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Written by Pat Clifton
Friday, 15 July 2011 15:34 |
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Belmont Beatable in Santa Monica? |
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Sevens -
Club Sevens
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 The first of two Southern California 7s qualification tournaments kicks off Saturday in Santa Monica. The second is a week after, hosted by Belmont Shore. The winner of each tournament advances to National 7s Club Championships August 6-7 in San Francisco.
New eligibility regulations limit clubs to qualifying just one team to Nationals, however, so Belmont will not have the chance to repeat their 2010 feat of taking two.
Belmont Shore will be the favorite in their home tournament, but a rash of unavailability has them weakened for Santa Monica. Matt Hawkins, Dallen Stanford and Alex Ross are working the Elite Rugby Camp in Stanford, Tai Enosa is out with a sore back, Shalom Suniula is nursing a slight injury, Justin Boyd hasn’t arrived in Long Beach yet and Duncan Kelm is playing with the All Americans in Santa Barbara.
In all, that’s six Eagles and an All American who won’t be suiting up for Belmont Shore Saturday, but could be a week later.
“This weekend’s really tough. Nothing’s guaranteed, with all those guys missing,” said Belmont Shore coach James Walker. “I’m sure OMBAC and Santa Monica are licking their chops, but that’s fine. It gives my second guys a chance to shine.”
Belmont’s batch of “second guys” still has more firepower left in the cupboard than some Nationals-aspiring teams had to begin with. Longtime Belmont stalwarts Peter Dahl and Peter Sio will be booting up, as will Toshi Palamo and Taylor Howden.
Howden led Glendale to a Nationals berth in 2009, and after spending a year with the Denver Barbarians, has taken his talents to Long Beach. If a weakened Belmont is to qualify in Santa Monica, Howden will have to factor in greatly.
OMBAC has played Belmont on multiple occasions already this summer, coming up short each time. If there’s a prime opportunity to knock off their rival, it’s Saturday.
The San Diego club, which boasts more 7s National titles than any other club, hasn’t made the National quarterfinals since 2007. But instead of importing talent from around the country for the summer, they’ve decided to rebuild from within.
“We don’t want to have kids who are making it to every practice or coming out to every function get run off by some all stars coming in, and I believe really strongly in the chemistry of these guys sweating, bleeding and getting the snot run out of them and being there every practice and going through that struggle together,” said OMBAC coach Craig Hartley.
“I think it brings them together. That’s what OMBAC’s about, and also creating Eagles. Instead of just having Eagles, we like to make new ones. It’s unfortunate, we’ve lost a few (like Ross to Belmont) because of that. They become Eagles and they decide to move onto greener pastures, and that’s their opportunity. We wish them the best. We’re just going to try and make some more and create some more behind them.”
Also vying for a berth to Nationals Saturday are Belmont and OMBAC’s second sides, as well as Santa Monica and South Bay or a second Santa Monica side.
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Written by Jackie Finlan
Thursday, 14 July 2011 22:19 |
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U20 Nations Cup Update |
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National Teams -
Age-Grade Women
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Santa Barbara, CA - The USA U20 Women began their Nations Cup campaign this afternoon against South Africa, a team that played its third international test ever. For such a young, inexperienced squad, the Springboks put up a good fight, but the dominating American forwards enabled a 27-3 victory.
South Africa got up first with a penalty (3-0) but it would be the only lead the visitors would enjoy. Penalties and unenforced errors marred play, and South Africa was served with several yellow cards that resulted in one red card. It opened up some opportunity for the USA attack, and fullback Amelia Bizer put her team on the board with a penalty of her own, 3-3.
Another RSA penalty set up a USA scrum that saw the forwards pummel the line for the game's first try (8-3). The USA forwards overwhelmed their smaller opposition, in both set pieces and in tight, and it was a battle that South African coach Kaya Malotana anticipated. The Springboks did a good job of keeping the score closer than it should have been, holding up several forward attempts to dot the ball down.
But the USA forwards would have the last word of the half, taking a driving maul off a lineout for another try, 13-3 into the break.
The backs got into the scoring action in the second half by capitalizing on a stolen scrum. The final points came from another rumbling series from the forwards and Bizer slotted both extras, 27-3.
