Ilona Maher and US rugby seek breakthrough with sell-out DC doubleheader
'It's taken me seven years and two Olympics but I finally broke through,' the 28-year-old US Eagles center, social media sensation, swimwear model and reality TV star said, with a delighted laugh.
USA Rugby knows such attention is to be seized. After all, Maher's presence against Fiji at Audi Field in Washington on Saturday explains the 20,000 sellout for a program that also includes the Eagles men against England.
Out in LA, Maher told her celebrity audience: 'PSA, there is a Women's Rugby World Cup this year. Probably a lot of you didn't know the biggest event in women's rugby, starting in about a month. Watch it. Tune in. You're not gonna understand it the first time you watch it, you're not gonna understand the second time either. But just keep watching.'
It's a long way from the Dolby Theatre, where they also host the Oscars, to the Stadium of Light in Sunderland, in the English north-east. But that is the venue for the first game of the World Cup, on 22 August, US against the hosts. The Eagles rank ninth in the world, England first. For the Americans, Saturday's game against Fiji, ranked 15th, is a precious preparative test.
Jetlag be damned, Maher will play her part. On Thursday, at the USA Rugby Golden Gala, a fundraising dinner down by the National Mall, she told the Guardian: 'I got in [from LA] at like 7am and then I got in my car and went right to the field, and then practice started at 8am and then I did the gym and I did two-hour practice out in the heat.
'So I am tired. I'm ready for bed … club soda tonight. It was important for me to go to the ESPYs. It's a big thing in America, this is the first time rugby was nominated, so it was important for me to go and win as well. I'm happy I … got to say my part, which is the message I always continue to say.'
At the ESPYs, Maher said: 'Strong is beautiful. Strong is powerful. It's sexy, it's whatever you want it to be. And I hope more girls can feel how I feel.'
The same night, back east, the rugby clans of DC and representatives of Saturday's teams gathered at the British Embassy on Massachusetts Avenue, for a reception hosted by Peter Mandelson, ambassador to the court of King Donald.
Pronouncing himself 'a great rugby fan', Lord Mandelson said: 'It's a magnificent contest of force and skill – just like politics. And rugby union: I emphasize that word 'union' because your sport is incredibly unified. It really brings people together … just like politics.'
Polite laughter ensued. Alan Gilpin spoke next. As chief executive of World Rugby, he has placed a big bet by placing the 2031 and 2033 World Cups on American soil. Saluting USA Rugby's 50th birthday, Gilpin said: 'This is a perfect moment to honor those not just who are playing now but those who are laying a trail and creating a bold new future.
'And let us be clear, these Rugby World Cups in the USA will not just be historical games. They'll grow the game's reach, they'll grow the game's impact, they'll grow the game's values, not only here in the US but across the world.'
Attempts to persuade American sports fans continue. Representatives of CBS Sports were among those enjoying the canapés and champagne.
Among the delegations of players, the American men were led by Nate Augspurger of Chicago, the English by George Ford of Sale. Augspurger won his 51st cap last week, on the wing in a disappointing defeat by Spain in Charlotte, North Carolina. Further south, in San Juan, Argentina, Ford won his 101st cap for England, directing from fly-half as his men completed a series win despite missing 15 men in Australia with the Lions.
Augspurger saluted Major League Rugby, the US pro competition which recently completed its eighth season, as 'the breeding ground for our new USA Eagles'.
'Even on this tour right now, we've already had six new caps and we'll have a few more coming in [on Saturday] as well,' Augspurger said, of a squad which also includes players sourced around the world.
'For a guy who's been around a long time … it's just about leading by example, showing them the way. The great part is we're getting a professional-standard athlete into the Eagles now. For a long time, that wasn't always the case … and that gives us all the confidence and growth.'
Ford said: 'We've got players away with the Lions, [but that gives others] a chance to push themselves forward. We had a good couple of wins [in Argentina]. There were difficult challenges, but we've worked really hard to make sure that we're on the right side of the scoreboard. So we'll be looking to do that again this week against the USA, which we know is going to be a different challenge.'
The England coach, Steve Borthwick, has named three uncapped players in an XV retaining only three men from last weekend. According to Borthwick, Gloucester lock Arthur Clark, Bath center Max Ojomoh and Sale full-back Joe Carpenter 'have earned their chance through their effort and attitude [as] we aim to keep building the squad.'
Three uncapped players sit on the bench: Gloucester fly-half Charlie Atkinson, Harlequins center Oscar Beard and Bristol hooker Gabriel Oghre.
On Thursday, at the Golden Gala, Eagles coach Scott Lawrence told the GuardIan his team had no illusions about the task ahead.
'Playing against a team like England, the base of the game is about building the robustness in the players to move from Major League Rugby to Test rugby … It's one step in that journey of building the type of international players that we want to have long-term, leading into World Cup qualification.'
Counseling realism from US fans (a group used to outright fatalism, most years) Lawrence said 'a lot of things are happening under the water but they take … two to three years to come to fruition before you see the investment actually realized.'
At the Embassy, the Guardian stepped aside for a word with Bill Goren, the USA Rugby chief executive. Delighted to contemplate a sell-out crowd – even in the infernal heat and storms of a DC sweat-box summer – Goren said: 'When I took this job, I saw the opportunity that was in front of us with the World Cups, with the Olympics [sevens, in Los Angeles in 2028], with the momentum that the women's teams were having, as well as the World Cup that the men are going to qualify for.'
That will depend in the first instance on the Pacific Nations Cup later this summer, as Lawrence's Eagles seek to avoid the fate of the 2023 vintage, who failed to make it to France.
Goren continued: 'It's exciting to be here in DC, having both teams on the field, a sell-out. A full weekend of events like this is a showcase for rugby in the US, not just USA Rugby.'
Recent reports have depicted outside interests eyeing the US, whether for implanted Super Rugby teams or as part of R360, the putative breakaway league championed by Mike Tindall, World Cup winning England center turned entrepreneur.
At the embassy, Goren chose his words … diplomatically.
'We're aware of everything that's going on. When there's a rumor, I'll follow up with it, understand what the landscape is, how it impacts us, where we're going to support and not support at times. I do all of that. I don't let it pull me down, getting involved in rumors and that type of stuff.
'What I need to do is just keep pushing our team forward, because there's an opportunity for our four teams to get better and stronger. There's more tools. We're not going to just stop and wait for something to happen. We continue to drive forward every day. Let's put on good games on Saturday. It's going to be great.'
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