Nigel Melville Direct

Flight delays put in perspective....

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 21:30:00 +0000

Last Friday on the flight to Montevideo, the plane had to return to Buenos Aires with an engine problem. We sat on the runway for three hours, no food, no air conditioning, and passengers starting to get restless. The Captain, sensing the mood made an announcement;

'Ladies and gentlemen, I apologize for your discomfort, but its far better to be down here wishing we were up there, than being up there wishing we were down here!'

Rugby - Art, Science and Business?

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 05:48:00 +0000

Some years ago, Wayne Diesel, the former South African head physio was working with me at Gloucester. After a couple of successful seasons together, Wayne accepted an offer he couldn’t refuse and joined a Premiership soccer team. I spoke to him a couple of weeks into the job and he recounted a conversation he had with one of his players. The player had a sore ankle and told him that he couldn’t play at the weekend. Wayne (horrified) told him that he could strap it up for him and he’d be fine. ‘No’, said the player, ‘if I’m not 100% fit I’m not playing, I earn $2m a year and can’t afford to play injured, I have my career to think about."

During the last few weeks, countless players have made themselves unavailable for the November internationals due to injury, players appear to have crashed and burned with only 3 months of a 9 month season completed – or have the days when rugby players rarely took the field without some kind of injury become a thing of the past? Long careers being far more important these days - it’s a business. Or was it simply that Meads, McBride, Cotton and Fitzpatrick were chiseled from sterner stuff – I doubt it.

In New Zealand, where the All Blacks legends used to train on the farm, running up hills with a sheep under each arm, building fences and digging ditches, the farm became a gym, sheep became barbells, no more dirty work fixing fences or digging ditches!

The new regime produced some impressive new muscles, but no one knew how to use them on the rugby field. The solution was to introduce strong man circuits, players were taught to use their new muscles wrestling with each other, flipping tractor tires, carrying Swiss balls full of water and hitting punch bags. ‘Functional strength’ became a buzz word across the globe’s rugby conditioning community.

A similar problem emerged in the UK, big muscles being hastily built, overloading the tendons and causing increasing injuries - ‘popped’ biceps and pecs and whatever else…

New programs were hastily introduced to strengthen the tendons. A problem created and a problem fixed.

The development of these rugby athletes continues, sports science appears to be dominating the game and is starting to have an impact on the way the game is played. The problem is that stopping players scoring is far easier than actually scoring.

In attack, kick long, chase hard, make your tackles, force penalties and kick your goals – have you watched the leaders of the English Premiership recently? Clubs now have more conditioners than coaches. This has parallels to the 1990s when Britain confirmed it had more financial advisors than coal minors, and look what happened to Britain!

Coaches will argue that their owners and fans want to win every week. If the team makes over 90 percent of its tackles and kick 80 percent of their kicks at goal, they will probably win the game. The resulting spectacle is one of ugly attrition.

There was a time when coaches used to have lively discussions about coaching and the way the game should be played. We argued that coaching was both a science and an art, and that our dream was for our backs to play like forwards and our forwards like backs. It appears that this debate has now been settled. Rugby coaching is a science, our backs are playing like forwards and our forwards are playing like forwards!

Of course, this may be an opportunity for nations who lack the traditional playing skills. Maybe the ‘gap’ between the top nations and the rest will narrow because they are creating a game that is far easier to replicate with the appropriate athletes? This weekend, Italy gave the All Blacks and the leading nations something to think about at the San Siro Stadium.

My concern is that the fans of the game will start to want more than a battle of attrition. Crowds will start to fall, and as a result, the sponsors and broadcasters will take a closer look at what they are getting for their money.

There are no easy solutions; the ELVs encouraged teams to play with more width by introducing the 5m scrum law, and they effectively moved the tackle line in favor of the attack. The problem with this was that the quickest way to cross the gain line was close to the scrum – not wide out!

Width brings more risk than reward in most coaches books, territory and multiple phases, a meter at a time is safe, draws penalties and ultimately wins points and games.

As a result, basic skills include taking the ball into contact, clearing out tacklers and goal kicking. No point wasting precious gym time on passing and stepping! Backs are analyzed by their ability to keep the ball in contact, numbers of tackles made, rucks and mauls cleared. Line-breaks are considered risky if possession is not retained and god help the full back or winger who gets forced into touch trying to beat a man on the outside!

The game has changed. We cannot turn back the clock. The lawmakers have to take on the defenses by focusing on the tackle area. If we can create quick ball, the defenses have to scramble, line breaks will happen more often and attacking rugby has a chance to flourish.

The art of coaching will return. Our backs will play like backs once again, and the forwards... well, somethings may take a little longer…

'Moments'

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 22:29:00 +0000

Click the link below to take a look at the new music video from our partners the National Guard! This video emphasizes qualities National Guardsmen possess, such as service, determination, teamwork camaraderie, loyalty and integrity. These are qualities that the rugby community possesses as well, which is what makes this partnership so strong.

http://www.nationalguard.com/moments/

College Rugby – Your Ideas?