In other news, England handled Canada to a 39-0 win and prepare to play the USA on July 17. Stay tuned for a detailed match report.
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Written by Pat Clifton
Friday, 15 July 2011 15:28 |
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South 7s Championship Saturday |
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Sevens -
Club Sevens
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 Six teams converge on Life University Saturday to compete for the South’s two bids to the Club 7s National Championships August 6-7 in San Francisco.
The South does not do a qualifier circuit of any kind, rather just a one-off tournament to decide its representatives, but some of the six teams in the qualifier have already seen each other plenty this summer.
The three Atlanta-area teams, Life, Old White and the Renegades, competed in the Atlanta Renegades tournament and Hotlanta 7s, put on by Old White.
Life won the ‘Gades event, the hosts finished second and Old White third. At the more recent Hotlanta 7s, Old White won, the 'Gdes finished second and Life finished third.
Atlanta Old White are the defending South champs. They got off to a less than stellar start in the Renegades event, but did so after losing four starters to injury. Evidenced by winning Hotlanta 7s, Old White appears to be back on track.
“In the last month, eventually our squad has slowly grown back to the full strength it should have been at the beginning of the season,” said Old White coach Brynn Ireland.
“Right now we have, for the first time, what I would consider a full-strength squad that can compete at both the South level as well as a national level.”
Some of the starters lost in that first tournament, like Mike Aaron and Eric Woods, are back, and they’re accompanied by impact addition Chris Mahony, formerly of Auckland.
Life, 2010 runners up, are without the services of several usuals. Pat Danahy and Paul Emerick are sitting out because of the impending World Cup, and All Americans Cam Dolan, Garrett Lambert and Kyle Grossheider are still on duty in Santa Barbara, with one more match against New Zealand Universities upcoming.
The Running Eagles will have former Arkansas State standout Clint Whittler, coach Tui Osborne and undergrad star Colton Cariaga. Saturday, says Life director of rugby Dan Payne, will be the current squad’s first tournament together this summer.
Life is joined in Pool B by the Renegades and Charlotte, who are playing their first summer series in the South since leaving the Mid-Atlantic. Charlotte reached Nationals in 2010, but their key playmaker, former Samoan 7s international Morgan Salesa, is not with the team this summer.
Accompanying Old White in Pool A are Daytona and DII National Champs New Orleans, who are led by captain Jeff Reuther and typically bolstered by the addition of local college talent.
Pools
A B C
Old White Life Beach
Daytona New Orleans Charlotte 2
At. Renegades Charlotte Old White 2
Life 2
10 am OW vs Daytona
10:20 Life vs New Orleans
10:40 Beach vs Charlotte 2
11:00 Old White 2 vs Life 2
11:30 OW vs Renegades
11:50 Life vs Charlotte
12:10 Beach vs Old White 2
12:30 Charlotte 2 vs Life 2
1:00 Daytona vs Renegades
1:20 New Orleans vs Charlotte
1:40 Beach vs Life 2
2:00 Charlotte 2 vs Old White 2
Semi Finals
2:30 Pool A # 1 vs Pool B # 2
2:50 Pool B # 1 vs Pool A # 2
3:10 Pool A # 3 vs Pool B # 3
3:30 Championship HS match or Pool C match
4:00 Semi loser pool A vs Semi Loser Pool B
4:30 Championship Match – 10 minute Halves..
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Written by Jackie Finlan
Thursday, 14 July 2011 16:20 |
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Women's Club 7s Standings Update |
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Sevens -
Club Sevens
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The Mid-Atlantic and Northeast have one more qualifying weekend before they name which women’s clubs advance to their respective territorial championships on July 23. MARFU teams will attempt to earn points at Monk Vaughn 7s in Richmond, Va., while NRU teams duke it out at Cape Cod 7s.
Last weekend’s Cheesesteak 7s saw the DC Furies overtake NOVA for first place in the MARFU standings. Under the guidance of former USA Women’s 7s head coach Sue Parker, the Furies dominated the competition en route to the tournament title. After beating pool play opponents Keystone, Norfolk and Philadelphia by a combined 88-5, D.C. continued its run with a massive 43-0 shutout against Norfolk in the semis, then 31-5 championship victory over Severn River.
