Monday, March 31, 2014

Opening Day and Opening Weekend

So it's opening day for the Milwaukee Brewers baseball team and the WGR staff have taken the day off to enjoy some root beer, brats, and baseball.  It seems spring has cooperated and we have the warmest day of 2014 so far.

Looking ahead, it's an exciting week for WGR as it's opening weekend.  Two different tournaments kick things off Saturday, with the WGR 15's at Naga-Waukee Park in Delafield and the Fox Valley 10's to our north.

At the WGR Pre-Season 15's, seven teams will be playing and they include the likes of DSHA, CMHS, Kettle Moraine, Oak Creek, Brookfield, along with out of state competitors Armstrong, MN (State Champs 2013,2012) and Plainfield, Ill (State Champs)

League sources have leaked some of the details with the first match kicking off at 11am with CMHS versus Plainfield.   At noon, DSHA opens against Armstrong.

Up north, Fond Du Lac, Appleton, and Muskego square of in a series of 10's matches.  This appears to be a good way to help our newer programs gain some experience regardless of their participation numbers.

The full schedule will be released tomorrow ...

Saturday, March 29, 2014

"Just happy faces and tears everywhere"

It's amazing how a challenge can bond people and lead to good experiences. We often think of challenges as a negative, but some quotes in two recent Rugby Mag articles reminded us of how impactful on young people the National Girls high school championship tournament continues to be. It motivates and inspires programs around the country, whether they make it or not, to strive to be better teammates, coaches, and ruggers.

West End, Va. Officially on the Radar (a few great excerpts and the links below to the full story)

"The average West End player is sophomore age, but they already have some experience with tough games and state finals. They don’t, however, know what it’s like to play in a National Invitational Tournament (NIT), which up until a few weeks ago wasn’t a concern. But after the Sharks tournament, NIT host David Colli of Berkshire United (Mass.) invited the Virginia side to the national championship in mid-May."

"West End will be the first Virginia girls side ever to compete at nationals. “After the trophy ceremony, and the all-tourney team and MVPs were announced, I read the invitation e-mail to the girls,” Estes said. “Just happy faces and tears everywhere. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house – parents, me, Phil – everyone. It was an explosion of happiness. Our focus has changed a little. Every year you want to get to playoffs and win states, but now we have a new objective and we’re working hard as a team so we can have a good showing at nationals.” West End will be best suited for division two, but the great thing about the girls NIT is that they’ll have access to division one competition and can see what the top teams in the country are doing. No team is the same after watching a Fallbrook or Divine Savior Holy Angels side compete, and that motivation will hopefully propel West End to even loftier heights."

While Rugby Mag asserts West End fits in D2, that isn't a statement from the seeding committee and noone really knows who will end up in D1, D2,or D3 other than Fallbrook and DSHA being in D1.

Check out the full story here:  http://rugbymag.com/girls/10831-west-end-is-officially-on-the-radar.html

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Scores and more

WGR's kickoff preseason tournament is a week and a half away.  Scheduled for April 5th, organizers are holding out hope that the predicted warmer weather doesn't lead to too much rain.

Held at NagaWaukee Park in Delafield, the field of teams includes several strong out of state programs playing two matches apiece.

Wisconsin teams
DSHA, Catholic Memorial, Kettle Moraine, Oak Creek, Brookfield

Visiting teams
Armstrong, Mn (state champs), Plainfield, ill (state champs), and Rockford, ill.

In other girls rugby news, tournaments have been the main headlines recently as coaches look to gaining experience and a good time early in the season.  Some noteable scores below.

Nashbash
Maryville, Tn 48 Lakewood, Oh 5
Maryville 68 Carmel, Ind. 0
Lakewood 29 Ravenwood, Tn 0
Lakewood 15 Carmel 0

DC Ruggerfest
St Joes, Oh 17 North Bay 7 (finals)
St Joes 27 Stoney Creek 10
St Joes 43 Roosevelt 0
St Joes 46 North Bay b 0

Fullerton Cal. Youth Tournament (15min.halves sat.)
Finals
1st. Fallbrook 19 Pleasanton, Norcal 0
3rd Fullerton 24. Kent 0

Semis
Kent 0 Pleasanton 8
Fallbrook 34. Fullerton 0

Pool Play
Kent 8. Fullerton 5
Fallbrook 26 Pleasanton 0

Thursday, March 6, 2014

High School Nashbash

Good luck to the high school girls teams traveling this weekend to the 2014 Nashville Rugby Tournament, more commonly refered to as "NashBash"

High School Girls Division
Carmel High School (Ind)
Kennesaw Mountain Raiders
Lakewood High School (Oh)
Maryville RFC (Tn)
Ravenwood (Tn)
Storm Yellow (Tn)
Storm Black (Bside)

The famous ruggers article

In a now famous article first published in the New York Times back on Oct 13th, 2003, the reputable newspaper researched the now-famous public figures who played rugby, mostly in their college days. 

Many think of rugby as a foreign sport, since few remember that rugby was actually the dominant sport in American college athletics until the new American football emerged from the original rugger.  After about a decade of uncertainty over which game would predominate the college sporting landscape, teams would often meet on game day and negotiate among captains which rules and their many variations they would follow that day.  Often, the home team's rules won out.