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 03:48:00 +0000

The Youth (pre-high school game) is growing at a phenomenal rate and the number of high school programs are on the rise. It is now absolutely crucial that we increase the support of the college game and support the development of programs on every level, while ensuring that high school players become college players through national recruitment programs.

The new strategic plan currently being prepared identifies college rugby as a key focus area. Just last week, new Board member Peter Seccia’s working group circulated a draft document to generate feedback from the college game.

This has to be an inclusive process, if you have any suggestions on the way forward for college rugby send them my way, I’ll forward them to the working group for their consideration. The creation of a college rugby department and appointment of a College Rugby Director will be responsible for the delivery of the strategy.

INVICTUS

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 23:56:00 +0000

You know you are getting old when they start making movies about people you know!

Today, the publicity machine is revving up for Clint Eastwood’s latest movie Invictus, a feature film based on Nelson Mandela’s life during the 1995 Rugby World Cup in South Africa. The screenplay was penned by native South African writer Anthony Peckham, based upon the book Playing the Enemy written by John Carlin.

The movie Invictus stars Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela, who was President of South Africa at the time, and Matt Damon as Francois Pienaar, the South African team captain. The film will open in theaters on December 11, 2009.

The story, is set after the end of apartheid and at the beginning of Mandela’s presidential reign, the movie seems to be a classic uplift story with added sports drama.

During my time coaching London Wasps, I used to coach teams that played against Francois during his time at Saracens. We also worked together on ITV for the 2003 Rugby World Cup. Francois is a very engaging man, and has achieved many things in his life, but the moment Nelson Mandela presented him with the Rugby World Cup in 1995 was a moment few watching will forget – a moment that demonstrated to me, more than any other, the powerful connection between sport and society.

For those who are interested the word Invictus is Latin for "unconquered", it is also a very famous poem written by William Ernest Henley; 1849-1903 (see below). In the next month we will be providing an increasing amount of information about the movie and will have some comments from our new rugby advocates!

Yes, Morgan Freeman does look remarkably like Nelson Mandela and Matt Damon does share the chiseled features of Francois Pienaar. However, at definitely no more than 5’10" (and rumored to be 5’8"), Matt Damon will need some pretty long studs to play in the back row for the Springboks!

In his last movie, the Informant, Damon put on 30lbs to play a heavy, now he needs to put on 7 inches to play a tall!

Enjoy!

INVICTUS
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find me, unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate;
I am the captain of my soul .

Ngwenya Hat-Trick over the Weekend!

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:08:00 +0000

Here’s a video of USA Eagle Takudzwa Ngwenya's three tries against my old club Gloucester last weekend in the European Cup!

Exciting Opportunities for Rugby

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 19:17:00 +0000

Last week in Boston I met with the Rugby Super League Clubs to discuss their schedule for 2010 and continue work with them to raise the profile and quality of their competition and clubs in 2010. From Boston I traveled via Newport, RI, where I met the local rugby community and viewed potential host venues before arriving in New York for a series of meetings with potential sponsors. I also took the Path train out to Harrison, New Jersey, not a trip for the faint-hearted, but it was well worth the effort.

Harrison, New Jersey will shortly be the home of the New York Red Bulls Major League Soccer team. The new Red Bull Stadium is a work of art, and will undoubtedly be a fantastic venue for us to use in the future. With 25,000 seats, a grass field and even sleeves for rugby posts, we are looking to place an international event there in 2010. I believe that this has the capability of breaking all attendance records for an international rugby match in the USA – we will see!

Of course, the sports sponsorship market is pretty tough at the moment for all sports, but there are definitely signs of recovery and I have been talking to a number of potential partners who are interested in rugby’s growth in the USA.

On the Olympic front, the announcement was followed by plenty of excitement, and now the reality has started to set in across the world of rugby. Rugby becoming an Olympic sport has impacted on all unions in different ways. In America, everything has been pretty positive. I have connected with the USOC; we have started to discuss our membership status and governance issues. These talks will be followed by talks about our High Performance Planning and USOC support and involvement.

Some countries have had to deal with more difficult issues: England, Scotland and Wales compete at the Olympics as Great Britain, so they will have to develop a Lions-type team. I understand that rugby sevens will now be introduced to the school sport curriculum in Russia, a boost for rugby, but seen as a threat to 15s. One country will receive less funding as a result of the announcement, and their government believes that Olympics (12 player squad) is more important than the Rugby World Cup (22 player squads), so therefore they will only fund 12 men and women going forward!

Another interesting fact is that team sports in the Olympics are all 12 team events, this doesn’t fit into the current 16 or 20 team competitions currently played around the world – so 12 teams it will be! Then comes the challenge of Olympic qualification, reducing around 120 Olympic hopefuls to just 12 teams – I assume Brazil will be included as hosts, so that’s 11 teams. Try working that one out!

