The day Lindenwood arrived in Bath for the Red Bull World Uni 7s, Head Coach Josh Macy had been on the job for a week.

Taking your new team to a major tournament may not be the easiest way to start the job, but it all turned out quite nicely, as the Lions finished 3rd in the tournament, losing only to the two teams that finished 1st and 2nd.

“What was nice about it was that we really didn’t have any pressure to win,” Macy told Goff Rugby Report. “The guys were going to work hard and play to the best of their ability, but we could also relax a little, which helped.”

The team arrived in the historic city of Bath in England, where the defending champions, Bath University, are based (Bath went on to win it all again). They toured the city and saw the Roman baths for which the city is named. 

Macy said the team’s 7s character was pretty much settled and, despite having a strong 7s background, he didn’t change much in terms of on-the-field play. But he did have other thoughts:

“I told them a lot about what I expected from them as young men,” he said. “And the guys responded really well. When we got there, Red Bull gave us all this kit with USA on it - it was surreal. We had a bunch of guys from overseas, but they embraced the USA part of it, and the guys were talking about how they wanted to stay in the US, establish their eligibility, and play for the Eagles.”

The tournament itself was very taxing, with four pool games, a semifinal, and a final, all squeezed into a one-day tournament. Twice Lindenwood had to play back-to-back games. To accommodate the rough schedule, tournament organizers allowed open subs, and there Macy drew inspiration from hockey, using what was essentially line changes. After a long period of play, when the ball went dead he’d replace the entire forward trio. Another time he’d replace the backs. If a player went on a long run, he’d be subbed out immediately.

Still it was difficult, and their semifinal against Cardiff Metropolitan was the one time when the fatigue showed, and the Welsh team won big. But their other loss, early in the day against Bath, was a tight, 27-19 affair. At the end of the day they recovered enough to defeat Universidade Paulista of Brazil for 3rd.

The players got to see a little history in Bath, which dates back to Roman times.

Macy credits the coaching staff for getting the players ready, and the leadership group among the players for keeping them focused.

The team itself was an interesting mix of home-grown talent and athletes from outside the USA - like many college programs. They were led by Mickey Batemen, the 2015 USA Rugby 7s Championships MVP, and featured Deion Mikesell, the Iowa HS MVP who was capped by the Eagles as a freshman. Among the standouts were Nick Feakes, the Australian-trained speedster, and KC Jr. Blues product Sam Chapman, who impressed with his passing, and especially with his defense. 

The Lindenwood squad to Bath was:

Alex Augspurg, Christian Rodriguez, Deion Mikesell, Giovanni Falco, Mickey Bateman, Nick Feakes, Sam Chapman, Tadhg Leader, Travis Heer, Ty Turner, Wes Parker, Wesley White.

Heer and Parker were HS All Americans, and Mikesell played with the Eagle Impact Rugby Academy and the USA U20s. 

It's called Bath for a reason. The Roman baths in Bath, and some rugby players.