Tag: rugby

USA Rugby Announces June International Team

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USA Rugby recently announced the National Men’s 15s team who will face off with Canada, Georgia and Italy later this month. As expected, 2011 Rugby World Cup flanker and team USA captain Todd Clever is returning to captain the side, while Paul Emerick returns from a stint with the Aviva Premiership team London Wasps to help anchor the backline.

Interestingly, the Eagles coaching staff have added three names from America’s top college teams: Army’s Will Holder, Seamus Kelly from 8-zillion-time Collegiate Champions Cal Berkeley, and BYU’s Shaun Davies.  Adding three college players to the national team is something that team USA hasn’t done in quite a while.

Rounding out the rookie ranks of the squad is 6-2, 317-pound prop Tolifili Liufau. The Hawaiian born Liufau played football for the University of Utah, Rio Grande Valley Dorados and Arizona Rattlers (Arena League) before switching to the greatest game, where he currently plays for l’Uson in France’s Fédérale 1 – France’s top amateur level.

See the complete team selections on USA Rugby’s site.

(And a side note to USA Rugby – there has to be an easier way to link to stories on your site.)

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Sit Down and Drink Up! It’s Tri Nations Time!

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If you’re a Southern Hemisphere rugby fan, then the time for smack talking is over.  It’s time for everyone to sit at the bar, shut the hell up, and start watching the Tri Nations tournament!

In order to explain the Tri-Nations to the Gonzo Report’s new readers, I’ll hand over duties to the estimable Alternative Rugby Commentary commentarian, Jed Thian. (Note: these video embeds are done out of respect for Mr. Thian and his mad skillz, and do not constitute an endorsement of my little experiment
by him. )

The yearly international tournament held between New Zealand, South Africa and Australia, is poised to kick off this weekend at Auckland, New Zealand’s Eden Park – with the Springboks facing down the All Blacks.

This year the I’d like to say the All Blacks are poised to take it all, as they start the 15-month march to the World Cup. However, if you look at the statistics since the 2003 World Cup, the series has nearly drawn even, with New Zealand leading it 8-7. But in 2009, the Springboks blanked the All Blacks, sweeping all three games. And they play three games again in this year’s Tri-Nations series.  Statistically the All Blacks should win one, if not two of the matches – since they host two of the three matches this year.  But if there has been one team that has been able to slow down the All Blacks power rugby attack in recent history, it’s been the Springboks, who look to repeat their success this year.

If New Zealand can get past the Springboks this year, they will have a strong chance to win the tournament.  In the same time period, since the ‘03 World Cup, the All Blacks have dominated the Australia Wallabies series, 14 wins to 3.

Where might you find the Gonzo Rugby Report this year?

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I’ve just been looking over the domestic rugby schedule for the next year, en route to a hopeful 2011 Rugby World Cup media appearance, and in addition to blogging about the international rugby scene I want to attend a few tournaments as writing warm ups.  Among them are:

2010 High Desert Rugby Classic – October 16-17, Albuquerque, N.M. (A southwest classic!)

2011 USA Sevens International Tournament – February 12-13, Las Vegas, Nev.

2011 Churchill Cup – Summer 2011, Denver, Colo.

And other matches to be determined.

And Some Round-Ball News: Uruguay’s Suarez Lucks the Hell Out!

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This in from ESPN, Uruguay soccer forward Luis Suarez, the one who punched the ball out of the goal in Uruguay’s quarterfinal match against Ghana (and also now known as one of the most despised men in Africa) has received a one game suspension for his actions. Meaning he’ll be out of the game when Uruguay loses to the Netherlands on Tuesday.

Dude, you lucked out! That was an action that kept Ghana from moving on in the World Cup, because that ball would have gone in the goal for sure.  And to get a one-game suspension, and no future FIFA game suspensions, is a very light sentence indeed.

But come on Suarez, if you want to use your hands, just make the jump and play rugby.  Uruguay Rugby could use someone of your cunning on the pitch.

Is This Team USA’s Year?

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To do what, one asks?