Overall, I think Olympic Rugby is a huge step forward for the sport; it's an endorsement of progress being made across the globe and has given us a new dimension along with a few new challenges.

On Monday, I returned from a weekend in Toronto watching the America’s Rugby Championship games. This is a new competition that creates an opportunity for Eddie to work with domestic players ahead of the November test match window. It’s an evolving competition and has yet to find it’s feet. On Friday Eddie and I met with the IRB, Rugby Canada and Argentina to work on the future of the event, there are some exciting plans to develop this championship in the years to come.

Houston Physical Education Teachers ‘Discover’ Rookie Rugby

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 19:00:00 +0000

Below is a press release that followed the hugely successful Rookie Rugby teacher training in Texas earlier this month. These are the wonderful people that are helping to build a positive new image for our game through their commitment to Rookie Rugby in their school programs.

At USA Rugby we are committed to growing the game through our commitment to youth, if we can help you establish a youth program in your area, let me know…….NM

Every year on a Monday in October the U.S. celebrates the discovery of America with Columbus Day. On this year’s Columbus Day, the teachers of Cypress Fairbanks ISD in Houston, Texas made a discovery of their own – they discovered Rookie Rugby.

An In-Service day found 135 physical education teachers from 16 Jr. High Schools and 12 Sr. High Schools wearing flag belts and tossing around a rugby ball throughout different games and skills involved in the game of Rookie Rugby.

Rookie Rugby is a game that is targeted at children aged five-12 years old. It is a fun, safe and enjoyable sporting experience that aims to expose the international game of rugby to the youth of the United States. Rookie Rugby programs are administered through schools, community-based and state-based rugby organizations (SBRO), as well as USA Rugby national events.

The SBRO in Texas leading this movement was Rugby Texas. President, Rick Marshall, and Rookie Rugby Coordinator, John Shafto, attended a local Texas AHPERD (TAHPERD) Conference in the summer in hopes to promote this great program. There they met with Cheryl McLaughlin, Physical Education Department Chair for the Cypress Fairbanks ISD, and formed a partnership on how to introduce her P.E. teachers to Rookie Rugby.

The spread of teachers within this school district reaches approximately 54,000 kids in the Northwest Houston area. October 12 marked the second training that took place in Texas following this conference. On October 6, the Richardson ISD in Dallas, led a training that exposed 65 teachers for 41 elementary schools (reaching 34,000 children) to Rookie Rugby.

Throughout the day teachers experienced a presentation outlining the many online resources available on USA Rugby’s website and exploring the Rookie Rugby Club. Following this presentation they were encouraged to get involved in games of progression and ball familiarization skills before transitioning to a game of ultimate rugby. Any spectator could have seen the hard work and effort that the teachers were putting forth in learning the concepts of the game, as well as the enjoyment being experienced.

Rookie Rugby Coordinator for Rugby Texas, John Shafto, spoke with one of the teachers following the training, who is also a football coach for the district, he said, “This is great! I will institute this as an off-season sport for all of our football players.”

Some other comments heard at the conclusion were, “This is great exercise and promotes decision making skills,” and “This is a fun, new, and exciting activity!”

Local players and coach from the University of Houston Rugby Club came out for the In-Service training as well. This was a great opportunity for the local club to connect with the community, as well as learn from their first experience.

“The lads witnessed so much enthusiastic teacher participation that they have vowed to be more closely involved in future sessions.” Coach Peter Evans said. “Universities in general should be in the forefront of these initiatives as it ties student's community participation with the marketing of their institutions, hopefully resulting in increased awareness for the university team and more funding. A win-win situation for all.”

Rugby Texas and the University of Houston rugby club have offered follow-up visits to the physical education teachers interested in moving forward with Rookie Rugby in their curriculum.

“Overall USA Rugby and Rookie Rugby is a great program and we have had great success and response from the district PE Coordinator and all 135 PE teachers and coaches in attendance,” Rick Marshall said. “The teachers and coaches all agree that Rookie Rugby is a must for their students, as it is fun, fresh and exciting as well as 100% inclusive for all sizes and genders. This teacher in-service day will reach 54,000 students with the addition of football coaches asking how to start a team for their players as they could see the benefits from rugby for football.”

To download the Rookie Rugby guidebook, take the on-line coaching course, or for more information on how to get started with Rookie Rugby today, visit www.usarugby.org/goto/rookie_rugby or contact USA Rugby Youth Development Manager, Erin Kennedy at ekennedy@usarugby.org.

AUT University - USA Rugby Endowment Fund

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 04:56:00 +0000

Rugby is a vehicle for educational and social change. Another story that has been developing during recent months has been a project headed up by USA Rugby Board member Bill Middleton.

Rugby participation in the USA has experienced incredible growth since 2000. There are an estimated 30,000 high school students and 800 university teams playing rugby in the USA. Supporters of rugby in the USA now have an incredible opportunity to change the lives of the deserving and aspiring student-athletes through the AUT University - USA Rugby Endowment Fund.

