Maher’s in Paris with the USA 7s. (PC: Jackie Finlan)
We talked about the National Development Academy (NDA) 7s tournament (June 16-17) occurring in Chula Vista, Calif., and how it’s a direct pathway to the USA Women’s 7s program (read more). Seven teams will compete but two notable NDAs are missing: ARPTC and Scion.
ARPTC and Scion are NDAs but also active clubs; i.e., they compete toward the USA Rugby Club 7s National Championship in August. These NDA/clubs are active all summer and compete in qualifiers, and both the South and Mid-Atlantic are holding qualifiers the weekend of the NDA 7s. Santa Barbara attempted to qualify for club 7s nationals last year, and may be doing the same in 2018, but that NDA is much closer to Chula Vista than Arkansas and D.C.
Hopefully, the comprehensive schedule – for the rest of 2018 – that was released will set expectations for future planning, and these conflicts can be managed going forward. Unfortunately that has not been the trend the last several years.