Screw ESPNU, More ESPN Rugby Coverage

I am not sure if everyone just missed this piece of news or what but USA Rugby has extended their deal with ESPN.

Those with fast internet connections should check out ESPN360.com, which currently has a ton of rugby league action but will broadcast a lot of USA Rugby content that is also going to be on the ESPN networks. For some people the service is free, so check it out. It does have some steep requirements in terms of computer horse power and connection speed. It was maxing out the CPU of my old p4 2.5 ghz computer here at work and also causing some very high network utilization rates, in the 25-3-% range. But the video is really nice, seriously!

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ESPN Increases its Coverage of USA Rugby

More Content Featured on ESPNU, ESPN Classic and ESPN360.com

BOULDER, Colo. – Expanding upon its existing relationship with USA Rugby, in which ESPNU would air selected Men’s National Team matches, ESPN Inc., has officially signed on to broaden its coverage to ESPN Classic and its live broadband sports network ESPN360.com.

“This is a great opportunity for USA Rugby to build a partnership with ESPN, the world’s leader in sports programming. Our goal at USA Rugby is to Inspire America to fall in love with Rugby, and our new partnership with ESPN will certainly play a big part in achieving this goal.” USA Rugby’s VP of Business Development David Voth said.

ESPN, Inc., The Worldwide Leader in Sports, is the leading multinational, multimedia sports entertainment company featuring the broadest portfolio of multimedia sports assets with over 50 business entities, including ESPNU, ESPN Classic and ESPN360.com among a number of other sports media assets.

While ESPNU was designed as a 24-hour college sports network, its previous partnership with USA Rugby proved that its programming schedule is diverse in the content it offers. In fact, ESPNU televises nearly 500 live events and offers comprehensive studio programming, replays of ABC Sports, ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN regional television games, specials and much more.

The expanded schedule for ESPNU features a one-hour highlight show taken from footage shot at the USA Rugby National Guard College Club Playoffs in Albuquerque. This show will be televised on Friday, May 16, at 11 p.m. EST. ESPNU will then air a tape delayed telecast of the USA Rugby National Guard Men’s and Women’s College Championships on May 21 and 22, at 10 p.m. EST. Additionally, USA Rugby National Guard Boys and Girls High School Championships will also be televised on ESPNU; a first for USA Rugby. Those shows are scheduled for Tuesday, June 3 and Wednesday, June 4, at 8 p.m. EST.

“We are thrilled to offer more USA Rugby on ESPNU, ESPN Classic and ESPN360.com,” said Rosalyn Durant, vice president and general manager ESPNU. “Showcasing the best US athletes in their respective sport category has become a mainstay for the ESPN networks.”

ESPN Classic is a 24-hour, all-sports network reaching 63 million homes and is devoted to highlighting and celebrating the timeless events, personalities, moments and stories comprising the heritage of sports. As a curator of sports history, ESPN Classic connects the past with the present-day sports landscape, providing sports fans with perspective, context and relevancy and includes a combination of live and classic sporting events; original entertainment series.

“It’s an incredible opportunity to have our international matches and the Rugby Super League Finals air live on ESPN Classic,” Voth added, “and to expand the coverage of all of our rugby properties including the High School National Championships, College Championship Series and the National Club Championships via the ESPN extended family, ESPN Classic, ESPNU and ESPN 360.com.”

The broadcast schedule for ESPN Classic includes live coverage of the Rugby Super Final from the Infinity Park in Glendale, Colo., on May 31, 8 pm ET, the USA versus Clermont Auvergne match on August 9 in Charleston, S.C. aired at 7 pm ET and the USA versus. Munster match on August 22 in Boston aired at 8 pm ET.

In addition, ESPN360.com will deliver live online coverage from the USA Rugby National Guard Boys and Girls High School Championship Finals, the USA Select XV’s match against England Counties, USA Rugby’s Women’s Club Championships and Men’s All-Star Championships.

ESPN360.com is ESPN's signature broadband sports network and the online home for live sports. It delivers more than 2,500 live, global sports events annually and is available at no additional charge to fans who receive their high-speed Internet connection from an affiliated service provider. ESPN360.com is currently available in nearly 23 million homes nationwide via more than 20 Internet service providers including AT&T, Verizon, RCN, Insight, Frontier, Cavalier, Charter, Mediacom, Conway, Grande Communications and more. Additionally, it is available to approximately 18 million U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel (fans accessing ESPN360.com from computers connected to an on-campus educational or military network – those with “.edu” or “.mil” domains).

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Nations Cup Set for August

Rugby Canada's website has information on what is going to be a huge international women's rugby event.

The Nation's Cup, August 15-31, will take place in England. It will pit, England, Canada, Wales, France and the US against each other in a round robin format.

Outside of the two year old Six Nations tournament and Women's RWC, the Nation's Cup would be the largest women's international competition.

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MARFU v Pacific, MARFU v Socal

We (MARFU) kicked off our spring season with two great matches on San Fransisco's Treasure Island.

Bay Area ruggers were great hosts for MARFU, helping players get to and from airports and giving us places to stay.

Saturday afternoon, in the almost 80 degree heat, MARFU just missed upsetting the Pacific Coast, losing 20-14.

We spent a good deal of the first 10 to 15 minutes of the game camped out in PAC's side of the field but couldn't get any points. And that was pretty much how the game went. We dominated possession but had trouble finishing.

We didn't defend often. Our defense was pretty good in general but we got hurt on turnover ball. PAC did an excellent job attacking off of turnover ball, following the 2 passes and wide motto. Three of their four tries came shortly after turnovers. We simply weren't reacting fast enough or communicating clearly enough when those turnovers happened.

Afterwards we had a fantastic little social in the SFGG club house. Our hosts had a nice spread of carb heavy goodness. We celebrated a good day of rugby with an exchange of gifts between MARFU And PAC. The only downside was that we got home at 8pm and had to be at the pitch very early the next morning.

The next morning MARFU developmental faced SoCal and PAC developmental. The cooler temperature but slick grass made for a very different playing environment.

(I was also very jealous of the PAC players sipping Mimosas and other adult beverages from the stands. God knows that would have made for a different spectating environment.)

In the first game MARFU developmental controlled possession and played rock solid on defense, defeating SoCal 10-0.

In a forty minute skirmish, MARFU beat PAC developmental 7-0.

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Watch this space (rugby ahead)

I know I have been very quiet as of late but expect rugby blogging:

This week, MARFU vs PAC, MARFU vs SoCal

Next weekend, WNT skills camps here in Philly

Two weeks from now, MARFU U23 dev at DC Ruggerfest

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The Three Headed Dragon

If you've been in the rugby community more than a hot minute you know we have a coaching shortage. There are never enough coaches for any level. At the college and club level you can play without a separate coach. But tragically we have at least one high school club each spring that is close to folding for lack of a coach.

In the fall I experienced the luxury of luxuries, having an assistant coach. Why is having an assistant coach such a nice thing? Assistant coaches give you flexibility folks, tons of it. The flexibility to occasionally miss practice. The flexibility to to observe drills while someone else is running them. Or to breakup forwards and backs without forcing a player to be a coach.

This spring I have been double blessed by having two coaches at almost all the practices and three coaches at more than a few. In education we talk about the connection between student performance and student/teacher ratios. I think to some extent coaching younger rugby players is very similar. There's tons of coaching to do, so quality is important but quantity often determines how well you build great basic skills while trying to play a big girl game plan. It's tough to watch basic skills in a decision making drill with only one or even two coaches. But you do have to watch those skills with new players.

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