In the USA, rugby has been identified as an excellent opportunity to engage both deserving students and elite athletes. Nowhere has this been demonstrated more effectively than at Hyde Leadership Public Charter School (“Hyde”) in Washington D.C. through their rugby academy program. Results amongst previously disruptive and underperforming students have been dramatic and transformational, with the program now in its ninth year.

Friends of AUT USA Inc, AUT University, USA Rugby and the New Zealand Ambassador to the US have been supportive of this program and other initiatives that demonstrate significant potential for academic and sporting development in the lives of US students with an interest in rugby.

Background Friends of AUT USA Inc, in partnership with AUT University, USA Rugby and the NZ Ambassador to the US, have forged a strategic partnership with Hyde and in particular its rugby academy program. The aim of the partnership was to:

Establish the “Mentoring Hyde School Development Program” by making available the services of Ben Phillips, Manager, AUT USA Office, to help shape a development plan and provide guidance on funding sources and strategies;

Develop a scholarship program as a result of which Hyde rugby students are provided with a semester or double semester scholarship to either AUT University or one of New Zealand’s two largest high schools, Avondale College and Rangitoto College; and

Undertake research to identify the links between sport (in this case rugby) and social development in a low socio-economic school.

Hyde’s rugby academy program has received reasonable US media attention. In particular, the New York Times and Fox Sports have produced videos of the “Hyde Rugby Phenomena.”

Vince Clarkson

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 18:38:00 +0000

This morning I received the sad news that a former team mate of mine, Joe Clarkson’s son Vince passed while walking to class down at the University of Illinois yesterday.

Vince would have been celebrating his 21st Birthday next weekend, a tragic loss. Joe used to play for the Yorkshire county side, emigrated to the USA and represented the Eagles. I reconnected him in Chicago a couple of years ago and met his wonderful family.

Joe, you probably aren’t reading this, but you have the support of our USA Rugby family at this time. We are all thinking of you and your tragic loss. Vince was obviously a fine young man and will be missed by many.

Funeral on Saturday October 24 at 11:00 a.m. at St. Patrick Downtown Church, 408 Cedar Street, St. Charles, IL 60174

Tennis Player sees the light – I live in hope!

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 15:42:00 +0000

I saw this article in our local media recently, and thought you might be interested in the story of University of Colorado at Boulder student Christiane Pheil. As the father of a tennis playing 10 year old – articles like these fill me with hope!

I am encouraged by the increasing number of stories like this that are sent to the office – if you have human interest rugby stories like this, send them over we can share them with the rugby community.

For the full story:

http://www.cubuffs.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=600&ATCLID=204803655

Olympic Announcement Raises The Bar

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:41:00 +0000

Today’s announcement that the sport of rugby will be included in both the 2016 and 2020 Olympic Games has already made an impact – on my already over worked inbox!

Messages from excited rugby players, coaches, administrators and fans from across the nation flowed in since the early hours of the morning when the results of the ballet were announced.

The vote (81 for and just 9 against) was an endorsement not only of the quality of rugby’s campaign, but confirmed the status of rugby as a truly global sport.

The IRB, lead by Chairman Bernard Lapasset and CEO Mike Miller, have delivered a faultless game plan, moments after the announcement we received a letter from Bernard thanking USA Rugby and all our constituents for their support during the campaign.

Of course, the announcement is just the beginning, the Olympic Games are several years in the future, we have four Rugby World Cups (15s), the Pan Am Games and a Rugby World Cup Sevens before then!

During the last few months we have been writing a strategic plan that was discussed with Congress and will be finalized in November with both the Board and Congress input. The plan covers all areas of the game and will support the direction and development of the game across the USA.

Once completed, this plan will be our road map; it will be a plan that all the rugby community must support and help deliver if we are to become one of the top rugby nations in the world. We have made progress, the game is growing in all the right areas, but we have to maintain the momentum.

On the USOC front, we submitted our membership application some months ago to raise our status, initially to Pan Am Games only, but today’s announcement will raise our status to full member.

Everyone asks about funding and support from the USOC, this will be available in due course. Our high performance plan will be submitted and areas of support will be discussed. The USOC has a wealth of experienced staff with specific expertise we can draw upon, they have training centers where our teams will be able to prepare to be their best and we can gain access to wide ranging developmental programs for coaches and administrators.

Today’s announcement will enable us to raise the bar quicker than has currently been possible. It will also bring recognition for the sport at every level, high schools and colleges, youth programs, parents, media and sponsors. Interest in the sport will be elevated, it is our role to provide the resources and support to enable all programs to grow.

These are exciting times for the sport of rugby, I am looking forward to working with all our rugby community to achieve our dreams of Olympic Gold!

I wonder how many players woke up this morning and thought, 'Maybe I could be selected for the 2016 Olympic Games.' – I also wonder how many athletes who haven’t picked up a rugby ball yet thought the same?

