Nigel Melville Direct

I thought you maybe interested in the video below. It is a short clip following the Cincinnati Bengals linebacker's recent visit to England to play some rugby.

In life and rugby there are times when you have to adapt and chart a new course in order to win. As 2008 progressed it became very clear that the slowing down of the economy was creating significant uncertainty, the world we understood became a world we did not know and could not predict.

USA Rugby Chairman, Kevin Roberts and the USA Rugby Board are a pretty diverse group in terms of the markets in which they operate. During the last 6 months, they have been united in their belief that we would be unlikely to see any significant upturn for 18 months.

When the Board took over running USA Rugby in 2006, there was an expectation that the rolodexes would spin and the revenues required to compete with the big boys of world rugby would come rolling in.

Whilst revenues have significantly increased, USA Rugby needs an operating budget in the region of $20m per year to make the type of progress we would like to see. Whilst we are approaching the halfway point, strategies in 2009 must reflect the economy – it’s time to achieve more with less, a time to win ugly!

When it comes to more from less, take a look at our 2009 IRB High Performance funding. Paid in sterling, with a strong dollar the grant will see a reduction of more than 25 percent in the coming months. As a result, the program has to change. The focus will be on the Under-17, U-18, U-20, All-Americans and the Eagles 7s, player talent identification and tracking, a select number of All-Star events and an Elite Player Development Camp this summer. Regional High Performance centers staffed by full time specialist staff will have to wait.

Contracting players and creating a professional league in 2009 was a real possibility, talks with one group are ongoing, but they are reluctant to discuss rolling out their plan until the economy at least stabilizes. During the last few weeks we have started to place players in European Clubs. This provides a professional training environment for our top players that will undoubtedly help to improve the performance of the Eagles this summer.

USA Rugby currently has more than 20 players playing professionally overseas. We have some way to go catch up with Argentina who have more than 300 players in Europe alone. One problem we face is the overseas status of American players in Europe. Argentine players tend to have strong Spanish and Italian lineage that makes them a more valuable commodity, club quotas mean that the overseas players are global icons from New Zealand, Australia and South Africa rather than the USA.

Domestic Eagles will continue to play in Super League and NA4 competitions this year. I am hoping to combine the NA4 with regional selection and competitions this year, talks with the IRB about the NA4 will continue in early February. The domestic men’s competition, particularly Division 1, will be an exciting championship this year. The Division 1 winner will be promoted to the 2010 Rugby Super League. I know of four teams who think they can win it! On the other side of this situation, relegation from Super League will also be introduced.

The Eagles will have a busy schedule this year, the Churchill Cup will be followed by back-to-back World Cup qualifiers against Canada in July. We hope to be able to announce next week, two full tests outside this window and new Superpowers Cup in November.

One highlight in 2009 will be the Rugby World Cup Sevens, both the USA Rugby men’s and women’s teams qualified and our expectations are rightly high.

The IRB doesn’t support the women’s game with high performance funds, but we have a women’s HP Manager who is developing a quality program and pathway for the women’s game. The women’s sevens squad is already in camp preparing for their World Cup campaign.

Thanks to our strong relationship with the National Guard, we will be increasing the visibility of our college game with the broadcasting of three ‘National Guard Games of the Week’ during the spring. In 2010, it is proposed that we launch a new Premier College Competition, talks with potential sponsors have been extremely positive (despite the economy).

This morning I met with Saatchi and Saatchi’s Youth Connection staff to continue my work developing a strategy for youth rugby in the USA. The appointment of Mark Griffin as Youth and High School Director, launch of Rookie Rugby, growth of State-Based Rugby Organizations (SBROs) and a number of other youth programs across the country are all aimed at raising the profile of the game to an increasingly young audience. I am continuing to discuss this area of the game with potential sponsors.