A few highlights from the New York times article by Peter Fitzsimons are republished below.  Some of the names and stories are shrouded in myth, some may even be fact.  The picture below is allegedly Pres. George Bush back in his playing days.



Vantage Point : From scrum to fields of power: a dream team of ex-rugby players
                   
"In the autumn of 1968, two enthusiastic young Americans, in universities on opposite sides of the Atlantic, were playing a heavy contact football game with no helmets or pads — a game that would stand them in good stead in their later political careers.

One played in the second row for Oxford. The other was the fullback for the Yale rugby union side that did so well by beating Harvard that year. Step forward and take a muddy bow, Bill Clinton of Oxford and George W. Bush of Yale.

They are but two of rugby union's famous alumni who have gone on to make their fame in other fields. There are enough, in fact, that it is easy to form up a World Rugby XV of famous people who have played the game. "
Meat Loaf. Ten years ago I was standing in the wings of an Australian TV show with the captain of Australia's 1991 World Cup-winning team, just about to go onto the set. It was then that the next guest on the show, the rock singer, Meat Loaf, tugged at my sleeve. "Is that Nick Farr-Jones?" he asked, clearly impressed. He told me had played rugby in his younger days and remained a fan.

Bill Clinton Lock. On a Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford in 1968-70, the man who would become the U.S. president came across rugby and adored it from the first.

"Being an American, I didn't know any of the rules," he reminisced to the Sydney Morning Herald when on a visit to Australia in 1996. "But I was the biggest guy on the team, so the coach just said to me: 'Clinton, go out there and get in someone's way.' So that's what I did, just got in people's way." While I don't know what kind of a rugby player he'd make these days, he'd be a good man to go on a rugby tour with!

Jacques Chirac Lock. The French president is about the same height as Clinton and could be counted on to give the side some Gallic flair. Fifty-odd years ago, he played in the junior side for Brive. He also briefly played in his university days.

Pope John Paul II. There are claims His Holiness played rugby for Poland, though I doubt this. Such a feat would have shown up in one of the many biographies, and it hasn't. What I do know is that when a club I played for in Italy, Rovigo, was given an audience with the pope in 1981, he was greatly knowledgeable about the game.

Che Guevara Open-side breakaway. Che was actually a good breakaway in the early 1950's for the San Isidro Club, in one of Buenos Aires's most salubrious suburbs. Even while Che was fomenting revolution, he paid the rent by writing match reports, and with some mates he even launched a rugby magazine by the name of "Tackle." It ran for 11 issues before petering out.

Boris Karloff No. 8. Which rugby team wouldn't want to have Frankenstein charging hard at opposition? Karloff was one of the founding board members of the Southern California Rugby Union in 1936.

Prince William Fly half. Fly halves need to be classy by nature, and even though the heir to the heir to the British throne could only make the Eton third team, I think he's the one for us. My only fear is that he will be targeted, just as he was at Eton. An opposing coach once apparently told his team that once they tackled the prince, they would be able ever after to tell their grandchildren they once tackled the king of England. The whole team piled into him all game long.

George W. Bush Inside center. The president played fullback for Yale in 1968 and was a part of their dramatic win over Harvard that year.

Richard Harris Outside center. A former player for the famous Irish club Young Munster, Harris was obliged to retire from the game at 19 when he contracted tuberculosis. He went on to find fame as an actor. It was recalled upon his death this year that he said: "I'll tell you this: two Golden Globes, one Grammy, five Grammy nominations, two American Academy Award nominations, two British Academy Award nominations, one Cannes Film Festival award, four gold records, one platinum record and so on. I am also a multimillionaire. And you know what? I'd give it all up tomorrow, the whole lot, for one Irish rugby cap. Just one."

James Joyce Right wing. All rugby teams must have at least one whining winger. Joyce played at Belvedere, the Christian Brothers school he attended in Dublin. And anyone who has read "Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man," in which Joyce devotes the five opening pages to the horrified recollections of a 12-year-old boy playing out on the wing for his school rugby team, will know that he had the whining down pat.

Yoshiro Mori Left wing. The former Japanese prime minister was a very keen rugby player and retains his passion for it. At least one winger should always be thinking of a comeback attempt.

Sir Edmund Hillary Full back. Hillary played for Auckland Grammar School in the 1930's. Besides, it can't hurt to have as the last line of defense a man who took on Mount Everest and did not flinch.

 

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Girls National Championship Expands

The 2014 Girls High School National Championship Tournament has announced another round of invites.  Teams will be seeded into three different divisions and award medals to the Division 1,2,and 3 winners.  The event is hosted by Berkshire United in the Berkshires of Massachussets May 16th-18th, with opening ceremonies taking place Friday night.

The newly invited programs include:

Fullerton, Cal.(SoCal)     2013 D2 National Champions
Pleasanton (NorCal)        Recently Defeated Danville 15-10
Essex (Vt)                        2013 Vermont State Champions
West End (Va.)                2013 Virginia State Finalist

Congrats to all 20 of the invited programs!