This week, Leonard Peters (former Chicago Bears) and Dallas Robinson (sprinter) trained with the USA Select XV as they prepared for their game this weekend against the Argentina Jaguars – a sign of things to come perhaps?

Thanks for voting!

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 23:04:00 +0000

Poll Results Boost Olympic Campaign

Rugby Sevens' campaign for Olympic Games inclusion has received a boost on the eve of the IOC vote after followers of the specialist Olympic website www.insidethegames.biz <http://www.insidethegames.biz> voted unanimously in favor of Sevens at the Olympic Games.

Subscribers were asked to choose which sport they wished to see included in the 2016 Olympic Games from the original IOC shortlist of seven sports, with Rugby Sevens topping the poll with almost 87 per cent of votes cast.

Poll results:

Rugby 25,368 (86.6 per cent)

Softball 1,815 (6.2)

Squash 1,444 (4.9)

Golf 210 (0.7)

Baseball 203 (0.7)

Karate 169 (0.6)

Roller sports 96 (0.3)

Watch the Olympic Vote Live!

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 18:48:00 +0000

The IRB has been advised by the International Olympic Committee that the Golf and Rugby presentations, as well as the announcement of the decision, will be streamed live on the internet at <http://www.olympic.org/> www.olympic.orgthis Friday, October 9.

Rugby Sevens will present at 1125 approx. (Copenhagen Local Time) - the presentation is 20 minutes long followed by a 10 minute Question & Answer Session.

After the Q&A session, the Rugby delegation will leave the session room and the IOC will vote by secret ballot. Once the vote is taken, Golf and Rugby will be allowed back into the session room for the announcement.

Although exact timings are subject to change and the presentation may be delayed, the below is an approximate schedule of events:

* 1125 Copenhagen - Rugby Presentation - streamed
* 1155 Copenhagen - IOC Vote - streamed
* 1200-1215 Copenhagen - IOC Announcement - streamed

Thank you all once again for your support.

Vote for Rugby Sevens!

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 15:55:00 +0000

On Friday, October 9, the IOC will vote on whether to include Rugby Sevens in the 2016 Olympic Games program.

As part of its final push, the IRB is urging the global rugby family to get behind the campaign and register its support in a poll running on online Olympic publication www.insidethegames.biz. The poll can be found on the right hand side of the home page.

The results of the poll will be published on Thursday in the lead up to the IOC vote and ahead of the IRB's final presentation to the 106 IOC members at its Session in Copenhagen.

Please register your vote today and pass this link to fellow members of the Rugby family, friends and colleagues.

I Play Rugby…

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 16:55:00 +0000

I haven’t had chance to blog much recently, I have been following up on the strategic planning work with the USA Rugby Board and Congress, working on our Olympic membership application, meeting with the Churchill Cup executives, planning sponsorship presentations and working with our partners at the National Guard on an exciting 2009-10 program.

Today, we started to circulate the “i-Play Rugby” promotional video that will continue to spread the message about rugby’s new image, its wide appeal and support the growing momentum of the game that has been created in the past 12 months.

The news that President Obama will be visiting Copenhagen this week to support the Chicago 2016 Olympic bid means that we are just days away from knowing if rugby’s Olympic dream is to be realized (October 9).

The excitement that accompanied the first vote, which narrowed down the competing sports to just two (Golf and Rugby) suggests that inclusion in the games will generate significant promotion for rugby across the globe.

So what are the implications for achieving Olympic recognition?

The first question I get asked is will this bring funding into the sport – the answer is yes, eventually, but we have to be accepted as USOC Members first – this process will take a few months after the vote.

The USOC will support a variety of high performance initiatives, provide insurance cover for a small number of athletes (men and women) and support us with sports science expertise, medical services and use of facilities such as the Olympic Training Center at Chula Vista (San Diego).

The question that has yet to be answered is what impact Olympic Sevens Rugby will have on the rest of the game – particularly XVs rugby. Will Sevens start to compete with XVs as a rugby brand? Will countries such as Fiji (where Sevens is their number one sport) give up the XVs game and focus on gold medals? How will this impact on the game in the USA, where Olympic status is seen as a respected, credible sporting option for top class athletes?

The impact of Olympic inclusion will certainly raise the profile of rugby in successful Olympic countries like the USA, Russia and China. In doing so, I believe that rugby’s global landscape will change dramatically. The game of Sevens will grow, players will start to make choices between the two rugby brands, better athletes will come into the game and chase rugby’s Olympic dream.

We will create specialist Sevens coaches and players, fans and events. I don’t think Rugby Sevens will eclipse the XVs game; the Rugby World Cup will remain rugby’s premier global event. Olympic recognition will grow participation in Sevens; it will raise the profile and credibility of rugby in emerging and traditional Olympic markets. The game will have a responsibility to start behaving like an Olympic sport.

