Championship decider for Div 2 Men's and Womens College rugby this weekend

All bets are off as the final four men’s and women’s teams head to Pittsburgh, PA this weekend to decide who will be crowned the Emirates Airline USA Rugby Division II College National Champions.  The semis kick off on Saturday, April 30th with the grand finales on Sunday, May 1st.  Both games will be take place at Founders Field.

USA Rugby will be streaming all the games via a live webcast live which you can see at http://www.ustream.tv/usarugby 

Kick off times and schedule are as follows:

WOMEN’S DII COLLEGE SEMIFINALS

Saturday April 30 | Founder’s Field |Pittsburgh, Penn.

Time	Team 1	Team 2
10:00 a.m.	Western Washington	Radcliffe
11:45 a.m.	Notre Dame	Stonehill

WOMEN’S DII COLLEGE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

Sunday May 1 | Founder’s Field |Pittsburgh, Penn.

Time	Team 1	Team 2
12:00 p.m.	Winner of Western Wash. vs. Radcliffe	Winner of Notre Dame v. Stonehill

MEN’S DII COLLEGE SEMIFINALS

Saturday April 30 | Founder’s Field |Pittsburgh, Penn.

Time	Team 1	Team 2
1:30 p.m.	Sierra College	University of Wisconsin – Whitewater
3:15 p.m.	Middlebury	Salisbury

MEN’S DII COLLEGE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

Sunday May 1 | Founder’s Field |Pittsburgh, Penn.

Time	Team 1	Team 2
2:00 p.m.	Winner of Sierra vs. UW - Whitewater	Winner of Middlebury vs. Salisbury

For further information please contact Jarrod Beckstrom (jbeckstrom@usarugby.org), Communications Manager at USA Rugby  

Eagles Head Coach Eddie O’Sullivan announces player camp

Eagle Valenese Malifa in action (Credit: USA Rugby)

BOULDER, Colo. - Eagles Head Coach Eddie O’Sullivan has officially announced his first domestic training squad of the year, in what will be a very busy 2011 for the Men’s National Team in their buildup to the 2011 Rugby World Cup (RWC).  O’Sullivan has also added a few members to his coaching staff to best prepare the Eagles for a full list of pre-RWC fixtures.

The 35 players will assemble at the Olympic Training Center (OTC) in Chula Vista, Calif., from Wednesday May 4 to Sunday May 8.

“This is the first and only assembly for the domestic Eagles in 2011. It is an immediate opportunity for everybody invited to push for a place at the Churchill Cup in June,” O’Sullivan said, acknowledging that many overseas players are tied-up in their professional duties for their respective clubs.

O’Sullivan also noted that some players are also unavailable for personal reasons and others are unavailable due to injury and involvement in domestic collegiate rugby.

The squad assembling at the OTC consists of 17 forwards and 18 backs. Thirteen members of the squad have represented the Eagles in the IRB Sevens World Series and 14 of the 35 players have caps for the Eagles fifteens side.

On a roll, UT claim Easter 7s title

The Texas Rugby team continued their preparation for the CRC by winning the Easter 7s in Dallas this past weekend.

The format of the Easter 7s changed on a few occasions from round robin scrimmages between a few Texas collegiate programs, to a full tournament, then something in-between when several teams failed to arrive on Saturday morning. Credit to the organizers – the Dallas Reds – who then were able to piece together a mini-tournament between the University of Texas (two sides), Texas Tech, North Texas, the Dallas Reds and the Arlington Mavericks.  

For the Longhorns it was another fantastic opportunity to gain valuable match practice with a squad of 17 players. Together the two teams went 6-1, with coaches Jacob Liberman and Julien du Castel able to interchange players between the sides.

All-American squad named for the IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy

BOULDER, Colo. – The Men’s Junior All-American Under-20s (JAAs) squad has been selected for the IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy (JWRT) tournament to be played in Tbilisi, Georgia this summer.  The JAA squad consists of mostly collegiate players and will take on Pool A opponents Samoa, Russia, and Uruguay.  The JWRT kicks off on May 24 and concludes on June 5.