To go all the way and win the Rugby World Cup, the deluded fan responds.

Well then. In that case:

No.

I love USA Rugby, I’d love nothing more than to see the Eagles captain hoist the William Webb Ellis trophy high before the vanquished. But there is no way in hell that’s going to happen in my lifetime – and since I have plans to live to be 150, that’s going to be a long time.

So no RWC championships for the US, but take heart Eagles fans – this could be the year the U.S. racks up a couple of wins in pool play, and might even squeak by with a World Cup 2015 prequalification slot (with a whole lot of luck!) I don’t see them making it into the quarters or beyond.

The Eagles are in pool C, which I don’t know if you can qualify as the “Pool of Death” or not, but you have Australia, Ireland, Italy, Russia and the U.S. in this pool.  The U.S. beat Russia 39-22 in the recent Churchill Cup Tournament in the U.S., so we can probably look for a victory here. Australia is going to beat the U.S. like a brothel with back payments to the head pimp, and Ireland probably will as well, though by not as much.

The key match for the U.S. will be on Sept. 27, 2011 against Italy.  Italy is a growing rugby power in Europe – having competed for many years in the Six Nations tournament, facing off with Scotland, Wales, France, Ireland and England on a yearly basis.  However, they are also considered the lightweight team of the tournament, usually only racking up a win or two.  It would take some work, and some strong luck, but I think the U.S. might be able to pick off the Italians in 2011 and land a solid third place in pool play.

Third place won’t move the team on to the next round, but it will be a step up for a USA team that plays with a lot of pride, and has always set the bar at a realistic “We want to win a match in pool play” goal.

Why Rugby?

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Reaching back to a 2006 post on my other blog, I found this post touching on why I love rugby and I thought it was appropriate to repost it here and now. – B

—–

(A shout out to my friends who have asked this…)

The quick answer is “why not”? It’s fun!

The longer answer: It started many years (and about 60 pounds) ago when I was in college. After one summer (when I drove to Boston and back for no reason), I found myself with a lot of spare time and nothing much to do except work out.

Fast forward to the end of the summer. I returned to college and ran into a friend of mine in the gym one day. He was surprised at how much more I was in shape and he recommended I try out for the team. So, I walked out to the field the next day.

It was love at first hit.

Yes there were no pads in the game, no helmets. That was one of the greatest things about the game. The other was the team.

The team was excited to have another victim… er, player, on the field. They were happy to have me out there with them. We became very tight knit, we were happy to be on the field and just enjoyed each other’s camaraderie. We even hung out with our opponents after the game, we got along great because we all played what we considered to be the greatest game on Earth.

Unlike when I went out for football in high school, where they didn’t want to be around each other.

The sociality (is that a word?) of the team and the game kept me coming back. Plus I got to go to exciting places like Wales and Australia as a result of my time on the rugby field.

Will I ever stop?

Nope. You’ll have to peel me off the field.

We’ve Come a Long Way Since ‘96

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The New Zealand Herald reports that should the New Zealand All Blacks fulfill their destiny and win the 2011 Rugby World Cup (held in New Zealand, even) the NZ Rugby Union will pay NZ$ 100,000 to each player.

Quote:

The Collective Agreement between the New Zealand Rugby Union and the Players’ Association, which was formally ratified yesterday, sets in stone a payment of $100,000 to each member of the All Blacks squad should they win next year’s showpiece event.

Should they make the final at Eden Park and lose, they will receive $35,000 each. Just to prove there’s no such thing as a bronze medal in rugby, anything less than second equals $0.

As if the All Blacks needed any more incentive to want to win the World Cup.  Now if there’s a team that knows how to not squander the complete home-field advantage they will have in 2011, it’s the All Blacks.

But more importantly, it’s hard to believe that prior to 1996 rugby was still an amateur sport.  Moving into the professional era was one of the best things that rugby could do, it kept the best rugby players in the sport and they could finally earn incentives like this without having to worry about losing their playing eligibility.

