Lasell College Rugby: 2014/2015 Assistant Coach Roles (Men’s & Women’s)

The Lasell College Rugby program is currently recruiting assistant coaches for the 2014/2015 year. The right candidates will have prior experience playing or coaching rugby.

Their men’s team competes in NERFU DIII competition against the following programs: UMass Boston, Curry College, Tufts University & Salem State. They are a very ambitious program and they have had success in their short life so far. The women’s team is brand new for 2014/2015 but have recruited an enthusiastic group of girls who have been hitting the practice field since last fall.

Practices will be held early mornings with most games on Sundays. They would like the appointed candidates to attend some practices and games but are also interested in hearing from candidates that could only assist us on game days.


Basic duties will be as follows:

• Teaching the core skills of rugby
• Coaching of the team, units (backs/forwards) and individuals
• Coaching of the scrum, lineouts, breakdown and/or back play
• Assist with team meetings / video analysis sessions
• Develop both rookie and experienced players

To apply for one of these positions please contact:

Sarah Richardson (Assistant Director of Student Activities) | srichardson@lasell.edu | (617) 243-2475
Robin Peers (Head Coach) | robinpeers@hotmail.com | (617) 939-6435

with details of your playing and/or coaching background. Applications will be treated on a rolling basis until the position is filled. Please note: this is a volunteer position.

Seeking National Championship Naming Right Sponsor for Jacksonville

The Jacksonville Axemen are now seeking a Naming Rights Sponsor for the USA Rugby League National Championship Game that is being hosted in Jacksonville on August 23.

They are hoping to secure a company that is based, headquartered or has strong ties to Jacksonville, and will be proud to help us drive the City of Jacksonville as the host location, however all options will be considered.

The partnership offers the Naming Rights to the National Championship game, and will be supported with branding and promotions from the USARugby League and all the teams that cover an area from Boston to Tampa, and across the USA via the Rugby community.

At minimum the event will be broadcast via a live stream around the world, and large audiences from Australia, United Kingdom, New Zealand and other Rugby stronghold nations will be watching as the USA RugbyLeague Championship is shown to them live. (We are also currently discussing local TV broadcast for the Jacksonville Market)

Visual, Event POS Materials, direct marketing items, verbal, online, social media, and other branding medium are included. But the most impressive part will be the USA Rugby League Championship will be TITLE and NAMED after your company, and you will be included in 100% of all PR for the event, both in the USA, and Internationally.

There is also an opportunity for a “Presenting Level” Sponsor that will include a variety of advertising options.

Expressions of interest are invite to email Daryl "Spinner" Howland directly at spinner@jaxaxe.com or call him at 904-536-7501. The partnership will be supported with Marketing and Promotional Help from Slover Consulting (www.sloverconsulting.com)

Interview with Nicolas Di Nápoli, President of Ecuador Rugby Federation

Special Report by Leandro Conde for A Rugby Life

Ecuadorian National Rugby Team

The Ecuadorian National rugby team have an impressive performance and win the CONSUR "C" Rugby Tournament in 2014.  Their president, Nicolas Di Nápoli, talked to me about it and the new challenges for the development of rugby in the country. 

ARL: How is rugby is going in Ecuador and what are the challenges you face as President at Ecuador Rugby Federation?
ND: For some people, rugby is non-existent and they think that it is not here. However, for those who I work day by day with, we are proud to see that rugby is growing and the joy of winning the CONSUR "C" cup and bronze medals in the Vargas 2014 tournament in Venezuela.

ARL: Tell us more about Ecuador’s key to success? and Who are responsible for it?
ND: The key of Ecuador’s success was to choose our best players focussing on the Human factors; working as a team and being committed to the team. We also invest in physiotherapy and conditioning.

Nicolas Di Napoli (left)

ARL: Where did you learn about rugby? What lessons did rugby teach you in your life?

ND: I'm from Argentina and when I was 4 years old I learned rugby at the school.  Getting into rugby with all my friends was especially supportive.  If I my children can learn the same life lessons rugby taught me, I will become a very happy Dad!

ARL: How do you see the present of the Pan American Rugby? 

ND: Rugby is growing fast in North, Centre and South America, especially rugby sevens. Countries like the USA and Canada are leading it.  At the same time, Guatemala, Panamá, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Bolivia and Ecuador, maybe also Guyana, are growing but need more support financially, with human resources, and developing the the structure to play.  I believe that with patience and with help from Peru, Colombia and CONSUR,  our country will continue grow strong.

Rugga Warriors & LIMA High Performance Training

Special Report by Benedict Chanakira 

Rugga Warriors' Andrew Howitt (far left),  Liam Peterson (far right),  Ryan Lok (send from right)
with Eddie Andrew (second from the left)

I recently spoke to some gents on a mission; they are passionate about development and sports growth.  In an era where sport has turned professional and where majority of kids are more interested in playing video games than playing outside, Rugga Warriors and LIMA High Performance training are in a bid to not only unearth future stars, but to build the social, physical and mental side of young athletes.  

Who are you guys?
Rugga Warriors and Lima High Performance Training is a highly qualified team made of Ryan Lok, Liam Peterson and Andrew Howitt.

Why the focus on Sport?

