Stuff to Update

It has been a busy, busy Fall and early winter. While I completely failed to get information up regarding the Fall season, I will put the results, post the list for our All-Tournament team recipients, and get all the final results from the Fall 09 season posted prior to the start of this Spring season!

It was a really exciting Fall season and I think there is some really growth for the league coming around the corner. A recent comment on this Blog pointed out the new website (now added to the links) for the Cudahy RFC.

Rumors are still circulating that there may be a Wauwatosa RFC --come the Fall of 2010, as well!

We continue to grow! There is a lot to discuss. More to come.....!!

CMH retains the Claymore and the Founders' Cup

The Highland Games Mass Band. A good end to a long day of rugby:

CMH retained the Founders' Cup by defeating the Brookfield Bruisers in the opening match of the Highland Games. The CMH girls went on to retain their tournament championship trophy, a Scottish Claymore sword, with three victories at the Scottish Highland Games Saturday. Kudos to CMH -- thier victory was a complete team effort as all thirty players contributed significantly to the four matches.

Photos and detailed scores subbmitted by CMH:

Photo #2: senior wing Kelsey Norgal and sophomore Cecillia NavarratePhoto #3: freshman #2, Genny Antunes and friends.
CMHS 31 Brookfield 0Tries: Erin Davis, Maggie Armstrong (2), Kelsey Norgal, Anita DillettConv: Katie Dries (3)
CMHS 26 Vernon 0Tries: Kayla Henschel (2), Anita Dillett, Erin DavisConv: Katie Dries (3)
CMHS JV 14 Muskego 10Tries: Marissa Jurek, Kayla HenschelConv: Sara Dillett (2)
CMHS JV 5 Kettle Moraine 12Tries: Kelsey Norgal

The final result does not tell the whole story of Saturday's tournament. At the end of the day on Saturday, three teams (CMH, Vernon and KM) were 3-1 -- tied for first place. CMH retained the Claymore on point differentials -- leaving the final title decision down to the final whistle of the final match.

The full score report for the day (# of tries in parens.):

Brookfield v. CMH: 5 (1) v. 31 (5)
KM v. Muskego: 24 (4) v. 7 (1)
Brookfield v. KM: 0 (0) v. 21 (3)
CMH v. Vernon: 26 (4) v. 0 (0)
CMH v. Muskego: 12 (2) v. 10 (2)
Brookfield v. Vernon: 12( 2) v. 19 (3)
KM v. Vernon: 17 (3) v. 25 (5)

Brookfield v. Muskego: 12 (2) v. 10 (2)
Muskego v. Vernon: 0 (0) v. 15 (3)
CMH v. KM 5 (1) v. 12 (2)

What's With Those Hawaiian Shirts?

Some have the Maori Haka. Brookfield had its bagpipers for a time. And Wisconsin's local rugby fans have the Hawaiian shirts.

Some fans have come to associate Hawaiian shirts with DSHA rugby. Its origins are a bit more complex than that. In this, the first recorded picture of Hawaiian shirts being used as coach's attire roughly a decade ago, it does in fact show three coaches wearing the dazzling duds. But, it should be noted that two of the coaches are wearing borrowed shirts from the third's extensive collection.

The current head coach of DSHA did not originate this now time-honored tradition; although he must be recognized for his efforts. He has embraced this tradition, even being captured in an ESPN interview wearing the now famed black and red Hawaiian print. Still, others may forget that Kettle Moraine used the 'originals' prints pictured as good-luck Hawaiian shirts and did so continuously throughout the height of their trips to Nationals and Midwest. Perhaps as coaches and players prepare for the upcoming fall competition, some should consider finding an old Hawaiian shirt ....

(Thanks to our guest feature columnist for this story and picture)!

Wisconsin U19 Alumnae.. doing well...

Pictured above, Brittany Huston (a Vernon alumna and current UWM team) is on the attack in the USA U20 38-20 victory over Canada. Brittany scored a try for her efforts. DSHA Alumna, Maggie Reidy, also contributed at second row to the USA victory. Full details from the match can be found on the USA Rugby site.

I believe Brittany is currently a UWM player -- I'm not sure about Maggie, but I am sure someone who reads this blog knows and can contribute.

It is so great to see the players from Wisconsin contributing to the success of our national program!

Fall 2009!

Is it too early to start discussing the Fall 2009 season? Well, with the spring XV's season wrapping up just last weekend, the Wisconsin High School Girls Rugby teams held their semi-annual meeting last week. The schedule is now set for the Division 1 clubs and the clubs agreed to establish a Division 2 for developing teams and B-side teams from larger clubs.

