Last summer – well, winter here in New Zealand – a ship named the Golden Bear pulled into Wellington Harbor. Aboard were some 300 cadets from the California Maritime Academy.
It was a great visit. The cadets were wonderful, hosting some of Wellington’s fine folks aboard the ship and visiting the sights around the city. But they also played a tough game of rugby against Victoria University. It was tough not only because the students had just disembarked from a cross-Pacific voyage, because some of them had never played competitive rugby before, but also because they ran into a very good Billy Goats side.
Rugby May 31, 2011 - The Keelhaulers of the California Maritime Academy vs Fighting Billy Goats of Victoria University.
The Keelhaulers have a long, proud rugby tradition – one that they have just added to, with the possibility of yet more to come.
Our friend Steven Hiatt, the coach, reports that the Keelhaulers won their Division 3 regional championship last weekend in Nebraska against Wayne State. Yes, he reports, that makes theirs a very large region, as Nebraska is a long way away from California. So, coming up this weekend, the team is off to the Final Four in Glendale, Colorado.
While it’s a little late to hop over for the games, the semi-final games will be streamed on the web. So, go have a look, if you’re keen: Webstreaming as well: The Saturday Semi-Finals, the Sunday Championship game as well as the 3rd place game will be on the web at www.nscro.org and www.usarugby.org . You can read more about it here: http://www.eteamz.com/NSCRO/news/index.cfm?id=5368779&cat=0
ICEF Rugby team at Westpac Stadium
A wonderful group of U.S. High School ruggers – both boys and girls – recently visited New Zealand on a tour. They played some good rugby but, more important, experienced the warm welcome of New Zealand culture. You can read the story of their travels here on Ambassador Huebner’s post.
After beginning the second Four Nations tournament with a convincing win over India, the USA women’s field hockey team slumped to three successive defeats to close it out.
On Thursday, it was a hard-fought loss to hosts New Zealand. Rachel Dawson and Keli Smith-Puzo’s goals were not enough to earn the U.S. a point, as they lost 3-2 to the tournament’s top team. Still, they pushed the Black Sticks, who won the first Four Nations tournament, held earlier this month in Auckland.
On Saturday, the USA went down 5-1 to Australia, the eventual Four Nations’ champions, with Claire Laubach scoring the lone U.S. goal.
As it was in the earlier Four Nations’ tournament, the third-place game was contested between India and the United States. This time, however, it was the Indians who took the bronze, carving out a 1-0 win against the Americans. In the gold medal match, Australia knocked off New Zealand 3-1 for a bit of revenge.
The USA women’s field hockey team got their second Four Nations tournament off to a good start with a solid 3-0 win over India. This tournament, the second in a week in New Zealand, is being played at Lloyd Elsmore Hockey Stadium.
Shannon Taylor, Paige Selenski, Michelle Cesan scored for the U.S.
In Wednesday’s other game, the Kiwis and the Aussies tied 3-3. These teams have shared the spoils, with each team recording one victory in addition to this tie.
Next up for the Americans are the New Zealand Black Sticks. They’ll be trying to reverse the loss from the first four Nations tournament last week.
The USA women’s field hockey team outlasted India to win 2-1 in overtime and take third place in the Four Nations hockey tournament being hosted in Auckland. Shannon Taylor and Lauren Crandall scored the goals for the United States.
New Zealand turned around an earlier defeat by Australia to beat their old foes 3-2 to win the first Four Nations tournament. The second tournament gets under way on Wednesday. It continues through April 22.
The USA women’s field hockey team secured a 1-1 tie with India, before losing 3-1 to host New Zealand on Sunday. They will now face India again on Monday to fight for third place in the four-team tournament. The NZ Black Sticks will take on old foes Australia to duke it out for the tournament win.
The USA women’s field hockey team took a bit of beating at the hands of the Australian Hockeyroos, losing 4-0 in their opening game of the Four Nations tournament in New Zealand. The American women, ranked 10th in the world, will today take on India, before facing the New Zealand Black Sticks on Sunday, April 15. In yesterday’s other game, New Zealand held on to beat India 2-1.
The USA women’s field hockey team will be taking part in the Four Nations in New Zealand from April 12-22. Also taking part in the tournament are the New Zealand Black Sticks, as well as the national teams from Australia and India. The games will be held in Auckland and North Harbor. The full schedule for the tournament can be read here.
Please check back for updates, team information and photographs.
WATFORD, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 19: Hayden Smith of Saracens claims the line out ball during the Aviva Premiership match between Saracens and Leicester Tigers at Vicarage Road on February 19, 2012 in Watford, England. (Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images). Click through for image source.
April 4 (Reuters) – U.S. World Cup rugby player Hayden Smith has agreed to join the New York Jets, according to his representatives.
The Jets would not confirm the signing on Wednesday but Smith’s personal coach Tim Brewster and his agent Jack Bechta said an agreement was in place.
The 6-foot-7 (2.02-metre), 255-pound (116-kg) Hayden, who played college basketball at Metropolitan State in Denver, started all four group matches at the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
He has also had a spell with English rugby club Saracens.
“Hayden Smith has signed with the Jets,” said former San Diego Chargers tight-end coach Brewster on his Twitter account.
The Australian-born Smith worked out with a number of NFL teams in February including the Jets.
“It’s something that I always wanted to do growing up in Australia,” Smith told USA Today.
“You look at American pro sports as the world class leagues,” added Smith who is hoping to play for the Jets as a tight end.
“It had been a dream to play in the NBA but I see the NFL at the same level.”
Punter Ben Graham, a former Australian Rules footballer, also played for the Jets from 2005-07. (Reporting by Larry Fine in New York, editing by Tony Jimenez)
By Jerrod Beckstrom
TOKYO — Seven was the magical number for the Eagles this weekend in the Tokyo Sevens. It was the seventh stop on the HSBC Sevens World Series and the USA Men’s Eagle Sevens team claimed seven crucial Series points. That means the USA leapfrogs Scotland, Canada, and Kenya (only just) to sit at no. 10 in the world.
The Eagles went 3-3 in Tokyo with losses coming from quality opponents: Cup semifinalists and Series leaders New Zealand; Tokyo Sevens champions Australia; and the team that snuck by the USA 17-12 in the Bowl Final, France.
Three wins against Hong Kong, Kenya, and Portugal gives new USA Head Coach Alexander Magleby a platform to build on in April as the USA prepares for the Glasgow (May 5-6, 2012) and London Sevens (May 12-13, 2012).
Overall the team looked confident and opportunistic in Japan, the result of which was exciting attacking rugby. Rocco Mauer, who was playing college rugby for Bowling Green State just last year, exploded onto the scene in Tokyo scoring four tries, putting him among the elite scorers in the tournament.
Results: Pool B
Australia 15 USA O; USA 5 New Zealand 26; USA 21 Hong Kong 19.
Bowl Quarterfinal: USA 12 Kenya 7; Bowl Semifinal USA 20 Portugal 10; Bowl Final: France 17 USA 12.
