'For all of my career playing for the USA, we had guys who were teachers or painters or farmers'
The United States may currently be a minnow of World Rugby, but their potential growth knows no bounds.
They’re blessed with athletic talent and with rugby being one of the ‘Land of the Frees’ fastest-growing sports, there’s no limit to how good the Eagles can be.
The US sporting market is unmatched, but rugby has only just begun reaping the rewards with the idea of professional American rugby sitting idle until only a few years ago.
The Eagles’ all-time games record holder, Todd Clever, was a catalyst for this change even though it didn’t come right away. Following a disappointing 2007 Rugby World Cup campaign, Clever planted the seed for the changes to the professionalism that we’re seeing today through Major League Rugby.
The Eagles were drawn in the pool of death alongside Pacific Island bruisers Tonga and Samoa, as well as defending champions England and eventual victors South Africa, who would face off in the tournament’s penultimate match.
It was a tough task, so going winless wasn’t what bothered Clever the most, it was how outmatched they were.
“That’s when I went to USA Rugby, when I had offers all over, and I said we need to have a professional team. USA Rugby agreed, they said that they would contract 22 players through the national team,” Clever said.
“Unfortunately it didn’t happen, they pulled out of it and that’s when I said, ‘if you can’t invest in your own players, I can’t be sticking around either.’ I looked at the opportunities and that’s when I went to South Africa.”
While change wasn’t immediate, the world’s biggest sporting market were just mere years away from taking large strides as a rugby nation.
In 2016, America brought professional rugby to its shores for the first time with PRO Rugby which was played predominantly on the West Coast. But the competition folded after only one season.
A year later USA Rugby introduced another competition, in Major League Rugby, which has teams spread relatively evenly across the country.
After three years, the competition is thriving after expanding and attracting impressive signings including two-time World Cup champion Ma’a Nonu, former England international Ben Foden and former France captain Mathieu Bastareaud.
Clever played for the then-named Austin Elite in its inaugural season and was also a co-owner of the franchise. He insisted that a successful competition was the “missing puzzle piece” to America finally being able to compete with the world’s best.
“For all of my career playing for the USA, we had guys who were teachers or painters or farmers. You name the profession and we had a big chunk of our squad who were made up of them. They were passionate, they loved it and they were putting their lives on hold, but you can’t really compete against the world’s greats.
“Now that we have it, it’s definitely raised the bar and hopefully that will translate into competing at the higher stages, getting more tier-one victories and better World Cup performances.
“You’ve got to crawl before you can walk, and walk before you run. A big piece of what we still need to do is educate the mass public and really get in there. Once we teach people the core values of rugby, there’s going to be a lot more parents who want their little boys and girls playing rugby because of the core values, what it’s going to turn them into.”
The impact of MLR to date is obvious, with Eagles head coach Gary Gold guiding a more well-rounded Eagles side to 10 wins from 15 matches heading into the 2019 World Cup in Japan. Impressively, that included a once-unimaginable victory over Scotland in Houston for their first win ever over tier one opposition.
The next generation are benefiting from familiar faces of USA Rugby returning through MLR to pass on their knowledge. USA Sevens legend Zack Test is now an assistant coach with 2019 MLR runners up San Diego Legion, as well as the Academy Director.
The Olympian admitted that the lack of defined pathways and academy systems for prospective rugby players in the United States had stalled the growth of the game in the past, but was thrilled to be part of the change.
“If you look at any country that has been successful in any sport, it’s about growing the game from the grassroots. When you get that kind of growth, the top end is what really benefits from it. I’m just happy to help grow that next generation and that next pathway for aspiring athletes,” Test said joyously.
“I grew up playing rugby from the age of 12 and there wasn’t a real pathway to becoming an Eagle until I was 15. You could say the lack of Academy system and pathway has hindered US Rugby but the pathway that we’re on now where there are multiple avenues to go down, has really attracted young, promising rugby players.”
The most significant impact that the competition’s success is creating for the USA Rugby program is national selectors now have a wider talent pool to pick from as more Americans pursue the sport.
Ross Depperschmidt may have a master’s degree in engineering from Alabama but MLR gave him the opportunity to compete at a professional level.
After four months in Matamata, New Zealand, Depperschmidt returned to the USA and spent fifty dollars to try out for the NOLA Gold Academy.
