Women's Elite Rugby is Ready to Ruck
The new US league has announced its team names and logos; US 7s chugs along.
Currently watching Antoine Dupont and France trounce Wales. The Dupont-led backfield is just such a pleasure to watch. I’ll come back to them in the coming weeks.
Meantime, Women’s Elite Rugby, the US league scheduled to launch in March, has announced its team names and logos. Here they are:
I like the Bay Breakers for San Francisco best. New York Exiles is quite good, although not sure of historical or geographical relevance. In the naming competition, I proposed the Boston Strong, a term locals coined after the 2013 Boston marathon bombing. The Boston Banshees isn’t bad though, and apparently the Banshee pub in Boston is the top location to watch international sports. Here’s hoping they turn their TVs to domestic rugby this year. The Twin Cities Gemini is a cool and appropriate name, as is the Denver Onyx, given the stone comes from Colorado and the state’s mining history. Which leaves us with the Chicago Tempest. Yeah, that makes sense for the Windy City.
It’s Not Only About Nia
The USA women’s 7s team will head into the Vancouver 7s tournament on Feb. 21 with heads held high and with confidence as a team. They appear to have overcome the loss of several key players from their Bronze medal Olympic run. Alex “Spiff” Sedrick has been out with an injury, Naya Tapper, Lauren Doyle and Steph Rovetti have retired, Ilona Maher has gone to England to play 15s for the Bristol Bears…
But the team is looking good, led in part by to emerging stars, Nia Toliver and Ariana Ramsey, who made the perfect pass to Sedrick who ran the length of the field for the Bronze-winning try.
The current 7s lineup:
Ariana Ramsey, Kayla Canett, Alena Olsen, Kristi Kirshe, Rachel Strasdas, Jessica Lu, Autumn LoCicero, Su Adegoke, Sariah Ibarra, Hann Humphreys, Alyssa Porter, Nia Toliver, and Autumn Czaplicki.
So far this HSBC series, Jessica Lu, Hann Humphreys, Toliver and Ramsey have stood out for me, but the whole team has been very solid overall.
One of the most rewarding things about following this 7s team (and Maher) is checking current and former teammates’ social media updates. Ramsey posts her pre-game breakfast on Instagram, then scores a few tries and posts a photo with a caption contest and a shout out to one of her teammates. Sedrick, back in training in the US, posts about her friend Maher in Bristol.
The emotions are all genuine, which makes this all so great. The men’s game has had this sort of fraternity in the past, and this attitude will surely help it get back to its glory days (and grow). All it needs is for its heroes to start praising each other in public and competing in a healthy manner.
Meantime, let the women lead the way.