PR7s just held their latest open tryouts, enticing players from all over the West to Kansas City to go through workouts and games in the hopes of being picked up by a pro 7s team.
Overseeing it all was Mike Tolkin, who is PR7s General Manager and who helps teams find players for the summer season (the schedule for which is coming out soon).
The biggest issue for these sorts of tryouts is the fact that athletes can sometimes underestimate what it takes to impress. You’ve got to show up on time and ready to go, for sure, but the athletic and fitness benchmarks are high, and that’s why you might see some athletes show up at several tryouts, realizing that they need to put more work in to measure up.
Coming out of Kansas City, Tolkin was very upbeat. Talking to GRR he praised the numbers, the enthusiasm, and the skill level.
He also praised the help on the ground—PR7s holds these tryouts all over the country and it’s vital that the local rugby community chips in.
“The people on the ground were really forceful in helping out—Pat Clifton, Tim Kluempers, and the other officials in Kansas and Missouri. Their enthusiasm and support was top-rate.”
Experienced PR7s players worked the camp as participants but also helped the other athletes navigate the process. Amanda Hull, Coleson Warner, and Kyle Renner, for example, pulled double-duty and also helped with the youth camp.
We’re kicking off the first Talent ID Trial of the day! #SevensNewHome#KC#KansasCitypic.twitter.com/uhUrIMtM4m
— Premier Rugby Sevens (@prsevens) January 28, 2024
So with good numbers and good support and experienced players helping out, did the tryout do the job?
“We saw players ready to step into PR7s,” said Tolkin. “There was a strong showing of people who put their hands up. We probably had eight men who could step right in and play and another eight to ten who are on the cusp. For the women, there were four who could definitely play and another four or so who are on the cusp.”