“Throughout the day, the team exhibited great teamwork on both sides of the ball,” DC captain Jess Shipley said. “We had different combinations and newer players out there, so I was really impressed to see that the level of intensity and teamwork was some of the best we've seen this summer. It was great to see a lot of the things we've been working so hard on in practice start to come together, so we're excited about the coming weeks.”
MARFU STANDINGS
1. DC Furies - 18 pts.
2. Nova 1 - 16 pts.
3. Severn Exiles - 6.5 pts.
4. Philly - 5 pts.
5. Norfolk - 4.5 pts.
6. Nova 2 - 4 pts.
In the Northeast, the Boston Belles extended their first-place lead in the region by winning the Midnight 7s qualifier in New York City. During the final against New York, Ashley Clancy ran in the go-ahead try with no time on the clock, topping off a dramatic four-try comeback to win 21-15. The Belles’ performance was rewarded with 24 points toward the standings.
The tournament marked New York’s first appearance at an NRU qualifier, and although the team finished second at Midnight’s, it’s currently ranked below the Village Lions, which earned points in both qualifiers. The Cape Cod 7s will be the NRU’s teams’ last chance to shake up the standings and earn an invite to territorial championships, to be held at Hell Gate 7s in New York City.
NORTHEAST STANDINGS
1. Boston Belles 1 – 48 pts
2. Village Lions 1 – 28 pts
3. New York 1 – 20 pts.
4. Falcons – 20 pts.
5. Boston Belles II – 16 pts.
6. Northland – 16 pts.
7. New York II – 10 pts.
8. Boston – 10 pts.
9. Village Lions II – 8 pts.
10. Empire City – 6 pts.
11. Suffolk Bullmoose – 4 pts. In the South, Atlanta sent two sides to the Hotlanta 7s and ended up playing each other for the title. Atlanta won. Should the Harlequins actually attend the South Championship Club 7s this weekend at Life University, then a similar final would occur considering no opponents are currently registered.
But this isolation and lack of competition is nothing new to Atlanta, and the team sports great depth that makes inter-squad games worthwhile. Atlanta is anchored by familiar names in Heather Hale, Patty Jervey, Kari Morrison, Sue Uchneat and Ros Chou, and bolstered by some fresh faces in Alana Padilla, who’s played for the Philippine 7s team, and Corey Fredericks, who is currently at the USA Women’s 7s camp.
The Pacific Coast used the Can Am 7s in Bellingham, Wash., as the lone Pacific Northwest qualifier. The Seattle Breakers defeated the Emerald City Mudhens 13-5 in the final for the PNW seed. It's still unclear how Northern California will name its representative and whether the two Pac Coast teams will play for the higher seed, but since the national championship is in San Francisco, the union has more time than the rest of the country to make up its mind.
The only other update comes from the Midwest, but it’s vague at best. The territory plans to invite the summer’s most successful clubs to the territorial championships on July 23, but the rumor is that many teams – Chicago North Shore, Minnesota Valkyries, Twin Cities Amazons, Chicago, Detroit – aren't all too interested in competing at nationals.
“I think it's very unlikely that North Shore will go this year,” former 7s Eagle Jenny Lui said of her hometown club. “But next year with a little more advanced warning, we should be able to at least put together a Chicago-area side. From chatting with people at Lakefront 7s, it doesn't look like the Amazons or Valkyries are interested either. It's strangely unpopular in the Midwest with clubs. Individuals show interest, but clubs rarely compete seriously.”
An update to predicted national seeds:
2011 Women's Club Sevens Pools
Pool A
A1 – NOVA (Mid-Atlantic 1)
A2 – Belmont Shore (Southern California 2)
A3 – New York (Northeast 2)
Pool D
D1 – Berkeley All Blues (Pacific Coast 1)
D2 – Atlanta (South 1)
D3 - ? (Midwest 2)
Pool C
C1 – San Diego (Southern California 1)
C2 - ? (Midwest 1)
C3 – Seattle Breakers (Pacific Coast 2)
Pool B
B1 – Boston Belles (Northeast 1)
B2 – Glendale (West 1)
B3 – DC Furies (Mid-Atlantic 2)
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