Sport is a essential part of life, so many aspects of life can be taught through playing sport. The qualities and disciplines that can be taught on the sports field can be applied in the lives we live everyday. It's also a language open to everyone. No matter what background we have, no matter where we come from, we can all be equal on a sports field. It's a great way to stay fit and most importantly, Sport is a great unifying tool for individuals and society. We all at Rugga Warriors have a love and a passion for Sport and in particular, we all love rugby. We want to pass on our knowledge to the sporting heroes of tomorrow. This is something that we are striving to achieve.

What is your purpose?

When athletes leave our training facilities they are better equipped to handle themselves on the sports field. Rugga Warriors strives to improve and hone the skills needed by the individual for his or her sport.

How was your first clinic?

Our first clinic which was held at False Bay Rugby Club and was a huge success. The week long program was extremely well attended by a variety of boys from different rugby schools throughout the
Western Cape. The poor weather experienced didn't hamper the enthusiasm of the coaches nor the boys who were in attendance, instead everyone was making the best of the situation where wet weather skills
could be worked on. The parents of boys were extremely excited about what we did and what we have to offer, many of whom are already enquiring about the next clinic and when it is being held.

Do you operate over the school holidays only?

At the current time, yes, however future plans do have us operating all year round.

What are your short and long-term goals?

Our short term goals are simple, we would like to steadily grow and at the same time host holidays clinics where we are educating youngsters about the beautiful game of rugby. The skills and lessons learnt in our holiday clinics we hope will stand the boys in good stead for their rugby season back at their schools. 

Our long term goals are to hopefully one day become an academy, where we work with young and aspiring athletes from all sporting codes, not just rugby. We want to become a well known athletic academy. By being associated with us, it will mean that your sporting attributes for your specific sport will improve helping you make the leap to the next step in competition and hopefully earn national colours in your sport.

Who are the partners involved in this venture?

We are currently in talks and although we were sponsored merchandise wise for the first clinic, we don't yet have an agreement with the respected parties for us to mention them.

What is your target age? Do you cater for females?

We cater at the moment for all rugby players from 6 - 16 years of age. In the future we will be catering for females and various codes of sport through our LIMA High Performance section of Rugga Warriors. This is where we train the athlete to be exactly that, an athlete. Working on things like, speed, agility, flexibility, strength, conditioning etc. These are all aspects of sport needed by any athlete
in any type of sporting activity. 

At the current time we are only providing rugby specific training, however we are providing training
for the pure athlete and anyone who would like to maintain a healthy life style. We believe in a healthy and active life style and sport is a great way to achieve this while having fun and making friends, male
or female.

What do you incorporate in the course, and also what makes your
Institute the best?

We incorporate skills training as well as athlete conditioning. What makes Rugga Warriors the best and what makes us different is that we targeting and training specific sporting skills that need to be learnt but most of all we have the High performance training being run alongside the skills training. The overall conditioning of the human body is essential to being able to execute the necessary skills on the
field and this is what we train our athletes to be able to do. Speed, agility, core stability, endurance, flexibility and strength are just some of the examples of what can be looked forward to in the High Performance Training.

When the athletes graduate what qualities do you hope will be embedded on them?

When athletes leave our facilities we hope to have installed in them qualities that will enable them to succeed not only on the sports field but in every faced of everyday life. we believe in "hard work
beats talent, unless talent works", which means that with hard work, we can achieve anything. Hard work, respect, discipline and integrity are all vital to succeeding in life and on the sports field and this is
what we hope  to embed in our athletes.

Namibia qualification to RWC

Special Report by Benedict Chanakira

While controversy swelled all over the world as to why the games where not played at the same time, it took no glitter off any of the results. Namibia have qualified for the 2015 Rugby World Cup in England.

Congratulations to them. They showed determination, character and peaked at the right time. Having lost their first game against Kenya, followed by a come from behind win over the Sables there was hope. They had to win by a mammoth 53 points or more against Madagascar. They came out and blew the hosts away. They knew what they had to do and executed perfectly. Led by Pumas loose forward Renaldo Bothma who was in devastating form.

Bothma was quoted as saying "We have the belief and we are still in it after the first two games. We hope for a favorable result between Zimbabwe and Kenya." It played out well. They had everything in their hands from there.

This was a day full of ups and downs. Zimbabwe looked to have qualified after their win over Kenya. Kenya who were in pole position blew it and failed to grab the required bonus point try in the end for automatic qualification. The Sables executed well and exploited their opponents' weaknesses. Zimbabwe put in a brave onslaught on defense in the last five minutes on their try-line. The Sables' only criticism would be the decision not to go for the corner instead of settling for the three points.  This decision haunted them in the next game as Madagascar was put to the sword by Namibia despite a second half flurry of beautiful interplay between the hosts.

The Sables now must turn their attention to Siberia where they will face Russia in a few weeks. A win will then set-up a clash against Hong Kong/Uruguay. This was a fascinating tournament and the best team won. Namibia did their job and can book their flights. The rest of Africa now stand behind the Sables in their quest not to only make their first World Cup in twenty-two years but claim a third World Cup spot for Africa. 

Rambai makashing Sables! (Remain brave Sables!)