South Africa: FIFA vs. Rugby World Cup

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Graham Jenkins over at ESPN’s Scrum has a great post up looking at the difference in passion levels between the current 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 1995 Rugby World Cup which was also held in South Africa.

One of the money quotes:

Unlike the Springboks, Bafana Bafana have never been a major force in their sport – a fact that was underlined by their failure to progress from the group stages making them the first host nation to exit at the first hurdle. Despite the home side’s shortcomings, the tournament has already been heralded as a success and will no doubt still go on to leave a significant mark in history but with the vuvuzelas silenced to a certain degree and African interest hanging by a thread there is little chance that it will resonate like its rugby equivalent.

The ‘95 Rugby World Cup is a special one to me, it was the first time I had watched rugby on TV, after being involved in it for a few years at that point.  Somehow I stumbled across the listing a day or two before the matches began and spent many late nights and early mornings in front of the TV watching matches from Australia and South Africa through the quarterfinals, many of which might still be on tape at my mom’s house. (I don’t remember the semis or finals being broadcast, I think the station’s coverage ended at the quarters).

The energy behind the 95 RWC was definitely visible, even from thousands of miles away.  Part of it came from the returned standing of the South African Springboks, which had suffered during apartheid when many nation’s sports organizations boycotted them, and part of it came from the success of the Springboks, who eventually won the World Cup – as opposed to this year, when the South African soccer team was eliminated in the first round (a first for a host country I believe).

There are some parallels between South Africa hosting the Soccer World Cup and the ever present “proposed” United States hosting of the Rugby World Cup. Both nations are minor-league players in these proposed sports, and a lesson to come away from the World Cup this year would be that if the host country loses in the first round, support for the event in the host country will drop, possibly not dramatically.  But with rugby in the U.S., there isn’t much of a margin for error in support.  I’ll address this in a future post.

For now, let’s enjoy the ending of the round-ball’s Cup and start the buildup for 2011 in New Zealand!

Getting more Rugby PR, part 1 of 2

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The column below is something I had written about ten years ago for e-Sports Media when they were still around.  The Web site was kind enough to give me a little bit of a space on their server to write my random rugby thoughts. (by “kind enough” I mean they took anything written for them by anyone with a pulse – breathing was optional back then).

This evening I was walking the dog listening to the most recent edition of American Rugby News’ Rugbytalk podcast. Brian Lowe and the broadcast team were talking about NBC’s recent announcement that they will broadcast some of the games from the upcoming 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand, and the low attendance figures at some of the recent Churchill Cup games. A mention was made of how the American Rugby community needs to work with, or work on, the media to start raising rugby’s profile in the U.S.

For far too long, too many rugby players and teams across this country have treated the sport like it was something that was to be kept secret.  Hidden away in enclaves such as the San Francisco Bay area and the preppy areas of the Northeast, the sport was to be kept away from the unbelievers and those who can’t get its nuances.

And in the meantime, those same people were busy playing rugby and then partaking of some of the sport’s more unseemly activities after the game – drinking at the pitch, “Shooting the Boot,” or everyone’s favorite, the “Zulu” (where you strip down and dance around naked after scoring your first try, or touchdown). I don’t need to say that these are not the most “family friendly” activities and are sure to turn off some potential players and supporters.

That said, let me end this post with a blast from the past, and a brief look at how some rugby teams should be trying to get better PR.

Benson

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Recently, I took a phone call while working in the sports department of the local daily paper, from the coach for the local university team. He gave me information about where the team would play in the first round of the collegiate championship tournament, who they would play, general information that a coach would give the media to publish.

He then began to relate how he was very disappointed with the newspaper, for their lack of coverage of the team last fall.

“We were promised a story and never got it,” he told me.

He went on like this for a few minutes. I was polite, informing him that I would pass on the message to the sports editor and tried to convey to him that we would do better in the spring. He then asked for the editor’s name and told me he’d call him the next morning, along with faxing me a letter that USA Rugby had sent him.

After I got off the phone, I began thinking and got angry. What the hell just happened? This is the only coach that I hear from that is, confrontational.

