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Written by Press Release
Wednesday, 10 August 2011 13:46 |
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7s World Series Breaks Broadcasting Records |
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International -
HSBC Sevens World Series
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The International Rugby Board (IRB) has announced figures showing that the Olympic sport of Rugby Sevens has gained yet more ground in the eyes of broadcasters worldwide.
The broadcast report on the 2010/11 HSBC Sevens World Series, the first with a title sponsor, has been published by the IRB's television distribution partner Pro-Active Television and confirms that for a sixth consecutive year a record global audience switched on to Sevens.
Television broadcast coverage of the eight-tournament World Series reached 147 countries across six continents, with 34 broadcasters showing action from the Series, which was won by New Zealand.
The grand prix-style Series accumulated 3,657 hours of total airtime - 3% up on the 2009/10 season - of which 1161.5 hours went out live.
Programming from the season of Sevens was carried in 16 languages and reached 332 million homes, with an estimated potential reach in excess of 760 million.
Only six years ago, the total airtime for the World Series stood at just 300 hours. This season’s coverage amounts to over 12 times that figure, underlining the considerable advances Rugby Sevens has made in the eyes of international broadcasters and the global sporting public.
Major developments took place in the USA, where coverage was aired for the first time on NBC and NBC Universal, while broadcasters in Spain, Croatia and the Caribbean also joined the long list of takers of either live, delayed live or official IRB highlights programming.
In addition, bespoke online videos produced from each round of the Series by highlights production team 78Seventy Broadcast attracted over one million views on the official website, irbsevens.com, and Youtube.
"Rugby Sevens continues to prove a huge success with fans, broadcasters and commercial partners around the world, and is also attracting new members to the global Rugby family now that it has the ultimate seal of approval from the IOC," said IRB Chairman, Bernard Lapasset.
"The non-stop, highly competitive nature of the action on the pitch combined with a festival atmosphere off it continues to be the sport's winning formula.”
Giles Morgan, Group Head of Sponsorship, HSBC Holdings added: "This impressive record of growth, in addition to the half a millions fans who attended the tournaments this season, shows just how exciting and entertaining a sporting competition the HSBC Sevens World Series is. In our inaugural season as title sponsor, HSBC is delighted that more and more sports fans around the world are enjoying this world class competition."
The 2010/11 HSBC Sevens World Series comprised eight tournaments in Dubai, South Africa (George), New Zealand (Wellington), USA (Las Vegas), Australia (Adelaide), Hong Kong, England (London) and Scotland (Edinburgh).
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Written by Jackie Finlan
Wednesday, 10 August 2011 12:00 |
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2nd Last-Play Loss for Eagle Women |
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National Teams -
USA Women
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On first word that the USA Women lost 26-23 to South Africa during yesterday’s Nations Cup match, shock prevailed. The Springboks had been crushed by England and Canada in the team’s previous two matches, and so the expectation was that the Eagles would be enjoying their first win of the tournament during the third round.
But that wasn’t the case. The USA started a young, inexperienced team – 10 players of which earned their first caps this week – in lieu of a stronger lineup that could have better guaranteed a victory. It was important to USA coach Pete Steinberg that his new athletes bank some international playing time, especially since the final game on Saturday will feature more veteran players.
Steinberg was treated to some bright performances from Kaelene Lundstrum, a fast, athletic wing, who was difficult to contain and scored a try; Carrie White, who stepped up at scrumhalf; and Laura Miller, a dynamic, young flanker, who just needs some more international experience.
“We actually played well and controlled the game in terms of territory and possession,” Steinberg said. “But we made some mistakes, turned the ball over on their tryline, and missed opportunities to score. Our kick-and-chase game was ineffective as well, and they punished us on turnover ball.”
Some miscommunications on defense allowed South Africa to counterattack strongly off of kicks that didn’t reach touch and move turnover ball quickly into space.
