Old Glory DC Partners With Capital Rugby Union For Player Development And Pathway To MLR

The news just keeps on getting better for Washington D.C.'s newest sports team as Old Glory DC announced the other day that they will be partnering with Capital Rugby Union with finding ways of getting players in the DC area and other parts of the Mid-Atlantic a player development pathway to a Major League Rugby contract. With this type of partnership, it allows sponsorship support, coaching expertise and assistance, marketing support, opportunities for players earn a contract at the MLR level. The team will provide jersey's for both men's and women's select sides for what is going to be known as "Old Glory Capital Selects." This is a type of development that not only will help make the league viable long-term, but also help with the growth of the sport in the United States. This is also another good way of finding talent and help build a winning culture for a rugby club.

The CRU covers a long range of clubs in the Mid-Atlantic in the D.C., Maryland, Virginia, Pittsburgh, and Raleigh areas. It's for 55 men's, women's, and collegiate women's clubs. The hope here is that the club can develop some talent and honor them MLR contracts, while also building up women's rugby. In the Old Glory press release it was stated that it's "expected that the men’s select side will include many of Old Glory’s training players and reserves." To find players in that wide range of clubs in a great span of the country, the team could find a load of talent. This is a way for Old Glory to develop some homegrown talent. This is a very similar set-up to what baseball is like with developing players as this is similar to the minor league system.

In the Old Glory press release, one quote stood out as Tim Brown, Old Glory’s Director of Youth and Player Development, said this: “The Capital Rugby Union will now provide a clear pathway for players and coaches to develop their game with their home clubs while potentially growing through the selects program into a genuine potential professional opportunity with MLR.  Our goal as a professional team is to promote as many home-grown Mid-Atlantic players as possible to our organization."