Your Scrumhalf Connection - Women's Rugby Blog

from USA Rugby:

The Women’s National Team (WNT) program will host its first ever fully combined camp, which brings the Under-20 Women, USA ‘A’ Developmental side and the Senior WNT to one location - the National Training Center (NTC) in Clermont, Fla., from Thursday, Feb. 26 - Sunday, March 1.

"The three 15s Women’s National Team programs have operated as separate entities for a long time and we felt it was important to bring the programs together physically, as well as in concept. While the coaching staffs have been communicating for a number of years, the athletes have not trained together and we felt it would be a real benefit to the players to bring the programs together in a single camp,” USA Rugby Women’s High Performance Manager Alex Williams said. “We hope that giving the athletes at all levels the chance to interact with each other will help to demystify the process and the pathway for the younger players and give the older players the opportunity to mentor the younger players.”

The Senior National Team and USA ‘A’ programs will train closely together under the guidance of coaches Kathy Flores and Martha Daines, to ensure that the key principles and skills are consistent throughout the programs. These two programs are working with a pool of 55 athletes and will be looking to select players for the upcoming Developmental and Test matches against Canada in Glendale in late June, as well as the Nations Cup in Canada in August.

"This is the first time we've actually been able to have both the Eagles and Eagle ‘A’ squad train at the same time and same facility. The idea is to keep those players who could be viable for selection for the next World Cup training with the same concepts and approach so any transition can be made easily,” said Kathy Flores, Women’s National Team Head Coach. “The Eagles will be concentrating on problem-solving around the field, with particular direction to how we are attacking our set pieces and slow ball recycle. We are looking for our outcome to be players that are better equipped to handle the fast-paced pressures of international rugby and able to make appropriate adjustments to ensure success on the field."

Additionally, under the direction of Coach Bryn Chivers, the Under-20 program will evaluate a pool of 52 athletes and will be looking to select players for summer competition at the Under-23 National All-Star Championships (NASC) and the U-20 Nations Cup in England.

A scrimmage between the Senior Women’s Eagles and the USA ‘A’ Developmental side will bring the weekend to a close and give the coaches a chance to evaluate different combinations of players.

"The upcoming camp is going to be a great opportunity for the Eagle ‘A’ squad. Having both teams at the same venue will allow these players to spend some time working with the Eagles players and staff and some time working as a separate team. As a result, they will not only be exposed to the intensity and pressure they might experience playing in international matches in the future, but also will have the opportunity to develop and improve some specific skills and techniques that will help them be successful in these matches," said Martha Daines, USA ‘A’ Head Coach.

USA Women’s Eagle and USA ‘A’ Developmental Athletes attending the camp include:

USA Under-20 Women’s Camp

Sadie Anderson Penn State
Candace Barley Maryville, TN
BrieAnna Barto Summit, CO
Tara Burke Fallbrook, CA
Hannah Bushey Essex, VT
Stephanie Chubb U of Virginia
Jennifer Cooperrider Stanford
Lauren Danielsen Summit, CO
Gina Deihl Hoke, TN
Asia Donaldson Santa Monica Women
Brandi Dunkinsell U of Oregon
Jozy Gessner Summit, CO
Ashley Graves Lady Bird Johnson HS, TX
Katherine Gray Texas Tech
Kelsey Harter Chico
Katie Hathaway Norwich
Lisa Henneman Seattle Women
Katy Hodson Colorado
Brittany Houston UW Milwaukee
Katie Humphreys Kent, WA
Ima Isang Oakridge, TN
Mallory Ives ColoradoState
Nicole James Texas A&M
Katie Johnson Hopkins, MN
Erika Lane Chico
Brook LeGate Maryville, TN
Erin LeGate Maryville, TN
Mackenzie Lewis Chaparral, CO
Shawne Manning NYRC U19
Blaine Martin Brown
Jade McLaughlin U of New Mexico
Sophia Nolan Armstrong, MN
Kelsey Ploof Noblesville, IN
Kayla Orvik Army
Maggie Reidy UW Milwaukee
Brittany Rose Westchester East, PA
Adrianne Rubiaco Mother Lode, CA
Victoria Saiz U of New Mexico
Seymira Salamy Penn State
Catherine Scanlon Summit, CO
Alicia Seda Norwich
Jessica Sexauer Army
Rachel Sommer West Linn, OR
Colleen Tjosvold TwinCity Amazons
Lorena TotuCenter Essex, VT
Ashley Urbia-Kirchmaier U of Northern Michigan
Michelle Un Brown
Lane Wagner Traverse City, MI
Erica Wheeler U of Illinois
Brooke Williams Minnesota Valkeries
Brittany Woodard Virginia State

Awesome photo!

Record TV Coverage for Rugby World Cup Sevens 2009

The International Rugby Board has announced that Rugby World Cup Sevens 2009 will surpass all previous Sevens tournament TV broadcast records.

The broadcast-friendly showpiece event in Dubai, which will break new ground with the inclusion for the first time of a 16-team women’s tournament running alongside the 24-team men’s competition, will be screened in 140 countries through 25 international broadcasters.

With the competition promising to be intense, highlighted by the most competitive start to an IRB Sevens World Series in a decade, Rugby fans around the world will be treated to over 380 hours of live, delayed and highlights coverage.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW RWC SEVENS BROADCASTERS

“Rugby Sevens continues to be a hit with television broadcasters around the world. Its unique blend of explosive action, world-class players and highly-competitive format packaged in matches of fourteen minutes, has proven successful in reaching out to new young audiences, sponsors and broadcasters. Rugby World Cup Sevens 2009 looks set to raise the bar once more,” said Rugby World Cup Limited Chairman Bernard Lapasset.