As in the past, the Division 1 clubs will be organized into 2 pools. Pool A: DSHA, Brookfield Bruisers, Kettle Moraine, and Muskego. Pool B: Catholic Memorial, Vernon, Northshore-Highlanders, and Oak Creek. Division 2 will consist of Pius, Fond du Lac, Oak Creek/Cudahy and the newly formed Minomonee Falls RFC, along with B-side teams from the Division 1 pool teams.

It may seem a long way off, but the Girls High School Finals will be played at Nagawaukee Park on October 25, 2009! As in the past, the final matches for all Division 1 teams will be played at the same location.

Other interesting agenda items of note, the Girls High School teams voted unanimously to affiliate with the Wisconsin Rugby Football Union (WRFU). In the past, high school girls teams were members in good standing of the Midwest Territorial Union and USA Rugby. We anticipate that this new affiliation will bring greater coordination of activities between the girls league, the referee society and the WRFU. This past season, the referee society coordinated all match officials for the matches. Continuation of this benefit alone makes joining the WRFU a good bargain!

Rugby Recruiting

In Wisconsin there are three types of clubs: school based, park and recreation based, and clubs. DSHA and Catholic Memorial (#1 and #2 in the state respectively) are deeply rooted in within their school community. Both of these clubs were founded by teachers at their respective institution and, over time, have grown, to varying degrees, to enjoy institutional support and recognition. Without a doubt, both of these clubs have an edge in recruiting new players. Despite the fact both CMHS and DSHA are smaller than their public counterparts, they have larger, more stable teams due in part to their ability to "get the word out" about rugby through official channels. Vernon (Wisconsin's #3 seed) also has "official" sanction through the Vernon Parks and Recreation Department. Thus, Vernon also has the benefit of being able to "get the word out" about its program through recognized channels.

The remaining Wisconsin clubs have, at best, an ambiguous relationship with its local park and recreation department and/or local school district. I have often heard coaches complain about the difficulty they have in negotiating the relationship with local school officials and the negative impact this has on the club's ability to "get the word out" about their club. While an Internet presence goes some way in circumventing this problem, this communication channel presupposes that someone is aware that club rugby exists in the local community and that they are searching for the club online. So, what are local high school rugby clubs to do? I want to throw out some strategies and pointers from my experience --for what its worth -- and briefly discuss your rugby club's "rights" within a public institution. However, be forewarned, exerting your "rights" is not the ideal method. Rather, collaborative and positive relationships are the way to go.

So, some basic pointers:

PLAYERS AS LEADERS:

• Give your players the recruiting mentality. Remind your players that responsibility for the growth of the club rests with the players. They are the best source of new players (see the post about the Black Ferns... peer recruitment was the #1 reason for joining rugby).
• Encourage your players to facilitate positive relationships within their school. Players (as members of the student body) have greater access to the school community than "outsider" coaches. For example, some recent successes by the Brookfield team, that can only be achieved by student-athlete leadership are: (1) the Brookfield Central players convinced the year-book editor to include a page dedicated to the rugby club (even though the club is not an officially recognized sport); (2) the school paper included an article about the rugby club in their upcoming issue. (Remember -- our athletes are not just rugby players-- they are year book editors, members of the school paper, members of the student council). By encouraging players to utilize their networks, we are actually helping players to develop important self-advocacy and leadership skills that go beyond rugby. (As an aside, don't be afraid to write letters of recommendations to college for your players and high light their off-the-field contributions, as these really demonstrate leadership. "so-and-so was not only a stellar athlete, but also did x, y, and z to demonstrate her leadership skills" --some players shy away from rugby in the fears that being part of a non-school sponsored sport will not contribute to their college admission application. However, the opposite is true. Rugby is a great opportunity to take responsibility and develop leadership skills).
  
• Let your players lead the way, but always maintain a hand in the image that your players present. Remember, our role as a coach is to help facilitate positive youth development (so don't let your players portray in image that is counter-productive to the growth of the sport in your community).
  
• Don't forget that parents are another important key networking component: "My daughter plays rugby... and I'm proud of her" is a very powerful recruitment statement.