“There were a couple of players who didn’t follow our approach on defense,” Steinberg assessed. “We run a vertical defense, but we had some players drifting across the field. It’s a learning experience for those players, because when they’re in this type of environment, they revert to what they’ve been doing at their clubs. So we try to give them video feedback, so they realize what’s expected of them.”
Fitness expectations will have to be diffused as well. “As the tournament goes on, it’s obvious that we’re not fit enough,” Steinberg said. “Only against England were we able to express ourselves athletically. Then again, half of the team was selected six weeks ago; it’s a transition year for the program.”
South Africa spent 40 hours en route to Canada and didn’t acclimatize fully until their match against the USA.
“They probably played their best game yesterday,” Steinberg said. “They’ve been improving a lot throughout the tournament and were able to exploit us. That was kind of the deal with South Africa – they did enough to beat us.”
The loss marks the second match in which the Eagles let the win slip from their grasps on the last play of the game.
“It’s difficult for the players to know that we could be 2-1 with no change in performance,” Steinberg said. “It’s hard for the team to put in the work, play well, and be 0-3.”
It’s difficult alleviating the sting of closing-second losses, but Steinberg’s doing his best to focus the squad on the long-term goals of progressing toward 2014, while also playing their best game of the tournament on Saturday.
Expect a more experienced lineup for Saturday, as the Eagles take on South Africa once again for third place.
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Written by Press Release
Wednesday, 10 August 2011 12:57 |
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USA A, Glendale Rosters |
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National Teams -
USA Men
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Glendale, Colo. – The USA Select side will play in a training match at Infinity Park on Wednesday evening against local club team, the Glendale Raptors.
As part of their Rugby World Cup (RWC) preparations, the Eagles played Canada in Toronto on the weekend. A crowd of more than 10,000 spectators witnessed a back-and-forth battle, seeing Canada hold on for a 28-22 win. The return match at Infinity Park on August 10 is eagerly anticipated.
The Eagles used 22 players from their 35-man squad in the recent international, with those not involved getting an opportunity to impress against the Raptors. USA Head Coach, Eddie O’Sullivan, and his coaching staff are pleased to add this fixture to the RWC build-up.
“Wednesday’s game gives us one more look at the rest of the squad. The players have worked extremely hard during camp, and in so doing have made our job as selectors quite difficult. That is what you are looking for as a coach,” said O’Sullivan.
The Glendale Raptors home stadium is the beautiful Infinity Park, with the venue hosting dozens of national and internationals rugby matches since it’s opening in 2007. Last season the Raptors won the Division 1 National Club Championship, with the organization consisting of men’s DI and DII teams, the Raptor Women, U19 boys and girls teams, and the Raptor Rugby Academy for children.
“Glendale provides a great opportunity for us to train for the RWC. Here we have the chance to play and train in the best rugby facility in the country and have access to the High Performance Center. We also always get great support from Colorado rugby fans.” expressed O’Sullivan.
The USA Select will kickoff at 7.00 P.M with tickets available online or at the stadium. Visit InfinityParkGlendale.com for more details and to purchase your tickets.