Eleven players named to the squad play in the College Premier Division (CPD) so they will effectively close their CPD seasons out and catch the next plane to London where the JAAs will train for a week ahead of the JWRT.  The squad arrives in London on May 15 and leaves for Tbilisi on May 21.

JAA Head Coach, Scott Lawrence, isn’t expecting many surprises when his players assemble in London. Lawrence has been working with the athletes and their “home team” coaches on a weekly basis to ensure that players arrive at camp in shape, on the same page, and ready to play at the international level.

In order to select his JWRT squad, Lawrence and his staff considered a number of criteria.  For each player they evaluated game film, monitored player form during the course of the spring season, and sought feedback from each player’s home team coach.

“We expect the players to arrive at camp ready to focus on the U20s [JAAs],” said Lawrence.

When asked about the USA’s opponents in the JWRT, Lawrence is realistic about what their opponents bring.  The USA will have a solid test as they take on rugby nation Samoa in the JWRT opener on May 24.

UT Longhorns take the Fiesta 7s

The Texas Rugby team won the Fiesta Sevens tournament in Alamo City this past weekend amid dry and dusty conditions.

The Longhorns defeated UTSA 28-14 in an excellent final, and produced some exciting rugby throughout the day. Several players stood-out for the UT team, and this was a fantastic opportunity for the young side to have valuable match practice ahead of the CRC 7s tournament.

Julien du Castel (Assistant Coach) was on hand to help the Horns raise the trophy: “This type of tournament is really valuable for our development. We were able to get a lot of our young players good amounts of game time against physical and athletic teams who played some different styles of play. And I thought the boys played very well, applying a lot of defensive pressure and working our offensive pattern.”

USA Rugby Kicks Off World Cup Campaign at United Nations

NEW YORK – United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon and the Rugby World Cup trophy, the Webb Ellis Cup, helped the Eagles kick off their Road to the World Cup campaign at the UN Headquarters on Monday.

Ki-moon welcomed the delegates and the audience, but the audience surely wasn't prepared for what Ki-moon had embedded in his speech; a fantastic sense of humor.
"There are a lot of similarities between rugby and diplomacy: you lose teeth and you can even lose face...Scrums are as confusing to those unfamiliar with the game, just as speeches can be in diplomacy," said Ki-moon.

The Secretary General also lamented that he was "never good enough to play loose head prop, or tight head prop, and certainly never played hooker."
The crowd was delighted with his speech and he highlighted the importance of sport and the power it has to unite people.  USA Rugby CEO, Nigel Melville, presented the Secretary General with an Eagles jersey and the New Zealand mission to the UN gave Ki-moon a New Zealand All Blacks jersey.

USA Eagle team captains, Mike Petri and Todd Clever, were on hand to represent their team at the event as were International Rugby Board (IRB) chairman, Bernard Lapasset and CEO Mike Miller.
Lapasset showcased the growth of rugby in recent years and recognized that the sport has a proud tradition of promoting social change and helping those in need.

"The Rugby World Cup is a symbol of the power of sport to drive social change.  In the hands of Nelson Mandela in 1995, it helped unite a nation.  We hope that it will continue to inspire future generations to participate, to express themselves, to have fun.
We are proud of our sport's ability to make a difference.  The global rugby family united behind Christchurch after the devastating earthquake in February and is rallying behind Japan," said Lapasset.