I am interested to hear what happens in the UK. There would be no English, Scottish or Sevens World Champions Wales at the Olympic Games. A ‘Great Britain’ rugby team, which would look very strange – but not as strange as Tiger Woods standing on a podium in the middle of a golf course with an Olympic medal around his neck – it would be interesting to see golf as an Olympic sport.

The International Rugby Board have asked me to provide them with feedback on the impact Sevens will have in the USA, and I would like your help in creating my responses.

I welcome your views and opinions; the rugby community in the USA will has a valuable perspective that I feel can play a significant role in shaping the future of the game.

Post your thoughts and I will pass them on.

Good luck, Chicago 2016!

Congress Meeting 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 01:57:00 +0000

This weekend was USA Rugby's Annual Congress Meeting in Dallas, a busy weekend which started for me on Friday afternoon with a USA Rugby Board Meeting.

Saturday's Congress started at 0830 at the offices of Jackson Walker on Main Street, Dallas, our host for the weekend being USA Rugby's Vice Chairman, Bob Latham (Thanks Bob, a great host).

The problem with meeting Congress just once a year is that we have an enormous amount of work to cover, long agenda and short on time. One of the outcomes of the weekend was to increase our meetings each year, the first meeting being planned for June/July to deal with issues from the previous season and a meeting in the fall to work on strategy and progress against our annual operating plans.

On Saturday, we managed to cover both, probably not in the detail we would all want, but tremendous progress was made and lively debate brought high energy levels and progress.

Two new Board appointments were ratified by Congress. Peter Seccia, a passionate rugby guy and partner at Goldman Sachs in New York was welcomed to the Board and Bill Middleton was re-appointed following his work with the Youth Committee and support of USA rugby in the last three years. Both candidates addressed Congress and answered questions about their plans and motives for wanting to serve on the Board.

Francois Viljoen was re-appointed as International Athlete on the Board, this was a vote conducted by the International Athletes, and Annie Collier was voted onto the Audit Committee.

The meeting covered all aspects of USA rugby operations and moved in the afternoon to break out groups working on the new strategic plan.

Congress have agreed to meet again this fall to further their strategic input and a plan will be agreed that we can all get behind and deliver during the next three years.

Board, Congress and National Office staff worked together and had their input in shaping the future strategy of the organization. This was a real positive from the weekend, one team - one game plan, a clear understanding of roles and responsibilities and everyone engaged in the process.

This work will continue.

Thanks to everyone for their effort, commitment and contribution this weekend.

Scotland!

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 20:55:00 +0000

This week USA Rugby had two visitors from Scotland, CEO Gordon MacKay who I have not had the pleasure of meeting before and an old friend, Scottish Head Coach Andy Robinson.

When overseas Unions travel to other Countries, it is usually a good idea that we get together and discuss any potential opportunities to work together in the future.

Andy and Gordon were in the USA interviewing for their High Performance Director, they wouldn't tell me who they were interviewing, but he/she was not an American. I collected them from their hotel on Tuesday morning and took great pleasure in showing them around the office meeting staff and discussing the operational side of the business.

We also discussed the possibility of holding a Scottish training camp in Boulder, Andy had spent time with the Denver Broncos some years back and was interested in repeating the exercise with his new team.

We also discussed possible fixtures, staff exchange programs for events and marketing, and player development.

Next thing I hear is that I am on my way to Scotland!

That's why blogs are useful - I can share with you what really happens - not what others think happens!

Ewen McKenzie was fired by Stade Francais yesterday and Tony Copsey left London Wasps, I guess next week I'll be moving to London or Paris!

Last Call for IRB/Emirates Airline Rugby Photograph of the Year 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 19:44:00 +0000

Matthew Impey’s Gladiator picture which claimed the 2008 prize. VIEW PREVIOUS WINNERS HERE.

(story courtesy of the IRB) Photographers are reminded that the deadline for entries for the prestigious IRB/Emirates Photograph of the Year Competition 2009 is 1900 BST on September 2.

A trip for two to the Emirates Airline Dubai Sevens in November is the prize for the winning entry. A record number of entries have already been received by amateur and professional photographers alike, with over 450 images showcasing a kaleidoscope of Rugby from the fields of Fiji to local schoolchildren playing in the snow.

Tournaments including the IRB Junior World Championship in Japan and the RWC Sevens in Dubai, RWC 2011 Qualifiers and a host of international and domestic Rugby matches are all depicted within the entries.

The judging panel of Paul Morgan (Editor, Rugby World), Dave Rogers (Getty Images), Patrick Eagar (award winning cricket photographer)and a representative from Emirates Airlines will select the entry they think most captures the Spirit of Rugby when they meet in London on September 11 with the winner being announced in the IRB World Rugby Yearbook in association with Emirates Airline in November.

Photographs must have been taken between September 1, 2008 and July 31, 2009. To enter the competition photographers must email a jpeg of no less than 300 dpi of their chosen photograph to photooftheyear@irb.com by no later than 19:00 GMT on September 2, 2009.

