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.