Info on the event can be found at:
 http://www.rugbychampionships.org/

Monday, March 3, 2014

A Friend of WGR retires ...

Women’s rugby head coach retires (clich here for full story)
 
Roger Riley, head coach of the 2013 ACRA Division II National Collegiate Rugby Champs, Winona St., has announced his retirement.

A good friend of rugby at all levels, "Rog" was always lending a helping hand to the girls game, whether reffing games, hosting teams like Wayzata and KM at the halfway point a decade ago, advising future collegiate players, and coming down for the WGR State Finals the last few years.

A few highlights from the Winona school newspaper:

" 'When a student walks into women’s rugby head coach Roger Riley’s office, they’ll likely see him poring over rugby related media.'

"After hours of practice and total dedication, the Winona State University women’s rugby team, the Black Katts, are more than deserving of the title they have earned this season as national champions, and Riley has been there every step of the way to push the girls and guide the team to success. But the Black Katts’ season ended this year with tears of both joy and sadness as Riley retired as head coach."

“He has an open door policy, “Edelburg said. “He has helped us with anything in life and has made rugby feel like a family.”

"Josh Krzewinski will take over Riley’s position as head coach for the women’s rugby team.  Krzewinski had coached Winona State men’s rugby for 11 years, and has been the assistant women’s rugby coach for the past three years."

Best wishes to both Rog and Josh.

Rankings

Rugby Mag's rankings of high school girls rugby teams have come out for 2014.  As always, it's a nice article and a tough one to write too, as there are so many teams across the country.

Rankings are also tough.  Is it a predictor of where one thinks a team will finish, or purely a ranking of where a team is currently at in terms of resuls?  In terms of results, it's seems to be a fair beginning.  The second half of such rankings are even tougher because there seems to be less crossover matches to compare.

One of the stories of the spring season should be the great competition at the Midwest Girls Championships at the end of April.  Featuring FIVE teams in the pre-season top twenty, it might be the most competitive Midwest Championship tournament in the 16 year history of the event.  There are also a few programs on the outskirts of the top twenty .. will Penn HS from Indiana take the next step and crack the top twenty?  They've played an ambitious schedule, even playing Illinois state champ Plainfield in a fall friendly in addition to some summer sevens at events like the Milwaukee Lakefront Sevens.  Or how about one of the other Indiana programs?  Brownsburg seems to get big numbers.  Plus, Plainfield seems to be gaining momentum as the Illinois state champs, and will get a chance to play good competition at the WGR pre-season festival.

In the meantime, congrats to the two WGR teams in the top ten.  For the full article go to www.rugbymag.com

Girls' High School Top 25 - Feb. 26, 2014
1. Fallbrook (Calif.) 1-0 in SoCal, 40-0 forfeit win over Dead Rabbits; three-time national champion
2. Kent (Wash.) Idle. Washington State Champion's season starts March 2
3. Divine Savior Holy Angels (Wisc.) Won Wisconsin State Championship 22-7 over Catholic Memorial
4. Sacramento (Calif.) 1-0 in NorCal, defeated the Lancers 50-10
5. Catholic Memorial (Wisc.) Finished second in Wisconsin, lost 22-7 to DSHA
6. Summit (Colo.) Won Colorado State Championship 53-0 over Ft. Collins
7. West Carroll (Md.) Idle.
8. Fullerton (Calif.) 1-0 in SoCal, 53-19 win over Dead Rabbits
9. Armstrong (Minn.) Idle. Reigning Minnesota State Champion's season begins in April
10. Pleasanton (Calif.) 3-0 in NorCal, defeated Danville 15-10
11. Danville (Calif.) 0-1 in NorCal, lost 15-10 to Pleasanton
12. Lowland (Utah) Idle. Three-time reigning Utah State Champion
13. Snow Canyon (Utah) Idle. Three-time reigning Utah State finalist; finished 3rd in D2 at NITs
14. Downingtown (Pa.) Idle. Pennsylvania State Champion's season begins March 30.
15. St. Joseph's (Ohio) Idle. Reigning State Champions
16. Grant (Ore.) Idle. Reigning Oregon State Champion's season starts with a pre-season tournament on March 1; was runner-up in fall 7s season
17. Ravenwood (Tenn.) Idle. Reigning Tennessee State Champion's season starts Feb. 28
18. Maryville (Tenn.) Idle. Tennessee State finalist and 7s champion's season starts March 1.
19. Lakewood (Ohio) Idle.
20. Hempfield (Pa.) Idle. Second-best in state.
21. ICEF (Calif.) 2-0 is SoCal
22. Fairfax Police (Va.) Idle. Four Virginia State titles
23. Kingston (N.Y.) Idle. Reigning New York State champ
24. Sebastian River (Fla.) Idle. Big fish in a small lagoon
25. West End (Va.) Won first pre-season game

Wisconsin Pre-Season Top Ten
1.DSHA
2.CMHS
3.KMHS
4.Vernon
5.Oak Creek
6.DSHA jv
7.Brookfield
8.Appleton
9. Muskego
10. Fond Du Lac