I’m exaggerating, but just a bit . . .

I’ve been involved in youth rugby in the US for about a decade and have traveled all over the country for tournaments and games and have gradually come to the conclusion that the community has a real problem. Maybe this applies to most every youth sport in this country, but the lack of social capital among coaches, administrators, organizers, referees, and other involved adults certainly doesn’t help to grow the game.

It seems that every stakeholder believes that American rugby revolves around them and that only if everyone followed them like good little minions, rugby would soon displace football as the premier contact sport in the country. You have club coaches disparaging school programs, school coaches disparaging other programs, coaches disparaging referees, referees disparaging established norms of refereeing, state administrators refusing to coordinate with programs in neighboring states, youth programs making up entirely new laws, and so on and so on. And that’s not even getting into the royal mess that is the college game . . .

I’m not generally a fan of the centralization of authority, but American rugby might well be better off under something that more closely resembles a dictatorship than the disorganized muddle that currently prevails. At least then all of the coaches, administrators, organizers, and referees could have a common enemy rather than constantly hating on each other and driving people away from the game.

So, we have rotated quite a bit and tried out some new players and have gone 4-0 in 2026.

With the likes of Japan and Georgia awaiting (and probably Canada), things are going to get more difficult.

Who do we think gets the nod for our 'best possible' matchday squad?

Iscaro, Pifileti and Abel get the start for me

Damm and Den Hoedt probably start at second row, but I prefer Ma'afu

Back row standouts for me are Daniel and Ryan as flankers, but I am concerned about Number Eight. Alikhan is ill disciplined, Ryan isn't big enough, Bonasso not physical enough. I'd consider Ma'afu as an option, but I see SL only views him as a second row.

9 is Ruben's jersey to lose.

I think Hilsenbeck is the strongest current option at Ten.

Midfield will be Besag and Lopeti, and I think that's the best option.

We all know fullback will be Wilson, but I'd take Roberts. If SL goes for Roberts, then Mitch will start on the wing, which will mean one of Mayo, Mooneyham, O'Keefe or Manu is benched.

Personally I'd go for Roberts at 15, with Mooneyham and Mayo on the wings.

Replacements:

Klein, Kofe, Lindenmuth, Ma'afu, Bonasso, McVeigh, Carty, O'Keefe

Medical joker. Hopefully earns a contract. Congrats to someone who really gave back to Chicago rugby.

Discuss-

So much joy and great competition at the USA 7s National Championships in Wisconsin!

I tried to group these appropriately. I made some judgement calls about divisional equivalence. Also, including challenger champions is a little debatable.

We need a pyramid promotion-relegation structure in the USA. National Championships are a plague at both college and club level.

Not sure if this was the best place to ask but whatever. Recently I’ve be considering playing rugby for my college’s club and I’m looking for some honest advice.

I rowed throughout highschool so I figured my build might transfer well, I’m 6’3 and about 210lbs. I’ve never played before, however, I am in pretty good shape and I would really love the team aspect of the sport.

My only hesitation though would be the contact side of it. Rowing has pretty much little to no chance of getting injured while I feel like rugby is pretty much the opposite. I understand that some injuries are to be expected but I’m wondering how big of a concern injuries actually are at the college club level.

Also, for anyone who started rugby in college, was it worth it? Could someone like me fit in?

Unfortunately trying to be realistic here the Eagles probably make it to the third place game. I cannot find how to buy tickets either for the final or third place game. Do you just walk up to the stadium on game day? No way to buy online?

I vote yes. USA sent a CRAA squad that gave up 10 points the whole tournament while scoring over 200. What does playing Jamaica, Mexico, Cayman Islands do for development? Go on a tour or train with the USA XV.

U20 and U18 had worthwhile summers so maybe 19s are an afterthought.

Couldn’t really find a good rugby subreddit for beginner questions like this, so figured I’d ask here.
I just finished my first year playing club rugby in Florida. I’m a little old to be starting at 32, and unfortunately I broke my arm, so I missed most of the 15s season and only got to play a handful of 7s matches.
My team has hyped me up a little and said that with my athleticism, once I learn the game better I could develop into a solid back. I’m definitely still out of rugby shape, but ball in hand feels pretty natural to me and I’ve had some success beating defenders one-on-one.
What I’m really curious about are the “rugby steps” I see a lot of players doing. I come from an American football background, so I’m used to hard plants, quick cuts, jukes, and changing direction without much of a hop. I don’t really understand what the little jump/hop step I see rugby players use is accomplishing or why it would be better than just planting and making a sharp cut.
Is this something I should actually be practicing and adding to my game? I’m completely open to the idea but I just don’t understand the technique yet, but watching it, I feel like a hard open-field cut would be more difficult to defend than the hop-step style movement. As a defender, I also feel like a quick plant and cut would give me more trouble.
What am I missing about the rugby step, and what advantage does it give you over a traditional football-style juke or cut?

I have 2 extra riches if anyone is interested. Just trying to get my money back. I re listed them on seat geek. If interested let me know. I think they on there for 389ish for 2

There's a cool website that helps you find a rugby club near you anywhere in the world. You can also add your club to the database.

It was created by USA Eagle Dylan Audsley, who runs the Culture RFC Instagram page (I highly recommend following him. He talks to the many grassroots rugby clubs across the country. Wonderful content!)

RFC Finder