Glendale, Colo. — USA Rugby’s High Performance Pathways have today announced the 26 members of its Eagle Eye Scout Network, the network made up of regional coordinators and zone representatives who attend events in their region to identify top high school talent in the men’s and women’s game. 

Eagle Eye Scout Network (EESN) spans the East, West and Central United States.  Each region is led by two regional coordinators with support from another six zone representatives. Scouts collect and submit reports on players they see while working hand-in-hand with the local community to review player recommendations. 

Teams and leagues should provide schedules and player recommendations directly to the representative in their area. Local clubs without a scout in their immediate vicinity can apply to host an Opportunity Day which functions as a combine-like event. 

Here is the full list of Eagle Eye Scouts:

EASTERN REGION

Regional Coordinators  

• Cynthia Kouril (Connecticut) ckouril@usa.rugby – Men
• Joel Bonnaud (Virginia)  jbonnaud@usa.rugby – Women

Zone Representatives 

• Eric Jerpe (Pennsylvania) ejerpe@usa.rugby – Men
• Marcus Wood (D.C.) mwood@usa.rugby – Men
• Ross Devonport (Florida) rdevonport@usa.rugby – Men
• Ryan Hargraves (Massachusetts) rhargraves@usa.rugby – Women
• Jade Garcia (Florida) jgarcia@usa.rugby – Women
• Lisa Jackson (North Carolina) ljackson@usa.rugby – Women

CENTRAL REGION

Regional Coordinators  

• Sue Whitwell (Minnesota)  swhitwell@usa.rugby – Women
• James Wilber (Colorado) – jwilber@usa.rugby – Men

Zone Representatives 

• Garrett Fisher (Ohio) gfisher@usa.rugby – Women
• Jamie Stephen (Illinois) jstephen@usa.rugby – Women
• Karl Barth (Colorado) kbarth@usa.rugby – Women
• Paul Eteaki (Texas) – peteaki@usa.rugby – Men
• Ryan McBride (Illinois) – rmcbride@usa.rugby – Men
• Daryl Jackson (Colorado) djackson@usa.rugby – Women

WESTERN REGION

Regional Coordinators 

• Stuart Proctor (S. California) – sproctor@usa.rugby – Men
• Jacquelin Finlan (N. California) – jfinlan@usa.rugby – Women

Zone Representatives 

• Alema Fitisemanu (Utah) – afitisemanu@usa.rugby –  Women & Men
• Nusi Tukuafu (Hawaii) – ntukuafu@usa.rugby – Women & Men
• Neil Foote ( N. California) – nfoote@usa.rugby – Men
• James Saddler (Oregon) – jsaddler@usa.rugby – Men
• Greg Reid (N. California) – greid@usa.rugby – Men
• Benjamin Lebeaupin (S. California)  – blebeaupin@usa.rugby –  Women
• Lauren Barber – (Washington) – lbarber@usa.rugby – Women
• TJ Olsen – (S. California) – tolsen@usa.rugby – Women

More about the Eagle Eye Scout Network >> 

“The development of a more formalized and supported scouting system is a great step for our High Performance Pathways, especially after a year without much community rugby," said Women’s High Performance Pathways Manager Martha Daines. "The work of the EESN will make it much easier for us to find new talent, track player progress and to provide development opportunities for deserving athletes. In conjunction with other pathways initiatives, the expanded scouting network should also help us better connect with rugby communities around the country.”

“As we expand our ability to reach and understand emerging rugby talent across the country, the Eagle Eye Scout Network serves an important role of observing players perform in their own environments," added Men’s High Performance Pathways Manager Brendan Keane. "By allowing us to reach players in their own local areas, we can discover more athletes who would otherwise not have been known to us.

“With the EESN, as well as our own Opportunity Days, talent identification camps and National Development Programs, we hope to build a more accessible, cohesive, and effective ecosystem to identify and develop players. The young men and women who are currently in or have recently graduated from high school will be important members of our teams for the Olympic Games 2024 and 2028, as well as Rugby World Cup 2025, 2027 and beyond. “