Jarryd Hayne's Switch From Rugby League to American Football

Jarryd Hayne
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Jarryd Hayne was one of the best rugby league players in the world on Tuesday. On Wednesday, he was not.

Hayne announced on Wednesday that he would be quitting the sport of rugby league in order to pursue a career in the NFL.

The Australian is 26 years old, was a member of the Parramatta Eels of Australia's National Rugby League, the Australian rugby league national team, and the New South Wales rugby league team. Hayne had just won his second Daily M Medal this year for being the best player in the NRL and also won the award for best fullback.

The decision shocked Australia. While Hayne said at his announcement that he was thinking about doing this for almost two years, it came as a surprise. The NRL could have used a clause to keep him in the league, but both the league and Eels gave Hayne their best wishes and told him to go fulfill his dream. 

Hayne is not the only prominent rugby league player to leave the sport this year. Sam Burgess and Sonny Bill Williams also left the sport at the end of the 2014 season. Both switched to rugby union.

The comparison being made to Hayne's decision is to when Michael Jordan switched from basketball at the height of his career to baseball. While, the comparison can be made, it is not close to being the same. Jordan left basketball to play baseball, a sport that is popular in the USA. Hayne is leaving to play in american football, a sport that is not popular in Australia, and is also being played on the other side of the Earth. You also have to remember that Hayne is not the only rugby league star leaving the sport. There has never been anything like this before.

Jarryd Hayne
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If Hayne makes it to the NFL, he would most likely be a running back who may also return kicks and punts. Hayne could be a tenacious runner out of the backfield, especially in goal-line and short distance situations. He has the intangibles to be a complete running back, both with his speed, his power, and his hands. If kicking returns does not work, he could also be a great special teamer. 

It is being reported that Hayne is being looked at by at least six NFL teams, one of those teams being the Detroit Lions. Hayne may be signed before the season ends, but the chance he plays in a NFL game this year is pretty much impossible. 

Hayne can make it to the NFL. He has the physical attributes and the work ethic to play in the NFL by next season. His success playing american football could be very high, and it could also be low. The key to Hayne's success how quickly he will understand a playbook and how much knowledge of the game he will have. I look forward to seeing Hayne on a football field on Sundays next Fall.

2013 Rugby League World Cup: The Dominance of Australia

Official Logo
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The 2013 Rugby World Cup, the fourteenth overall, was held from October 26th and ended today, November 30th. The Rugby League World Cup has been played very sporadically over it's history. It last held in 2008, and before that in 2000. This year, it was held in England and Wales, but games were also played in France and Ireland. Fourteen teams were in the tournament. They were Australia, Cook Islands, England, Fiji, France, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Scotland, Tonga, United States, and Wales. 

Coming into the tournament, Australia was the favorite. Not only have they won nine tournaments before, they were also number one in the RLIF rankings. It was going to be very tough to beat the Kangeroos. Heading into the tournament, Tim Sheens had  lost only one game as Head Coach 

Two other title contenders were New Zealand and France, ranked second and fourth respectively. Both teams have been to every World Cup and New Zealand won the last one in 2008. The Kiwis have not finished better than third since 1975. The Les Chanticleers have struggled in the last couple years, including finishing in last in the 2008 World Cup.

In the group stages, Australia and New Zealand showed off their muscles. In Group A, Australia went 3-0, beating England 28-20, Fiji 34-2, and Ireland 50-0. Other then their loss to the Kangaroos, England had an easy time. The Wall of White beat Fiji 34-12 and Ireland 40-0. New Zealand had no competitor in Group B. The Kiwis had plus/minus of +112. Their big wins included destroying France 48-0 and Papua New Guinea 56-10. In Group C, Scotland edged Tonga as the Groups only representative in knockout round. Both teams had a 2-1 record, but Scotland beat Tonga 26-24 to make the next round. In the last group, the USA, in their first World Cup, won the group and the spot in the next round,by beating group-mates, Wales and the Cook Islands.