VIEW THE FULL TERMS AND CONDITIONS HERE .

Lessons from Bloodgate…

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 14:36:00 +0000

During the last few months rugby’s image has been taking a battering around the world, nowhere greater than in England and South Africa. Firstly three players left Bath in disgrace after a drugs scandal, then Shalk Burger decided to stick his finger intentionally in the eye of an opponent and now the British tabloids are going to town on Dean Richards and “Bloodgate.”

For those who have not seen the story, Harlequins coach Dean Richards forced a player to burst a blood capsule in his mouth to feign a blood injury so that he could get his kicker back onto the field in a European Cup game against Leinster.

Having played alongside Dean for England, there was not a more compromising or competitive man on the field. He has been a successful coach, and it comes as no surprise that he coaches very much as he played – uncompromising.

On this occasion, Dean stepped across a line that a coach simply should not cross. In the ‘heat of the moment’ he made a decision that he will regret for the rest of his life.

The professional game has increased the expectation and pressure on our players and coaches. Win at all costs is a dangerous track for the game to go down and it is our collective responsibility to uphold the ‘spirit’ of the game.

The IRB Charter on the Game states:

“Rugby owes much of its appeal to the fact that it is played both to
the letter and within the spirit of the laws. The responsibility for
ensuring that this happens lies not with one individual – it involves
coaches, captains, players and referees.

It is through discipline, control and mutual respect that the spirit
of the game flourishes and, in the context of a game as physically
challenging as rugby, these are the qualities which forge the
fellowship and sense of fair play so essential to the game’s
ongoing success and survival.

Old fashioned traditions and virtues they may be, but they have
stood the test of time and, at all levels at which the game is
played, they remain as important to rugby’s future as they have
been throughout its long and distinguished past. The principles
of rugby are the fundamental elements upon which the game is
based and they enable participants to immediately identify the
game’s character and what makes it distinctive as a sport.”

I do not believe that these are words from a bygone age. I still believe that our game continues to flourish and grow because of the traditional values of discipline, control and mutual respect.

There is an old Kenyan proverb:
Treat the Earth well.
It was not given to you by your parents.
It was lent to you by your children.

Rugby is no different. Recent events suggest we should all play our part in protecting the spirit of the game, walk our talk, and in doing so pass what we value to the next generation of rugby players we are all working so hard to create.

Women Eagles Look to 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 17:11:00 +0000

(photo by Bill English) Despite a disappointing opener against England, significant wins over South Africa and Canada and a hard fought draw against France were enough to secure second position for the USA Women's National Team in this year's Nations Cup in Canada.

Congratulations to the players, coaches and support staff – the task now is to review these performances, and the summer series against Canada, and see what we have learnt.

The 2010 Women’s Rugby World Cup is just 12 months away, results suggest we are heading in the right direction – but a significant amount of work needs to be done to catch those nations currently ahead of us, particularly England.

Of course, like all national teams, finance (or lack of it) is our greatest opponent. High performance teams are expensive projects, but ultimately they provide the key to unlocking sponsorship support. It’s a well known catch-22, the money comes when you are at the top, but no one wants to back you until you get there.

The key is to demonstrate that you are on the right track, and this month's Nations Cup suggests the women’s Eagles are heading in the right direction.

NATIONS CUP RESULTS
August 10 -France 17, South Africa 17 
England 36, USA 7  

August 13 -England 43, France 8 
Canada 35, South Africa 17

August 16 -USA 39, South Africa 0 
France 12, Canada 7

August 19 - England 25, South Africa 0 
USA 15, Canada 10

August 22 - USA 15, France 15 
England 22, Canada 0

Tiger Changes His Stripes?

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 21:00:00 +0000

An amusing quote from Tiger Woods regarding the IOC's recommendation yesterday: http://www.time.com/time/quotes/0,26174,1916473,00.html?xid=rss-quotes

HALFTIME 2009!

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 20:37:00 +0000

The purpose of starting this blog just under a year ago was to share and update you on the issues of the day. Of course, there were those who believed that I shouldn’t, but it has proven to be an effective way to communicate, and is definitely worth the effort.

Communication (or lack of it) is always leveled at governing bodies, and of course, USA Rugby is no exception. I believe we have improved during the last 12 months and have some way to go to achieving all our goals. Today I thought I would share with you my ‘Halftime 2009 Report” prepared and circulated to the USA Rugby Board and Congress just a few weeks ago.

The report focuses on the USA Rugby Scoreboard that is agreed with the USA Rugby Board of Directors at the beginning of the year. It sets out key deliverables for the year ahead and I report against them.

I am keen to have Territories create their own Scoreboards in time that align with mine. The West created theirs a few weeks ago and found the experience valuable. Behind the scoreboard is a more detailed results sheet that tracks individual KPI’s and serves as a road map to each years activities across all departments.

