Port Elizabeth Plate Win/ The Eagles Are About Ready To Fly

               

            For a change the majority of the matches in Port Elizabeth were a joy to watch. The Eagle 7’s looked collectively determined to move forward with pace, intensity, and the will to win in almost every match (with one possible exception).  Defensively, especially in the tackling the Eagles recaptured a bit of the bone-jarring initiative they had been known for, and they gave (almost) every team they played a tough go of it. Watching the Eagles win the plate over the Fijian machine was a transcendent experience. However, three of the Eagle 7’s matches showed that the team has three glaring deficiencies. But, if they will make these three weaknesses into strengths and maintain what they found in Port Elizabeth, I believe there is not one team in the world that the Eagle 7’s can’t beat.

            Two matches (vs.South Africa, and New Zealand) showed two of the most troublesome problems: The first problem is the sluggish/ apathetic support at the breakdown, offensively and defensively.  It might be a bit trite to say, but possession is nine-tenths of a rugby game. Too often, the ruck to retain ball possession came too late. This stems in part from  the second problem: no immediate support player following the player with ball in hand. I am a big fan of Jonah Lomu. He was a lightning-fast, wrecking-ball of a rugby player that often created tries from nothing. Thousands of fans came to know the game of rugby because of Jonah Lomu. However, ask most Jonah Lomu fans to name another All Black on the team and they will say “Josh Kronfeld”. Josh Kronfeld seemed to always magically appear on the open side of wherever Jonah was being tackled. Josh Kronfeld scored a lot of tries by doggedly following Jonah Lomu. The Eagle 7’s needs to become a team of Josh Kronfelds in their running and rucking support.

             The third weakness, and perhaps the most troubling, was demonstrated in the match against Scotland. The Eagles seemed to fall into the old rut of playing at the level of their opposition. It was arguably their worst game of the tournament. I know, I can hear the rebuttal comments as I write this, “… but they won!?” Yes, they won the match, but it seems to be an old habit with the Eagles to settle for a mediocre win, rather than stretching and testing their boundaries as a team unit when there isn't as much pressure. They need to always be the side that’s setting the pace of the match, pushing the game faster and harder. But there is good news on this front: Coach Mike Friday seems to have his finger firmly on the pulse of this team.

            In a relatively short time we have seen what a confident and competent coach can coax from a team that has talent and a willingness to work. Coach Friday’s comments between halves of the matches were right on, and exactly what the Eagles needed to know to change the outcome of the game. Mike Friday’s vision and direction for the team will ameliorate much of the weakness this team currently shows. As an American rugby coach/player/fan, it’s absolutely exciting to see the change in the team and hear the change of tone from the commentators. They and the whole world may just see this Eagles team take flight.

Port Elizabeth Tries:

Durutalo: Fiji 1,

Isles: Wales 1, Kenya 1, NZ 1, Scotland 2, Fiji 1,

Baker: Wales 1, Fiji 1,

Hughes: Wales 1, Kenya 1, Scotland 1,        

Iosefo: Scotland 1,

Barrett: Wales 1, Kenya 1,

Test: Kenya 1,

Unufe: Wales 1, Kenya 1,

Niua: Wales 1,

Rugby vs. Cleaning the Garage: Why Matt Hawkins Must Go

After watching the disheartening showing in London, the overused quote, "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting it to come out different", kept ringing in my head. There is a debate (on Wikipedia) whether Benjamin Franklin, or Albert Einstein, or a smattering of professional athletes coined this well-known phrase. Despite the debate, whoever said it must have been thinking of the dilemma that the Eagle 7’s now face.

During the time that Alex Magleby was at the helm, U.S. rugby fans were able to bask in the resplendent glow of progress, and improvement. Winning was not just possible, it seemed probable. But apparently, “Nothing gold can stay….” When it was announced that Matt Hawkins was chosen to fill the void that Alex Magleby left, there was still a glimmer of hope because, without a doubt, Matt Hawkins had been a big part of the success of the Eagle 7’s during Magleby’s reign. Matt Hawkins was a tremendous player, and his leadership was certainly crucial to much of the team’s success. Unfortunately, there is one immutable fact that many people fail to recognize: great players, do not always make great coaches. Simply stated, coaching and playing aren’t the same skill set. I’ve known coaches with very limited amounts of playing experience that are tremendously successful coaches. Conversely, I know coaches that have experienced rugby at the top international stage, that are unable to adequately instruct their high school team. Unfortunately, it seems that it’s the later, rather than the former that are tasked with taking the reins of our National teams…, but I digress.

I started having real reservations about Hawkins’ ability to adequately continue Magleby’s direction of the Eagle 7’s, when he started the season in the player/coach roll. It showed a severe lack of sound judgment, and realistic dedication to success. The player/coach thing never works, regardless of the level of rugby, but especially at the International level. New Zealanders would call for the immediate resignation of Gordon Tietjens, if he suggested assuming a player/coach roll. It’s a comical suggestion for New Zealand rugby, and an insane suggestion for the Eagle 7’s…. Fortunately a modicum amount of sanity returned, and Hawkins found his spot on the sideline. For a while the team showed sparks of their past resolve, in particular, the defense still carried the lessons Alex taught in their hearts. But they made silly mistakes and have (with a few notable exceptions) a hard time finding the try line. The bottom line is inconsistency is the name of their game.

You know things are bad, when you’d rather clean the garage than watch rugby. After Samoa beat the Eagles in London, I’d had enough. Let me be clear, it was not the players fault. In fact, they seemed to make less ball handling errors than usual, and they seemed to have a cohesiveness that that U.S. fans have not seen before. Arguably, the Eagle 7’s have amassed an impressive group of dedicated athletes, and they have the capacity to win. However, like a ship without a rudder, they are drowning in the tide of International teams that are improving (one word: Canada). One of the biggest concerns is what will happen should the Eagle 7’s fail to qualify for the re-launching of Olympic rugby in Rio? Maybe American fan will be best-known for having meticulously clean garages, or perhaps the exciting growth of the sport we’ve experienced here in the U.S. since the announcement of its inclusion in the 2016 Olympics level off of will recede to pre-rugby-in-the-Olympics days. One thing is certain, rugby in the U.S. will miss this perfect wave of chance, and we will have a valid reason to be mediocre.  

Matt Hawkins may be a great guy. He was certainly a good rugby player, and he has done some positive things for the Eagle 7’s. But he is not the coach we need for the U.S. to be successful in international 7’s rugby. Regardless of contracts, regardless of cost, and regardless of politics 7’s rugby must make a drastic change and now. If this were an optimal world, Matt Hawkins would recuse himself as unable to effectively lead the Eagle 7’s, and he would release U.S.A. Rugby from its contractual obligation so it would be possible to fiscally find an adequate coach for the upcoming Olympics. However, I’m sure we are not now living in an optimal world….

Maybe Robert Frost, the Father of American poetry was right. Maybe it’s true that, “nothing gold can stay….” Maybe. But, it’s as certain as the sun setting in the West, that if things remain as they have been with the Eagle 7’s, the U.S. will no longer hold Olympic gold. But the dreamer in me, the American in me believes that anything is possible.

Contact Info

New Website!

Check out our new Website : http://www.rugbywestoutfitters.com/

Dixie State's New Jersey Design

Welcome to Rugby West Outfitters