Traditionally, the National Invitational Tournaments (NITs) and Regional Cup Tournaments (RCTs) are major venues for high school 15s teams and college recruiters, but Covid-19 eliminated those events in 2020 and 2021. Morris Rugby, in coordination with BaseCamp31, has created the Mid-Atlantic Women’s Rugby Showcase (June 5-6, Lebanon, N.J.) to address that gap in opportunity, and intends to make the event a permanent fixture on the rugby calendar.
Mike Eisenhart is organizing the event, and his rugby story begins at UConn in the late 90s. He still plays with the Connecticut Grey and also coaches the Drew University men alongside Bill Dobbs, who took over as Morris Girls U18 head coach in fall 2020. Eishenhart set a rule to never coach his kids’ teams, but as is the rugby way, he joined the U18 staff as backs coach this year. Mike’s daughter, Alissa, is a junior in high school and a current Lion.
“With nationals being canceled [the past two years] there hasn’t been a chance for the girls to be seen by college coaches,” Eisenhart said of the motivation to create the event. “These athletes are working hard and checking all the boxes, and we don’t want them to get discouraged with Covid. We want them to be rewarded and have coaches see them.”
But the pandemic wasn’t the only factor in creating the showcase. Eisenhart noted that rugby, compared to other sports, needed help in connecting players to coaches.
“Other sports do showcases all the time,” he said. “My daughter plays high-level soccer and we travel all over the country. We’re going to a showcase in California in a couple of weeks. In rugby, that scenario doesn’t exist as much – where kids are coming out to be seen and not so much to win a tournament. We want to help with the recruiting process and just seeing how successful it is [with soccer] and not seeing anything like that in rugby, we threw out the idea.”
There are two elements to the showcase. Day one resembles a regular tournament day, where established teams compete against each other. But there’s no title, per se, to be won.
Photo: Lindsay Eisenhart
“There is something to be said for the continuity of the game and the team itself,” Eisenhart said of the value of seeing players in the context of their home teams. “We have a combine event in New Jersey every year and it’s great, but it’s hard to see how those [metrics] translate onto the field. At those individual ID camps, if you have the skill or stature that everyone is looking for, then you’ll stand out. But most of our girls are picking up the game and getting good at it, but you’ll need the continuity of the team and the players they’re used to playing beside to see that.”
Recruiters have echoed as much. In a pre-event poll, scouts didn’t express interest in a combine but wanted to see players in a game and team environment.
“We asked them what they’re looking for – a specific position? A specific skill,” Eisenhart said. “It was interesting, because a lot of them are generally looking for athletes who can play the game and are interested [in playing in college], and can be successful in the classroom. Skills weren’t mentioned until much later.”
But the second day of the showcase aligns with more of an all-star event. All of the players are pooled together for a recruits-only game.
“Now recruiters can see both sides,” Eisenhart said. “They see players with their home team and then in a game situation with conditions they might not be used to. They have that juxtaposition.”
Photo: Lindsay Eisenhart
There will also be a middle school 7s component to build out the day, and so the younger players can gain a sneak peek at what the next stage of rugby can look like.
In terms of event planning, the showcase got a late start, but the calendar was more forgiving in the Covid-19 era. The event will need to find the right date that navigates the region’s state playoffs and the onset of summer 7s. With that said, there is real opportunity to develop relationships with and buy-in from top high school programs. The alternatives can be logistically difficult (NITs) and/or inconsistent (the Northeast RCT, for example, moves location every year and thus organized by different entities).
At present, the showcase includes teams like Morris, Doylestown, Play Rugby Academy and Aspetuck in the high school bracket. Eisenhart indicated that teams can still commit, and same with individuals, who can register and then be placed on a team.
From the recruiter side, Eisenhart indicated that a dozen or so have committed, another 10 are hoping to attend, and five or so are hoping their travel restrictions lift before the event.
“Our idea is: We’ll make it work,” Eisenhart said of hosting the inaugural event. “We built this because it was badly needed, and we’re hoping the rugby community can come together and make it happen.”
The rugby entourage is also being celebrated at the showcase, and the event will have a party with live music and games and beverages to make it a fun weekend.
Click here for more information on the MAWRS event.