Of course, its only ‘Halftime,’ but we are making progress with most areas of the scoreboard that is encouraging. The staff at USA Rugby continues to work hard and is developing into a strong team that can make things happen. One example was the Churchill Cup, a great success and a short lead-time that put everyone under pressure, but they delivered!

I think the scoreboard gives a pretty good feel to the breadth of operations that USA Rugby is involved in on a daily basis, the progress that is being made and the challenges ahead.

Rugby’s Olympic announcement yesterday is another step in the right direction for the sport, next week we will be training 600 school teachers in Hillsborough County in the art of Rookie Rugby – 56,000 children picking up the ball for the first time this fall and running with it – potential Olympians perhaps!

Rugby and the Olympics

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 22:48:00 +0000

We were all delighted to hear the news from Berlin this morning, the two sports being nominated for Olympic inclusion in 2016 are Golf and Rugby.

The IRB have done a great job presenting rugby’s case and should be complimented on their efforts on behalf of the game. Mike Miller (CEO) and Bernard Lapasset (Chairman) have put in the hard yards and are just one step away from their Olympic dream for the sport. I wrote to them both this morning thanking them on behalf of USA Rugby (Board, Congress and members).

What this means for Rugby is currently not known, apart from the obvious publicity for the sport and the raising of our status in Olympic circles, the opportunity for rugby players to compete as Olympians and win medals for the USA (hopefully in Chicago in 2016).

I read one outrageous comment, allegedly made by me, that this would bring an immediate $50 million to the sport in the USA. Much as I would like to believe what I didn’t say, I think this a great example for the public to see how the media fabricate such stories for their own personal gain.

This is exciting news! We haven’t crossed the finish line yet, and until we do, we should all support the momentum for rugby that has been created in the past few years.

I will post the next steps and how you can help, once I have spoken to the IRB…

Parents – please!

noreply@blogger.com (Nigel Melville) — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 16:03:00 +0000

A few weekend’s ago, I had the pleasure of watching the potential High School All-Americans and the USA U20s, I spent time with the scrum halves, talked with the coaches and was pretty impressed with the environment that had been created at Glendale for these high performance players. These were excellent young athletes, keen to learn, working hard and obviously have a passion for rugby.

Just minutes after visiting the age grade camp, I called in at the Denver Tennis Club to watch my 9-year-old son Tom play his first round match in the Denver Open Under 10’s competition – what a contrast!

Tennis is the ‘other’ sport in our household, my wife Sue plays and Tom is part of a high performance program in Colorado that is developing some pretty good players.
I enjoy watching the kids play, but Saturday was an exception, it reminded me of everything that is bad about kids sport – or as a friend of mine used to call them – the OAF’s, or ‘over ambitious families.’

The bigger the potential prize, the worse the parents become. In the USA its all about scholarships, god knows how much parents spend over a period of 10+ years trying to get little Jonny or Grace a sports scholarship - maybe they should just save their money and spare us all the pleasure of their company!

Tom was drawn against a kid we had never heard of from Mexico -- he was touring. Yes, touring, America with his family playing tournaments this summer. Anyway, the kid arrives with a full entourage of parents, relations and racquets. He starts pretty well, but loses the first set 6-1. He hits the ball hard, but Tom moves pretty well and gets everything back, stays patient and wins points and games.

When the kid starts to lose, the family start to coach the kid, then a ‘family member’ comes up to me and tells me that my kid’s cheating, I tell them to get a line judge and this guy arrives, watches the game and calls two balls out that the Mexican family think are in – all hell breaks loose and the kid is taken off the court by his parents….Tom, age 9, stands there not knowing what on earth is going on….

I watched another game where some guy from Texas was blaming the altitude for his kids poor serve – give me a break!

When I was a kid, my mum and dad used to come and watch me play whatever I was doing. After every game I used to ask them how I’d got on. Not once did they have an opinion on my play, which infuriated me. Instead, they just asked, ‘did you enjoy yourself?’
What that taught me was that sport wasn’t about pleasing them, it was about enjoying myself.

Now I have kids of my own, I take the wise council of my parents, I want them to play sport because they enjoy it. I want them to find their own way in life, make their own choices, because at the end of the day, if they want to be the best at anything they have to make a number of tough choices and dedicate themselves to achieving those goals.

In short, they have to love what they are doing!

I have been around successful people all my life, one thing they all exhibit is a passion for what they do.

When the media write about the sacrifices people make in the search of excellence, they don’t know what they are talking about. These are not sacrifices, these are choices that are made to achieve the individuals goals.

At the end of the day, excellence is driven by the individuals passion for what they are doing – not their parents. Parents should be there to support the emotional rollercoaster of the sporting/life experience – not be a part of it!

Parents should encourage their kids to try a wide range of activities and support them, not just the sports that have potential pay checks!

Of course, you want them to play rugby, and they might when they’ve given it a try, but if they are playing it for you, they will give it up at their first opportunity!

They will find their way in sport and in life with your support and love, they will be successful in their own way.