“I ended up coming down here, drove about four a half hours, paid fifty dollars out of my pocket to try out for the team,” Depperschmidt recalled.
“The tryout day, it was pissing down rain and there were puddles all over the field, pretty poor field conditions. There were about forty guys there, all pretty good rugby players or good athletes at least, but I figured that I’d just give it all I’ve got.”
Major League Rugby has come a long way since Depperschmidt’s paid trial in the inaugural season, the MLR is set to strengthen its pathway from the grassroots by holding its first collegiate draft on June 13 and 14.
This is expected to be a landmark event not just for the competition but for the future of rugby as America welcomes its next class of emerging talent to its professional ranks.
Comments on RugbyPass
Ben Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
19 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
7 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
19 Go to commentsHaving overseas possessions in 2024 is absurd. These Frenchies should have to give the New Caledonians their freedom.
21 Go to commentsBell injured his foot didn’t he? Bring Tupou in he’ll deliver when it counts. Agree mostly but I would switch in the Reds number 8 Harry Wilson for Swinton and move Rob Valentini to 6 instead. Wilson is a clever player who reads the play, you can’t outmuscle the AB’s and Springboks, if you have any chance it’s by playing clever. Same goes for Paisami, he’s a little guy who doesn’t really trouble the likes of De Allende and Jordie Barrett. I’d rather play Carter Gordon at 12 and put Michael Lynagh’s boy at 10. That way you get a BMT type goalkicker at 10 and a playmaker at 12. Anyways, just my two cents as a Bok supporter.
14 Go to commentsThanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
9 Go to commentsYes Sir! Surprising, just like Fraser would also have escaped sanction if he was a few inches lower, even if it was by accident that he missed! Has there really been talk about those sanctions or is this just sensational journalism? I stopped reading, so might have missed any notations.
9 Go to commentsAI is only as good as the information put in, the nuances of the sport, what you see out the corner of the eye, how you sum up in a split second the situation, yes the AI is a tool but will not help win games, more likely contribute to a loss, Rugby Players are not robots, all AI can do if offer a solution not the solution. AI will effect many sports, help train better golfers etc.
45 Go to commentsIt couldn’t have been Ryan Crotty. He wasn’t selected in either World Cup side - they chose Money Bill instead. And Money Bill only cared about himself, and that manager he had, not the team.
28 Go to commentsYawn 🥱 nobody would give a hoot about this new trophy. End of the day we just have to beat Ireland and NZ this year then they can finally shut up 🤐
19 Go to commentsTalking bout Ryan Crotty? Heard Crotty say in a interview once that SBW doesen't care about the team . He went on to say that whenever they lost a big game, SBW would be happy as if nothing happened, according to him someone who cares would look down.. Personally I think Crotty is in the wrong, not for feeling gutted but for expecting others 2 be like him… I have been a bad loser forever as it matters so much to me but good on you SBW for being able to see the bigger picture….
28 Go to commentsThis sounds like a WWE idea so Americans can also get excited about rugby, RUGBY NEEDS A INTERNATIONAL CALENDER .. The rugby Championship and Six Nations can be held at same time, top 3 of six nations and top 3 of Rugby championship (6 nations should include Georgia AND another qualifying country while Fiji, Japan and Samoa/Tonga qualifier should make out 6 Southern teams).. Scrap June internationals and year end tours. Have a Elite top six Cup and the Bottom 6 in a secondary comp….
19 Go to commentsThe rugby championship would be even stronger with Fiji in it… I know it doesen’t fit the long term plans of NZ or Aus but you are robbing a whole nation of being able to see their best players play for Fiji…. Every second player in NZ and AUS teams has Fijian surnames… shame on you!!! World rugby won’t step in either as France and England has now also joined in…. I guess where money is involved it will always be the poor countries missing out….
86 Go to commentsNo surprise there. How hard can it be to pick a ball off the ground and chuck it to a mate? 😂
4 Go to commentsSometimes people just like a moan mate!
9 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
19 Go to comments9 Brumbies! What a joke! The best performing team in Oz! Ditch Skelton for Swain or Neville. Ryan Lonergan ahead of McDermott any day! Best selection bolter is Toole … amazing player
14 Go to comments