Rugby world cup 2007 has already started. USA will play their first match against defending champion England on 8 September. It is clearly seen that USA is underdog in the match. It is now open secret that USA is not expecting to cause an upset against the English side because it is hardly possible for them. President of USA Rugby, Nigel Melville has recently revealed his realistic goal regarding the Rugby world cup 2007.
Rugby is not a popular sport and people think rugby is for the overweight, foreigners’ game. So, naturally USA could not yet develop in Rugby. It is thought that for USA money is not a problem. However, it is hard to believe that their rugby players are to do other jobs for earning their livelihood besides playing rugby. So, rugby, for them, is like a pastime or maximum a love. So, in USA, rugby has not experienced professionalism and that is why, the young generation is not interested to play rugby seriously.
The New York Times reported:
“Some of the top teams are absolutely spoilt,” United States fly half Mike Hercus said. “We’ve got a lot of guys who have to have 9-to-5 jobs through the year. Hypothetically, if we were to win the World Cup, our average player would walk away with hardly any money. If England wins it, their players would walk away with about $400,000 each.”
It seems that USA is now serious about rugby. So, I think, USA players should be given the credit that they have been qualifying for the Rugby world cups despite a lot of obstacles. I hope, USA authority will take rugby seriously thinking about the potential of rugby in USA and the world wide popularity of rugby. Here, I think, international rugby board (IRB) can play a big part initiating some developing programs in USA.
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