MARFU Are Champs

Most of you reading this blog probably already know that MARFU (we) won the 2013 Women’s 7s NASC. We beat the Pacific Coast 17-15 in the finals to take home the championship. MARFU are the 2013 Women’s 7s National All-Star Champions.

I consistently said, throughout the tournament, that our vibe was amazing, and that we were the most cohesive unit there. I also said, quite a few times, that we were the “baddest mother effers” there, and I’ll be damned if we didn’t prove me right.

I’m sure you, my few and mighty readers, can sense my elation. The moment that final whistle sounded, a blast of emotion hit me. It was like when you get tackled so hard you pee a little. The emotion hit me so hard that I cried a little. And let me tell ya, Sam Pankey is not a crier. It was, for lack of a better cliché, a magical moment.

From there it only got better. Amanda Street—one of the hardest workers, if not the hardest worker, in women’s rugby—earned MVP honors. I, and I’m sure you, can’t think of a more deserving player. She is the baddest of the bad.

And then, we all got to celebrate not only a big win for MARFU, but a great event. We all convened with our fellow rugby freaks and badasses to celebrate each other and the commitment we all put in to the sport. I’ve always said that rugby players are a rare breed. We beat the crap out of each other day in and day out, but we have this innate sense of respect for each other. It is such a great culture.

SHARKS!!

The MARFU Sharks are off to a great start in the 2013 Women’s NASC. Day 1 saw them (us) edge out So. Cal, then blaze by the South, and finally rally to squeak by NRU. At 3-0, we are sitting atop Pool B and will play the 4^th seed in Pool A, the West.

In the first match, FU put up two quick tries in the first half. Those 14 points proved to be enough for the match, as our defense held So. Cal to only 5 points. Against the South, we scored immediately on a weak-side kick off that we stole and then ran in for a try. With momentum on our side, we rolled to a 29-5 victory. NRU did to us, in the final match, just what we did to the South, jumping up to a quick 14-0 lead. However, we knew we were the baddest m.effers on the field and buckled down on defense while picking up our offensive productivity and coming back for a 17-14 win.

Day 1 didn’t end with the final match. All rugby players know that a tournament can be won or lost in the preparation and recovery stages. Not only are we badasses on the pitch, we recover like champs. Ice baths with foreign accents and Bonnie Tyler cover concerts, film sessions with a healthy dinner and back-handed compliments, and team bonding sessions that leave little to the imagination were all a part of our badass recovery. We also had a little fun with our “steety” rookies and their shark buddies. Let’s just say there was a bit of debauchery and a walk of shame involved.

Overall, the vibe is great, awesome, full of positive energy in the MARFU camp, and we are ready for Day 2 of the NASC. The game plan is simple—be the baddest m.effers on the field—and we all are feeling great about our ability to kick ass tomorrow. Go FU!

Day 1 Standings

Pool A
1 Pacific Coast 3-0
2 Midwest 2-1
3 Stars and Stripes 1-2
4 West 0-3

Pool B
1 Mid-Atlantic 3-0
2 Northeast 2-1
3 Southern California 1-2
4 South 1-2 

MARFU's Last Stand

Since my last blog, the USA WNT has competed in a three test series with France, winning one of those three matches, and finished third in the Nations Cup with a 3-1 record. There has been an entire summer of 7s. The Berkley All Blues won the Women’s National Club title, with NOVA finishing second. And now, the 7s NASC are upon us.

This year, there will be no Men’s tournament. With the elimination of the Men’s side of the 7s NASC and the Women’s 15s NASC, this event is the last of its kind. I’m not sure what the rugby higher powers have in mind for the future of the Women’s 7s NASC or any other all-star tournaments and events, but at this moment, this event is the only senior all-star championship series in USA rugby. What’s more is that with the reshuffling of the territory unions, this will be the last year MARFU (Mid-Atlantic Rugby Football Union) will field a team as MARFU (next year, the territory will be known as the Capital-something-something-Union).

What this means is that we (MARFU) have an opportunity to be the all-time champions of the Women’s 7s NASC (as we know it), just like the Midwest won the last Women’s 15s NASC and so are the reigning champs…pretty much forever. This is the last tournament we will wear MARFU jerseys and possibly the last time Bonita Betty the Shark makes an appearance (who knows what the mascot for the Capital-something-something-Union will be). Our goal is a National Championship, as it would be under any other circumstances. However, this National Championship will be a special one. We would like to retire the MARFU jerseys as champs—send Bonita riding off into the sunset (or I guess swimming into the depths of a murky sea).

MARFU’s last hurrah starts in the morning against So Cal. Then it’s on to a match against the South and finally NRU to wrap up day one of the 2013 NASC. Go Sharks!