COACHES AS COLLABORATORS:

• Don't let rugby be marginalized as a "rugby club" versus "school system" mentality. Always remember that, at our best, we are, like the school system, interested in the positive development of our players. Therefore, we are partners not competitors in the process.
• Don't let rugby be seen as "taking away" from other sports programs. Often, I've heard athletic directors and other coaches characterize rugby as "stealing athletes" from other legitimate sports. The script for rugby coaches should be that we (1) offer choice to student athletes; (2) by offering rugby, some students who might not otherwise play a sport is give an opportunity to get active and get involved (e.g. it is very difficult for a high school student who hasn't been playing soccer for years to walk onto a competitive high school team. Rugby offers these players a new opportunity, no experience necessary).
• Be responsive to school administration concerns. (e.g. when posting rugby posters-- do your players always use the appropriate administrative procedure and get the appropriate approvals).
• Always frame the conversation in terms of what rugby can offer and not what rugby wants. It is counter-productive in these days of tight budgets and program cuts to think that rugby can (or should) get financial support from the school system. But, most clubs don't need much (we have balls, jerseys, volunteer coaches, etc...). By partnering with the schools, we can add to the school community -- bringing resources, not taking away. What does the club need from the school? access to the communication network, access to playing fields, and already existing no-additional cost resources. What can rugby add? A new, low-cost, exciting sports program for the school, contributions to field maintenance costs, partnering to raise funds for new goal posts...? we are only limited by our imagination and willingness to ask, not what the schools can do for us, but what we can add to the school.
  

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS:

• The rugby club has the same right to post flyers, distribute mailers in school communication vehicles (e.g. stuffing mailers in middle school take-home packets) as any other similarly situated group. Thus, if your school district allows the local church to distribute flyers about summer bible camp, the rugby club likely has a constitutional right to distribute hand-outs about rugby (subject to the same time, place and manner restrictions). Obviously the negative corollary is also true: if the communication tools is only open to officially school sponsored activities, then the non-school sponsored rugby club has no "right" to communicate. Find out what your school district rules are (very respectfully) and follow school policies. If the rules really prohibit the use of these communication vehicles by out-side groups, respect that policy and explore alternatives.
  
• Remember, not all information is private -- try a direct mailer. If your schools distribute a student directory -- try and get the names and addresses of incoming students and try mailing them all a post card prior to the season. Often, your players already have access to these documents. Moreover, this information (depending upon local school board policy) is often publicly available. For example, FERPA (the federal law which protects the confidentiality of student records) does NOT generally protect the confidentiality of "directory data", i.e. information including student's name, address, school most recently attended, etc. Most states have "open records" laws or sunshine laws that allow members of the public to request records which are not otherwise protected by confidentiality laws. Thus, you may be able to ask your school district for a list of the names and addresses of students and create a mailer to incoming students in your district. (This is a tactic used by people marketing services to high-school students -- such as year book photographers).
  
• Always remember, it is not optimal to exert your "rights" when interacting with a school district. But I think it's helpful to know that there are creative ways to overcome the structural deficit created by being an unofficially recognized sports. The best way is to always be collaborative.
  
• Finally, don't forget the local paper. Often times, the major newspaper in the area is too busy covering "major" sporting events and officially recognized sports. But the local community paper is often looking for things to write about. Posting weekly box scores in the community based paper is a great way to remind people that rugby exists in your community. By cultivating relationships with reporters, you may even get a feature article and a couple of photos.
  

These are just some ideas and I know there are a lot of other good ones out there. Remember, be creative, be positive, and your club can become a recruiting success story.

More on DSHA...

Congratulations to Sarah Chmielewski, (in red-below) from DSHA, picuted here as she recieves the MVP award for her role at the USA Rugby National Championships!
Also in the news, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett dropped by DSHA on Thursday to declare May 21, 2009 "DIVINE SAVIOR HOLY ANGELS HIGH SCHOOL RUGBY CLUB NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP DAY" for all Milwaukee! Talk about raising the image of rugby. Below is s a copy of the official proclamation. (I am hoping that we can track down some pictures of the mayor presenting the award as well).


I want to note that, despite the fact that DSHA has a lot to be proud of, almost all my information comes from individuals who are not affiliated with the club. I wish Chin and his cohorts were a little less modest ... so I don't have to hear about them third hand. Besides, DSHA's continued success is only possible because they have teams to play. We should all take pride that a Wisconsin club does so very, very well!

Also... I strongly encourage any club to send me their pictures/news ... getting the word out about our individual clubs is always a positive -- even if we aren't all national champions. Just for fun, here is an image captured by a Brookfield Rugby player -- captured on her cell-phone cam -- of the Brookfield Coach celebrating the 5-0 victory of the Brookfield-B-side over the DSHA-B side from that rainy weekend a couple of weeks ago:



Why? Well... because you have to take pride in every accomplishment .. whether it "counts" for your record or not!