None of the other coaches or players have acted like that. For the most part, they’re professional and understand that there’s only so much space in a sports section, and they do not fall in the most reported sport categories. While this coach wants as much press as the university women’s basketball team (which at this paper get covered every day of the week during the regular season), that will not happen.

Then I started wondering, “How can local rugby teams get more (or any) press?”

This hails from the journalism side of the desk, what I as a journalist would like to see rugby teams do. We’ll just go over a few ideas here, with more coming in the second part of this column (including how to write a press release)

The first thing to hit me was, they need to put wins on the field. Newspapers will follow teams with W’s on the board. This is a double-edged sword, though. As soon as the team starts to lose, the press will go elsewhere.

Work for charities, or a members notoriety (for example, killing someone – which did happen with the former player for a team I was covering), are probably the majority of instances that a team will receive coverage.

Rugby is not well-known or understood. The press won’t learn unless you take the time to teach them. Invite the press to an afternoon on the rugby field. Show them a controlled scrimmage, where they can see a ruck, scrum, maul, lineout, etc. Do it in such a way that they will learn the basics of the game. Oh yeah, collect some money to feed them; journalists have a tendency to gravitate to free food and drink. Every little bit helps.

You also need to nominate, strong-arm or bribe a player into becoming the Media Relations guy for the team. This is the guy whose responsibility is to keep the editors and reporters up to date, once or twice a week. Don’t email them everyday if there’s nothing new. Let them know who you are playing next, why it is important (a rivalry, cross-town grudge match?), the leading players on each team, when and where the game is. Remember to answer the W questions: Who, what, when, where, why (and how, although it’s not a W question). The more information you provide, the easier it’ll be for the person writing the story.

In next week’s column, we’ll put together a small media kit, write a press release and look at the dangers of requesting too much coverage (remember all coverage isn’t just good, we get to start questioning your decisions and covering your team’s bad days).

Getting more Rugby PR, part 2 of 2

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Keep in mind, these two posts are dated from 2001, so I’ll be updating them soon with some information about how clubs should be using social media and social networking to their advantage.

Synopsis: Building a relationship with the local media outlets can be HARD work, but it will pay off in the long run. Use short, snappy headlines, brief press releases that pack a punch and a solidly built press kit, and you’ve taken care of half the battle. (And hopefully cut down on your headaches)

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In the last column, we addressed several methods for rugby teams to attract media. Now, we’ll study means teams can utilize to attract that attention. Writing press releases to pull in media coverage and the essentials of a press kit for your team.

First, we’ll assemble a press kit. This is the prime tool for a team to create a presence with the local media, because it enables you to easily send a copy to the local newspapers, radio and TV stations. If a reporter features your team, then they can get ideas from the press kit, or if a they need to know about a player during a game, all they need to do is jot his name or number down and look it up when he gets to the newsroom. Having information at the reporters fingertips in a clear concise format makes the reporters job easier, and in that you stand a much better chance of coverage.

A press kit takes some time and effort, and a small amount of money to put together, but it’s well worth all three. First, find a team member with a computer and some spare hard drive space to store all of the press information (usually the guy you strong arm and put in charge of the media relations, or the team president are good choices).

Then devise a letterhead, something the team will use on all their official mail. This is impressive on letters to other teams, or regional unions. Most office supply stores carry software for small businesses that allow you to create the letterhead for letters, envelopes and business cards. All starting pages for each section of the press kit should start with these. Letterheads should be simple, no more then two colors, with the team logo at the top.

Use the business card program part of the software to make business cards for each of the following positions: team president, vice president, team captain(s), coaches and the media relations person.

Include a team history. If you’re an established team, it lets the news organization know you have roots in the community; if you’re newer, it lets them know you’re (fresh, new and) interested in staying in the community. In addition you can use your press kit to help recruit new players, as well as using some of the things you recruit with in your press kit.