The IRB's "Tackle Hunger" program raised over 3 million dollars to benefit the United Nations World Food Program and will use the 2011 RWC to promote the worthy program to the audience.
Before the Secretary General spoke, ambassadors from the 20 participating nations met in the General Assembly Hall and had an opportunity to pose with the Webb Ellis Cup.  Plenty of playful banter was exchanged between the representatives, some claiming the Cup will look better in their respective countries.
The Eagles have their first World Cup warm up match in London on June 4 where they will face the England Saxons.
Further Information:
Jarrod Beckstrom | Communications Manager | USA Rugby | jbeckstrom@usarugby.org

Rugby League: Open Training Camp and Tryouts for the Jacksonville Axemen, May 6th-8th

May 6th through the 8th there will be an open training camp and tryouts for the 2011 Firehouse Subs Jacksonville Axemen.  Camp will be held at the University of North Florida and will include a full contact scrimmage on Saturday (May 7) that will be open to all fans and the general public.

Athletes from all area sports teams are invited to attend training camp if they have an interest in being considered for the 2011 Axemen team. There is no cost to attend the camp weekend but all potential players will be expected to achieve minimum fitness testing results at the camp to be considered. 

All current and interested players should visit www.jaxaxe.com to get the full schedule, items that are needed and minimum fitness standards. Camp starts with a 6.15pm player meeting on Friday, May 6.

The full contact scrimmage will be played at 4pm on Saturday (May 7) at Hodges Stadium and will have full concessions and the always popular $1 beer. This event is included in the season ticket package and walk-up price will be $5. (Kids 12 and under FREE) Gates will open at 3.30pm.

Play Rugby USA looking for spring season volunteers

Play Rugby USA is about to kick off for the spring season and is looking for a few good folks to help out.

With your help, they anticipate being able to hold 19 tournaments, serving over 70 teams of players.  Initially they only need a handful of volunteers at each event to give them the ability to run the events as well as they do.

Roles available are to help with registration, managing the fields, and refereeing (if you are qualified).

If you are interested in volunteering, please email Bryan.Vale@Playrugbyusa.com with your details.

Here is the Tournaments they need help with:

Saturday, April 2 (Middle School)- Fields 74 and 75, Randall's Island, 8:30AM-12:30PM

Saturday, April 9 (Middle School)- Mott Haven Campus, 8:30AM-12:30PM

Sunday, April 10th (Elementary School)- Chelsea Waterside Park, 12PM-2PM

Sunday, May 1 (Elementary School)- Chelsea Waterside Park, 12PM-2PM

Saturday, May 7 (Middle School)- Randall's Island, Field 74 (7:30AM-12:30PM), Field 75 (9:30AM-2:30PM)

Saturday, May 14 (Elementary School)- Glover Field, 4:30PM-8PM

Sunday, May 15 (Middle School)- Mott Haven Campus, 8:30AM-12:30PM

Saturday, May 21 (Middle School)- Field 74 and 75, Randall's Island, 9:30AM-2:30PM

Sunday, May 22 (Elementary School)- Chelsea Waterside Park, 12PM-2PM

Sunday, June 5th (Middle School)- Mott Haven Campus, 8:30AM-12:30PM

Locations:
Mott Haven Campus
Randall's Island
Chelsea Waterside Park
Glover Field

Match Report: University of Oklahoma 3 - 41 Arkansas State

Courtesy of Tyson Meek, Oklahoma Rugby

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Number 4 ranked Arkansas State was too much for the Sooners Saturday March 26th, ultimately prevailing 41 – 3. The game was much closer than the score line reads and was still a contest until the Sooners Captain and Number 10 Arrynn Wilkinson was yellow carded in the 65th minute for a dangerous tackle.  Arkansas State took advantage of their opportunity with the Sooner playmaker off the field and ran in four trys in short order while Wilkinson was in the bin.

OU’s set piece continues to struggle with the pressure exerted by its College Premier Division opponents.  Arkansas State benefited early from an Oklahoma miscue at the second scrum of the game on the OU 5 meter line.  The Oklahoma backrow allowed the ball to escape the scrum between the number 6 and number 8 while OU scrumhalf Mike Diver was out of position; the Arkansas State halfback Yoshiyasu Abe took advantage of the mistake scooped the ball up and scored the easiest try of his career.  Pat Sullivan converted for the extras.