Womens world series

[B52 REF]

So Amsterdam makes the bigtime- whoopwhoop. also note the USA leg is HOUSTON the week before Vegas- am thinking of making a fortnight of it as used to cQach a bit of rugby at UoH- anyone else likely to be reffing/attending both??

 

[Bryan]

I'll be refereeing in the Cake Tin the same weekend it comes to Houston. Then in LV the week after.

BBVA Stadium is 5 mins from my house. In a bit of a "dodgy" part of town depending on which side-street you take, but it will be decent weather in February.

 

[B52 REF]

shame they're not playing at robertson- i'll probably stay with old Uh friends near there (or friends ranch out in spring and commute) .
east downtown holds no fears for me - used to scare my local girlfriends my taking themto dodgy chickenshacks there. see you in vegas, enjoy the bedlam that is the caketin.

 

[Bryan]

shame they're not playing at robertson- i'll probably stay with old Uh friends near there (or friends ranch out in spring and commute)

So you're either going to get shanked in the 4th Ward, or deal with the Gulf Freeway south into town!?

Mother of murphy, were it not for knowing about how much you party, I'd offer you my digs but the missus wouldnt be too pleased!

 

[MrQeu]

Well, I'm noone to question the IRB decision, but among the spanish rugby community this announcement has come as a very bad one.

The women's sevens team is one we rugby fans are quite proud of. IRB was supposed to refrain from having a final decision on women World Series and the core team until the Sevsn RWC was to played in June. But they have taken this decision now, 8 months earlier. Also, that the hay selected the Netherlands, a team that has consistently been defeated by both Spain and England, while none of those two have been selected as core teams. Mayhaps because Amsterdam will hold a venue of the Series?

 

[MrQeu]

Well, I'm noone to question the IRB decision, but among the spanish rugby community this announcement has come as a very bad one.

The women's sevens team is one we rugby fans are quite proud of. IRB was supposed to refrain from having a final decision on women World Series and the core team until the Sevsn RWC was to played in June. But they have taken this decision now, 8 months earlier. Also, that the hay selected the Netherlands, a team that has consistently been defeated by both Spain and England, while none of those two have been selected as core teams. Mayhaps because Amsterdam will hold a venue of the Series?

I stand corrected. England is a core team (I was told there were only 4 core teams, AUS-NZ-CAN-NET), as well as USA.

Anyway, the bad feeling among the ladies is there. They beat the Netherlands nearly always and didn't get a core status.

Well, maybe we could* point at the Spanish Federation for not making movements towards the development of Sevens even though the IRB and the spanish government do fund it quite heavily, but they move around the budgets and any money which was supposed to be for the sevens goes to the 15-a-side and the ladies (both sevens and 15-a-side) kept being forgotten (they had to travel by Easyjet/Ryanair with hand luggage and back the same day to play some internationals and in one of them in England no doctor was with them because the budget didn't allow it).


*Please read this could ironically as it should be "must" :biggrin:

 

[irishref]

yes, the choice of the Netherlands as a core team ahead of Spain is a slightly puzzling one, I believe the Netherlands have never beaten Spain in ladies sevens rugby. But lest we forget, they are a profesisonal outfit and perhaps some expectation is that they will improve very quickly as they are truly focussing on the ladies sevens game here.

I'll certainly be around for the Amsterdam leg of the series, if not in an official capacity certainly in the crowd!

 

[irishref]

Netherlands ladies have just beaten Spain in a tournament in France. Now if it was the full spanish team, perhaps we're seeing some vindication?

 

[MrQeu]

Netherlands ladies have just beaten Spain in a tournament in France. Now if it was the full spanish team, perhaps we're seeing some vindication?

Well, you said it: the Netherlands ladies are pros. The spaniards aren't. And that's only fault of the Spanish Federation, no one else's.

One of the top spanish players (prop Maria Ribera) plays for Richmond 1st in the women's premiership and is able to live in England because of the money her family lends her (quite difficult to have a job while being an international and she's not paid to play on Richmond). Last year she was paid by the spanish federation less than 5000€ because of the international duty (60€/day), but she had to pay for bed and food half of the time she was with the team, only when on tournaments they were given the 60€/day + hotel room + food, so at the very end, the ladies weren't able to save much money.

That's the problem: Nearly no economic funding from the spanish federation.

Anyhow, Kudos to the Netherland ladies. They have beaten Spain in the Plate final, but they lose on the pool match. We'll see what happens when the Series and the WC comes.

 

[irishref]

I was very impressed with the Spanish ladies at last summer's European Sevens championships in the Netherlands. They gave England a real scare in the final!