Director of Coaching and 1st XV Coach Jonathan “Jono” Phillips.
In his first four years as Head of Rugby at Nelson College Phillips coached the school’s 1st XV to three South Island championships, three Crusaders School titles, and four consecutive quadrangular victories in one of the most fruitful periods in the school’s 165-year history.
“It is a great privilege for Nelson College to partner with the U.S. Rugby Foundation on this project," said Pihllips. "We have a long and proud history of developing the game and players here in New Zealand. Having the opportunity to work with the Foundation and sharing the rugby pathway we have developed at the school with aspiring American rugby players is something we are very much looking forward to. Many congratulations to Max and Oliver on their selection for the scholarships.”
Donor Support
This grant is made possible by the timely and generous contributions of the Foundation’s “Friends of Nelson College” including native New Zealanders David Hovey (Chicago), Ron Mayes (Bay Area), and Murray Sutton (Santa Fe).
Join the “Friends of Nelson College” by contributing to support future scholarships to Nelson College. Send your tax-exempt donation noting “Nelson College” on the For: line to:
Brian Vizard, USRF President; 404 Euclid Avenue, Suite 302; San Diego, CA 92114
OR
Make a donation through this link and select “Nelson College Scholarship” as the purpose.
