OMBAC 7s crown completes historic double

OMBAC defeated defending 7s titlist Old Blue 29-14, becoming the first to win America’s premier 15s and 7s championships in a single year.

The San Diegans survived a 17-14 overtime encounter with the Maryland Exiles, whom they had defeated for the 2002 7s crown, before downing the New Yorkers in a rematch of the last year’s final.

The 2006 title is OMBAC’s sixth in the abbreviated game – four of them since 2000 – to go along with seven 15s wins. Only the University of California, with 22 championships, and Highland, with 15 high school crowns, can count more national trophies.

In another remarkable double, 7s Eagle Riaan Hamilton backed up man-of-the-match honors in OMBAC’s June Super League title win with a 7s MVP performance over the weekend’s six unbeaten games, three of them shutouts.

The Denver Barbarians handled the Exiles 24-5 to claim third place, the Barbos having fallen 28-14 to Old Blue in the day’s other semifinal. In quarterfinal matches, OMBAC blanked Golden Gate 19-0, Old Blue moved past Scioto Valley 22-17, the Barbos stifled Daytona 10-5, and the Exiles dispatched Oxy 14-5.

Oxy, with several Belmont Shore 15 players in the squad, defeated Scioto Valley 31-21 for the Plate championship, while the Olympic Club defeated Coralville 32-19 for the Bowl title. USA Rugby permits players from clubs that do not field 7s teams to compete for another side during the summer 7s season.

Riverside, yet another Southern Californian outfit, in 2003 was the first to claim 15s and 7s titles in a calendar year, but won the second division while the Boston Irish Wolfhounds took first-division honors and Belmont Shore the Super League that year.  Northern California’s San Mateo and the now-defunct Old Blues too have won both crowns, but not within the three-month period from June to August.

Comments

[Jason Maloni]

Full credit to OMBAC for an excellent performance.

On a hosting note I thought Chuckanut went above and beyond providing all the regular amenities like tents, water, laundry, etc but also great new treats like DVDs of matches within 2 hours of your game and a top class 14-person medical facility. My complaint is that the location of this event made it extremely difficult. As one West team manager told me "at least USA Rugby found a place equally difficult for all teams to get to."

I would award this event to Chuckanut to manage for the next 10 years, just not to be held in this remote corner of America. Passionate, detail-oriented hosts don't make up for an expensive and difficult trek for 16 teams, many of whom had to devote substantial time to fundraising this summer to cover flights and accomodation. The last straw was that the tiny airport Monday was closed because they couldnt get the runway lights on so all the early flights were cancelled.

Isnt there somewhere more central to the U.S. rugby hotspots (LA, San Fran, Chicago, NY or DC) or a fanbase (youth teams) or European tourists (Orlando) than Washington state? Why hasnt USA Rugby outgrown the "hopefully someone will bid" way of thinking to the more strategic "where should this event be" mind set.

Jason Maloni
Maryland Exiles
(2006 Nat Club 7s bidder)

[Howard Kent]

Keys for USA Rugby to determine hosting for a major USA Rugby national event:

1) Make the host requirements as affordable as possible
2) Make the bid process open
3) Identify potential clubs that are capable of hosting (few of these)
4) Identify potential clubs that are desirous of hosting (fewer of these)
5) Verify that the facilities are of a quality that suits high level competition
6) Locate in cites with major hub airports
7) Determine if other major events are happening in the area at the time and avoid these
8) Use multiple pitches simultaneously when available and of equal quality
9) Allow the hosts to schedule the events and matches in a way that allows for later arrivals and/or earlier departures
10) Develop multi year agreements with hosts to encourage development of the product as has occasionally been done in the past
11) Develop multi event national sponsorships to help defray the costs

Howard Kent
Denver Barbarians
7s Manager/Assit. Coach

(303) 620-9913 C

[Emil Signes]

I agree with Jason Maloni on both counts - the hosting was out of this world!!! But, my God, let me tell you about our travel . . . Granted it was the day of the "no liquids" policy, but nevertheless. . . We met at the rugby field in Bethlehem PA at 1 PM (10 AM PDT) Thursday to travel to the Pniladelphia airport. We missed our connection in Las Vegas, had to spend the night there arriving at our hotel just 5 hours before we had to return to the airport.

After getting to Seattle and renting vans we encountered several traffic jams on the way to Ferndale, which ended up being more than a 3 hour drive to the Chukanut Bay Polo Grounds, (we landed at 12:10 and got to the fields at about 5 PM PDT). It took us, therefore, 31 hours to get from field to field. I've gotten to Hong Kong quicker.

Granted, we had some bad luck, but that long drive on top of all that flying, even with good connections (it was too expensive to fly direct) would have been tough . . .

I did thoroughly enjoy everything the hosts did for us, though, and . . . what a nice place!!!

So -- 1) FABULOUS JOB hosting (no complaints and LOTS of praise for the locals who definitely went "above and beyond")
2) really really (really) far for a lot of teams. . .

Emil Signes

[Ivan Hardnett]

I agree witht the above. I also feel that at some point the officiating in the US is going to have to improve. The Ref's did not even have radio's on. How is it on the highest level of rugby here we are not using all of the tools that would if nothing else give refs an advantage. Why are they constantlty making an obstruction and then not even calling the play back.

But yes the cost for rentals was enormous the hosting was great however, i would not have been opposed to it if it were in Seattle.