'My inbox is inundated with messages from Premiership players asking is there any chance of coming over to the MLR'
Ben Foden’s inbox is evidence of the growing interest from Gallagher Premiership players to finish their careers in the United States. The 34-times capped England and Northampton fullback is in his third and final season with Major League Rugby’s Rugby United New York, but has no intention of heading back to the UK, believing there are real opportunities to help grow the game in the USA.
As part of his preparations for the next MLR season in February, which will see ex-England captain Chris Robshaw make his debut for San Diego Legion, Foden is taking part in the World 10s Series Rugby Tournament, which runs from October 24 to November 7 in Bermuda.
Foden is part of the London Royals, a team based around the England 7s squad that is currently without RFU funding and includes record try-scorer Dan Norton, who has just completed a short-term deal with London Irish.
With a 10-a-side circuit set to launch next year to offer MLR players a chance to supplement their income during the off-season, these are significant times for the sport, and Foden believes the interest from current Premiership players proves the USA can become a viable alternative to Japan for those seeking a shorter season.
Robshaw will play his 32nd game of the English season when he runs out at Twickenham on Sunday for the Barbarians against England, and the attraction of halving that schedule by moving to the MLR was a major factor in his decision to join San Diego.
Foden told RugbyPass: “My inbox is constantly inundated with messages from players in the Premiership asking what the MLR is like and is there any chance of coming over because they would love the opportunity to finish their careers in the USA.
“The interest is definitely there from English coaches, young and old players and everyone is waiting and watching the MLR.
“I think we are three or four years away from the TV and money coming in, and because of where rugby in the USA is currently at there are so many opportunities to get involved. It is not just in the MLR, college sport over here is massive and they have lots of money and if they want to be involved there will be chances to carve out another rugby career.
“I want to help push American rugby to the forefront and put it out there as an upcoming sport in this country, and (in future) the USA could dominate.
“When rugby takes off then the Dallas Jackals will be have their own TV channel and the same will be true in New York with their own ex-players as pundits. I know that World Rugby is waiting for it to take off in the USA and it will then be a cash cow for rugby in general. It could be a game changer.
“The fact the season is only six months long means the body doesn’t take such a battering. One of my pet peeves with the Premiership is that far too much rugby is played, if you are involved in international rugby, Heineken Cup and Premiership it means you are at it every week.
“I can fully understand why Robbo (Chris Robshaw) is coming and he spoke to me about joining New York and has ended up on the west coast with San Diego, who are a really good team and he will have a nice lifestyle. They had Ma’a Nonu last season and have brought in Robbo and Cecil Afrika, the 7s star into their squad.
Welcome news for the Red Roses.🌹https://t.co/rE06KoMQa9
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 19, 2020
“I believe the MLR are getting it right now and the league is expanding and what I would like to see is the MLR and USA Rugby merging so they can jointly govern. If they are not working hand in hand then there can be a conflict of interest as the game grows. All the guys involved in the MLR want to get better with teams growing and now Los Angeles and Dallas, two big cities, are joining.”
While Foden has big plans for his rugby future in the USA, the 35-year-old ex-England fullback has the 10s to experience for the first time in Bermuda.
Asking any member of the England team to sit out of a club game would not mesh well with their instinctive nature.
It could make financial sense, though, argues @Jbeardmore https://t.co/2XHiCNGymo
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 18, 2020
He added: “Having Dan Norton in our squad is excellent and in my career I played 7s with guys like Danny Care and Dave Strettle, but never 10s.
“I am interested to see how the game works and do we play with a constant scrum-half and a pod system or just a bigger version of 7s? I believe there is room for a 10s circuit and the more rugby available the better, and getting the USA involved is great because the States is like 50 different countries and we have the MLR, the Sevens team doing well and potentially a Rugby World Cup in 2031.
“The World 7s series has gone a long way from when I played and we only used to get paid a bonus if we won.
“It is healthy for any sport to have different dimensions and tens could be a transition or a stand alone option where they guys can earn good money and see the world.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Why cant I watch Rugby games please?
1 Go to commentsBeautiful shot from Finau, end of story. Gutted for Shaun Stevenson though.
4 Go to commentsThe Chiefs definitely didn’t win ugly. They had the superior scrum, a dominant lineout, and their defence was excellent once the Waratahs scored their two tries (thanks to some lucky refereeing calls mind you). They put pressure on the Waratahs lineout throughout the game, and the mind boggles as to why the referee did not award a yellow card or a penalty try against the Waratahs for repeated scrum infringements on their own try line before Narawa’s first try. And the Chiefs were slick with their passing and running angles on attack. It was a dominant performance all round, even with many questionable refereeing decisions.
1 Go to commentsWasnt late. Ref 2 assistants andTMO all saw it so who are you to say it was?
4 Go to commentsAre the Brumbies playing the Blues twice in a row?
4 Go to commentsBig difference from the Saders. Forwards really muscled up and laid a solid platform. Scooter brought some steel and I liked the loosie combination. Newell has been rather disappointing this season but stepped up big time - happy also to see Franks dot down. He should do that more often! Reihana had a good game and there seems to be more flair and invention with him in the saddle. McNicoll plays well from the back and is reliable plus inventive when he joins the line. Keep it up chaps!
3 Go to comments🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
30 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
4 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusaders , you can keep going.
3 Go to commentsI don't know how the locals feel about that? I guess if you call yourselves the Worcester Wasps that might be appease. But really we need more teams in the Premiership in my view so they are not padding it out as they are at the moment. It might curtail so many players going abroad as well
5 Go to commentsNZ 😭😭😭is certainly rivaling England for best whingers cup!😭😭😭 !!!
30 Go to commentsYup. New Zealand won 3 out of 10 world cups played. SA 4 out of 8 attempts 30 Vs 50 per cent.🤔🤔
30 Go to commentsShould've done this years ago. Change Saturday kick off times to around 11am. Up and off and back home before 3pm, limit travel time too. Allows players to actually do something else with their Saturday that's family oriented or being rugby fans they could ‘watch’ pro rugby. Increases crowds etc. How can anyone that enjoys grassroots and pro rugby have to choose between the two on Saturdays?
9 Go to commentsI bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen 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.
30 Go to comments