A separate section giving a brief overview of rugby, near the front of the press kit, is a good way to reinforce what you’ve shown the media in your controlled scrimmages and games. Add some recent photos, both action and stills, for an overall professional appearance. Add short biographies of each player. If you can’t get bios from everyone, make certain there are biographies from the team president, vice president, team captain(s), coaches, any star players (ones taking part in ITT or All-Star teams) and the media relations person. Feature articles can emerge from anywhere, and the hobbies and personal interests of your players are certainly a starting point. It would be wise to copy everything onto a disk or CD-ROM and include it as a back-up for the editor.

Mention each of the other teams in the local union as part of the press kit, possibly including a separate section devoted to the area union. If there are only a few teams in town, then all of the teams can work together to make one kit. Also include contact information for the local and regional union officers.

As an organizational tool for your kit, purchase a ½” binder with a clear cover (for a cover sheet) for each media outlet. Bingo, a media kit.

It is essential your media representative be familiar with writing a press release. This will be a quick overview, as your release doesn’t need to be fancy or overblown. Keep it simple. Here are some tips.

1. Collect all the information about your event. A journalist generally writes a story in an hour or two, but the majority of their time is spent collecting facts. When the facts are already gathered for them, there’s less time the writer needs to spend researching. Use the “W” questions (who, what, when, where, why and that pesky non-“W” word, how). These are the body of the press release.

2. Is your press release newsworthy? Make certain your press release has impact. What is the important angle? If your local university team is going to lay another 65-0 pasting on a state school, then you probably won’t get much press. But if the team will play a touring team, has a big match against a cross-town rival, or is playing for the local union championship, that’s the time to send a press release. Is your team sponsoring a game for a local charity? If staging an event with a team from another state, get the governors for both states involved, perhaps laying down a little bet. Money might not be the best wager. For example, the governor from New Mexico could bet 5-pounds of green chile vs. 5-pounds of brisket from the governor of Texas when the Albuquerque team plays the El Paso team in a union game.

3. Writing the press release: Start with a snappy headline, something to attract attention. Keep it short, under 12 words, and avoid promotional words. The lead article needs to be strong, answering all those W questions at the start. Many newspapers write articles in an “inverted pyramid” format, giving the vital information at the beginning, then using the other paragraphs to support the information in the introduction. Write in the third-person, don’t use the words “we”, “I”, “us”, instead use “he”, “she” and “they”. Quotes are a great addition. Reporters use quotes from the main players and the coaches. This is when to include personal opinions. Do it in quotes, and never include such statements in the introduction. If you give any stats or facts, reference them. (For example, “John Doe from the Richville Roe RFC has been cited for unsportsmanlike conduct more times then any other player” (according to the Generic Local Union Disciplinary Committee) said Jonesville Jacks RFC coach…) Again though, try to keep it clean, don’t make accusations.

4. Summary: This is for background information on the team, players and contact person for more information. Include as much information as possible, including phone numbers, email addresses and the team’s web site URL.

5. Keep it short! Your release should be no longer than 500 words (unlike this week’s column) and maximum of two pages. The shorter the release, the greater the punch, as long as it’s long on facts and important info.

6. Call the editor before you send it to let them know it’s on its way, and follow up to make certain it was received clearly.

7. BEFORE you send it out, update the team’s Web site with a copy.

This is not the end-all of press release writing rules, merely some rules to follow for a solid release. For more ideas on press releases, or public relations, a good Web site to check out is publicrelations.about.com

The other end of the media sword. When your team gets recognition, they’re open to criticism. The same reporter that covers the team, may write a column asking why Joe Schmoe is starting at wing, when he can’t catch a ball but has blazing speed, while John Doe is slower, gets caught from behind, but can catch. Someone who has a very limited knowledge of the game may question coaching and player desire. If a player commits a crime, that might attract media attention. You need to be ready to answer those questions.

A word of caution: it’s fine to invite members of the press to a post-game party, especially if they’re covering you (they’d probably love it!). But remember that even though you may be friends, they’re still writers, and you never know what they’ll print.

Hopefully this has been helpful, given you ideas for “spreading the gospel of rugby,” as a coach in Wales once told me