“These record broadcast figures mean that more people than ever before will have the opportunity to experience Rugby Sevens at its thrilling and spectacular best, furthering the promotion of Sevens to the world sporting community as the IRB reaches out for the inclusion of Rugby Sevens in the Olympic Games.”

The previous television broadcast record was set at the 2005 tournament in Hong Kong where a truly memorable tournament was broadcast to 300 million homes worldwide, in 125 countries through 20 international broadcasters.

The Rugby Sevens success story is underpinned by the IRB Sevens World Series, the popular grand prix style championship comprising eight international events, which this year is celebrating its tenth anniversary.

The the 2007/08 Series was the most successful to date, televised in 135 countries by 33 international broadcasters, reaching 223 million homes in 13 different languages.

Tickets are available through the official tournament website, www.rwcsevens.com, while a range of international travel packages are available to residents in Argentina, Australia, France, New Zealand, Portugal, South Africa, United Kingdom and the USA through the official travel partner Gullivers Travel via www.gulliverstravel.co.uk.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION ON TICKETING, CORPORATE HOSPITALITY AND TRAVEL PACKAGES

The 7s Rugby World Cup is getting closer and closer each day, so here are some more details on the event, the USA WNT roster and more!

McCoy Names Squad for Inaugural Women's RWC Sevens

Following a series of exhibition matches versus the New Zealand Maori over the weekend, USA Rugby Women?s Sevens National Team Head Coach has named the team she will take to the inaugural Women?s Rugby World Cup Sevens in Dubai, March 6-7.

Coming off an emotional overtime loss to England in the International Women?s Sevens Final in San Diego on Feb. 14, the team returned to its residency program in Little Rock to continue its RWC Sevens preparations, training two-a-days for three consecutive days building into its exhibition showing versus the NZ Maori Women on Saturday.

The USA Women went 0-2-1 in their three matches against the NZ Maori, which were held as a thank you to the city of Little Rock and the local rugby community for hosting the team during their RWC training.

Despite defeating their New Zealand counterparts 12-0 in San Diego, the U.S. short in Little Rock, tying 14-14 in the first game, and falling 14-7 and 21-0 in the remaining matches. Two state representatives, the Mayor of Little Rock and even a New Zealand Ambassador, attended the games, giving the teams much to be proud of in spite of the scorelines.

All in all, the day was quite successful,? McCoy said. ?The NZ Ambassador and his wife celebrated the end of residency with us, and after many gift presentations, the Maori players sang a traditional song for the crowd.?

I would like to thank the people of Little Rock, the Greater Little Rock, Inc., Rugby community, Steve Worley and Brian Cox, our physios, and Dr Jan Dean, our Sports Psychologist, for their contributions to the success of the first ever Women's Rugby Residency Prep for a World Cup! In addition, I would also like to thank the Canyon Pharmaceutical Company for their generous contribution to our program,? she added.

Following this final evaluation, McCoy has named the 12 players going to Dubai for the 2009 Women's Rugby World Cup Sevens.

The USA Team includes:
Amy Daniels, Boston, Mass. (Beantown)
Ellie Karvoski, Little Rock, Ark., (Little Rock)
Pam Kosanke, Chicago, Ill (Chicago Northshore)
Lauren Hoeck, Washington, DC (NOVA)
Teena Mastrangelo, Chicago, Ill. (Chicago Northshore)
Alison Price, New York, NY (New York)
Ines Rodriguez, Philadelphia, Pa. (Keystone)
Christy Ringgenberg, Minneapolis, Minn. (Minnesota Valkyries)
Jen Sinkler, Philadelphia, Pa. (Keystone)
Jen Starkey, Washington, DC (NOVA)
Jess Watkins, Palo Alto, CA (Stanford)
Kelly White, Belmont, Calif. (Belmont Shore)

Non Traveling Reserves:
Ida Bernstein, Balitimore, MD (Keystone)
Phaidra Knight, New York, NY (New York)

Noticeably absent from the squad are Lindsey Stephenson (at-large), who could not make a full recovery from injury in time for the RWC Sevens and Kirsten Ahrendt (Keystone), who sustained injury in San Diego. Jen Sinkler, Lauren Hoeck and Kelly White, who all played on the USA II side in San Diego have been given a nod on the RWC Sevens side, while Phaidra Knight has moved to the non-traveling reserves along with Ida Bernstein.

On Sunday, the players were in northern Arkansas participating in a ?high ropes? course before flying home for the week. The team will depart for Dubai on Sunday, March 1.

For a quick video of one of the matches in Arkansas against the Maori women, go here.

This was also posted on the Scrumhalf Connection Facebook profile.

This video really brightened my morning, make sure you watch all the way through to the ENCORE! Hilarious, thanks for putting it together Drew!

GOOD LUCK AT THE WORLD CUP LADIES!!!

This second video is from Drew as well and it is a quick snippet of what Drew calls "The Journey".



View the first video here and the second video here if you are using a RSS reader...

Other Rugby Video Mondays:
2/16/2009: 2009 Six Nations Video (Women)
2/9/2009: Texas A&M vs Chico State Highlights
1/19/2009: Why Rugby, You'll Live Longer
1/12/2009: UCLA Prom Dress Rugby
1/5/2009: USA WNT 7's Video in Dubai

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I have been doing this search on Google lately where I enter a phrase into the box and then hit the "I'm Feeling Lucky" button and Google sends me on a journey to a cool site. I have been posting links to it on Facebook and everyone seems to be enjoying it, so I thought I would experiment with putting it here as well.