Pathway on Display
Earlier this summer I was fortunate enough to witness the USA Rugby player pathway on display as it has never been before.
In these days where national team assemblies are rare, costly, and generally held overseas, it’s not often that we see our age-grade sides competing in the same place at the same time as our senior Eagles squad. However this was the case on a warm June day in Colorado in the lead up to the Junior World Trophy, and the Eagles June test against Georgia.
At this point, we all know the results of those matches. The USA went on to thrash Georgia and the U-20s held on in a nail-biter to beat Japan to claim the Junior World Trophy, and advance next year to the Junior World Championship in France. These are fantastic results, but they did not happen without major preparation.
For me, watching this scrimmage was almost a zen-like experience. So much of my passion for rugby lies in watching young players fall in love with the sport, then do everything they can to develop into top-class athletes.
For a young player, an opportunity to take the field, look across at your competition and imagine yourself in their shoes one day is a surreal feeling. It gives the player a goal. Not some lofty, far reaching theoretical goal, but an actual, physical, flesh and bone goal. For me, that was one of the more amazing things I’ve ever seen on a rugby field. I heard them talking amongst themselves, and hearing the excitement in their voices. What I saw on their faces though, was a determined look of “That’s gonna be me one day.”
Though to the outsider it only looked like a controlled scrimmage, to the coaches and players who were involved, it represented all that we work for, and all that will eventually improve rugby in the USA.