GRR: Eagle Men
Having coached the USA Men’s 7s team to a place in the 2016 Olympics, and to their first-ever World Series tournament victory in London, Head Coach Mike Friday can cross a couple off his list of goals - now there’s another list entry to worry about.
The Pan-Am Games Opening Ceremonies start Friday night, and while the USA Men’s 7s team won’t be in attendance because they play the next day, being in the athletes village and part of a multi-sport event is still an exciting thing.
The Eagles will get together soon to prepare for the Pacific Nations Cup, hopefully clothed and perhaps some of the big changes we might see will be in the numbers 4 through 8.
The USA Men’s National 15s team will officially begin their 2015 season next week as they assemble for the Pacific Nations Cup.
It’s an assembly that means a lot, in part because it’s an assembly of (almost) everyone, and it’s the first assembly in a World Cup year.
Mike Petri, who will prepare for his third World Cup, likes how things are shaping up.
Almost an afterthought, it seems, is the Pan-Am games, which kicks off its rugby competition in exactly one week.
In 2011, the Pan-Am Games welcomed back Rugby 7s as a competition - albeit men only that time - and the rugby tournament, won by Argentina, was one of the last of the event, allowing the rugby players to see Ricky Martin in person at the closing ceremonies.