USA SELECT
15 Tai Enosa (Belmont Shore)
14 Zack Test (Unattached)
13 Troy Hall (New York Athletic Club)
12 Junior Sifa (Unattached)
11 Colin Hawley (Olympic Club)
10 Roland Suniula (Boston Rugby)
9 Robbie Shaw (Unattached)
1 Mate Moeakiola (Bobigny 93)
2 Brian McClenahan (Olympic Club)
3 Will Johnson (Unattached)
4 Scott LaValla (Stade Francais) *Captain
5 Cameron Dolan (Life University)
6 Pat Danahy (Life University)
7 Inaki Basauri (Perigueux)
8 Jonathan ‘JJ’ Gagiano (Univ. of Cape Town)
Reserves:
16 Chris Biller (San Francisco Golden Gate)
17 Mike MacDonald (Leeds Carnegie)
18 Louis Stanfill (Unattached)
19 Nic Johnson (Unattached)
20 Mike Petri (New York Athletic Club)
21 Paul Emerick (Life University)
22 Blaine Scully (Unattached)
GLENDALE RAPTORS
15 Taylor Howden
14 Dustin Croy
13 Justin Howley
12 Ata Malifa
11 Dewon Reed
10 Maximo DeAchaval
9 Andre Bachelet
1 Chris Bauman
2 Shae Tamati
3 Pat Carroll *Captain
4 Casey Rock
5 Alec Parker
6 Matt Doubek
7 Spencer Scott
8 Ryan Chapman
Reserves:
16 Jacob Nelson
17 Hayden Mexted
18 Pat Doyle
19 Clint Camp
20 Stanton Moalli
21 Cristain Sarmento
22 Greg Tarpey
23 Josh Schmitz
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Written by Press Release
Wednesday, 10 August 2011 11:16 |
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Roses Remain Undefeated at Nations Cup |
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National Teams -
USA Women
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OAKVILLE, ON - Canada met England Tuesday evening in the final round-robin match of the 2011 Women's Nation's Cup in Oakville, Ontario
In the end, crisp English passing and relentless pressure on Canada resulted in a hard fought 22-10 win. The victory gives England a 3-0 record through the round-robin stage, but the two teams will play again for the championship on Saturday – again at Appelby College, in Oakville.
In the first game of the evening South Africa scored two tries in the final two minutes to beat the USA 26-22 for its first win of the tournament. Those two countries will play off for third and fourth on Saturday - kicking off at 2 PM EST.
Team Canada began strong in their match with Sevens stars Jen Kish and Kelly Russell leading the charge against England. It was Emily Scarratt of England, though, who managed to get the first score on to the board; kicking the ball smoothly between the posts for an England penalty.
Both teams looking equally matched, Canada and England played a game of push and pull. England’s Alice Richardson managed to take advantage of a gap in Canada’s line to drive through towards the tryline. Smooth control of the ball placed England precariously close to gaining their first try, but any forward gain was stopped by a scrum given to host team.
The game remained evenly matched throughout, but Canada, donned in red and black, scored the first try. Canada’s Andrea Burk was able to dodge England’s defense and race the yards to the goal posts, allowing Cheryl Phillips to finish the score in her opponent's end zone.
Ghislaine Landry of Canada came close to another try before the clock ran out, but was stopped near the target. Canada led 5-3 into half-time.
The start of the second-half had England kicking off deep into Canada’s territory. In such a closely paired match, each yard gained pushed the other team to return in kind. The first try in the second-half went to England’s #20 Natasha Hunt, who dove into the corner for the try, assisted by Maggie Alphonsi.
A fumbled ball by Canada was a second opportunity that England took full advantage of, with brilliant ball handling and player switching, the ball landed neatly into the hands of Alphonsi who scored to put England well ahead. Adding more points to the board, Scarratt gained the conversion, England leading 15-5.
“We made mistakes that we planned on not making,” said Coach John Tait. “We were a little bit overwhelmed and we let it get to us, but we’re looking forward to Saturday because we can do better than that.”
Once again, the battle on the field raged over the entire distance, switching from side to side. As cheers and loud support for the hosting team was shouted from the boisterous crowd, Canada continued to push forward but England’s defense remained resolute. Supported by her teammates, Canada’s #21 Kayla Mack scored another try, closing the gap to 15-10.
It was a pitched battle, but England eventually prevailed, as Amy Garnett weaved beautifully through the chaos on the field, moving from the centre to the sidelines to score the final try of the game. Scarratt closed the game with the conversion kick, to make the final score England 22 – Canada 10.
“It was a very intense game. It’s so different from any other kind of rugby I’ve ever played before – the intensity and fast pace. I really enjoyed it,” said Canada’s Kelsey Willoughby, who played as a starter for the first time. “It was a good game. I’m sure each team has something they haven’t shown yet and I’m really looking to this Saturday.”
The finals will take place this Saturday, Aug. 13 beginning at 2pm at Appleby College.
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