The knockout round featured the top three teams from Group A and B, and the top team from Group C and D. None of the games were close. Australia annihilated the United States 62-0. Brett Morris and Jarryd Hayne both had four tries. New Zealand routed Scotland, 40-4, England defeated France 34-6, and Samoa lost to Fiji 22-4.

Jarryd Hayne
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In the semi-finals, Australia had another easy win. They demolished Fiji 64-0. The second semi-final, between England and New Zealand, was a thrilling game. With about fifteen minutes left in the game, England took a 18-14 lead. The game was just about to end, but a penalty was called on England. New Zealand capitalized and Shaun Johnson scored a try to tie the game at 18. Then, he kicked the conversion to give the Kiwis the win and a spot in the finals. 

The finals were destined to be competitive. Not only was it a rematch of the 2008 World Cup final, it is between two rivals. Over 74,000 people showed up to Old Trafford to watch the final. Many of the fans were disappointed as the game was a blowout. Australia won the game 34-2 to claim their tenth Rugby League World Cup title. The Man of the Match was Johnathan Thurston, who kicked seven goals for Australia. The tournament was all about the dominance of Australia. They showed that they are the best country in the world at rugby league. 

World Games 2013 Preview

The World Games are an interesting competitor/compatriot to the Olympic Games. The World Games may be considered by some a competitor to the Olympics due to the fact that it is a multi-sport event. However, I considered it a "little brother" to the event because it features sports not on the Olympic agenda, it is recognized by the IOC, and have a Memorandum of Understating. 

This year's World Games, the ninth ever, will be held in Cali, Colombia. Over 35 sports will be contested. There are eight different categories the sports are placed under. They are Artistic Sports, Ball Sports, Martial Arts, Precision Sports, Strength Sports, Trend Sports, Invitational Sports, and Sports Garden. The most sports in one category is Trend Sports and the least amount of sports in a category is Sports Garden. 

The Opening Ceremony is called "Metamorphosis".  It looks to be an intriguing spectacle. It is expected to last 110 minutes and use more then 1,000 firework projectiles and 1,000,000 watts of light. The best part of Opening Ceremony's is when the athletes are introduced with their fellow countrymen. That is always a moment to behold. At this World Games, there will be over 2,300 athletes from over 98 countries. 

A Poster Showing the Participating Sports
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This will be the last time, at least for a while that Rugby Seven's will be contested at the World Games. It is being removed after this World Games. It will put on the program for the 2016 Summer Olympics. Eight teams will be competing in Rugby Seven's tournament. They are Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, France, Hong Kong, South Africa, and Uruguay. This looks to be a good competition. They have some top teams competing and the matches should be competitive. 

Beach Handball looks to be a competitive, up-tempo, and exciting event. Australia, Brazil, Colombia, Croatia, Qatar, Russia, Ukraine, and Venezuela will all be competing in this event on the men's side. Austria, Brazil, Chinese Taipei Colombia, Hungary, Norway, Tunisia, and Uruguay are competing on the women's side. Brazil is my favorite to win the tournament on both the men and women's side. The Brazilian men won the previous tournament at the 2009 World Games and also won the last two Men's Beach Handball World Championships. Brazil's women won bronze at the 2009 World Games and won the 2012 Women's Beach Handball World Championships. This is a sport for which many people should be pumped-up.

Some of the other competitions I am looking forward to include; Tug of War, Canoe Polo, and Lifesaving. Tug of War is a classic power and strength competition, and surprisingly formally was an Olympics sport. Canoe Polo is a sport where two teams of five face off on canoes in an attempt to score goals on a net suspended at the end of the playing surface. Canoe Polo is much like two other Olympics sports; Water Polo and Canoe Sprint. Yes, Lifesaving is a sport at the World Games and this seems like a really cool event to have a game.

The Heineken Cup Final

Heineken Cup logo
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The Heineken Cup wrapped up yesterday in Dublin with it's title game. After starting in October with 24 teams, one team was left standing after yesterday's title game. The two teams in the final were from the Top 14 (top rugby union league in French). They were Clermont and Toulon. Neither team had won the title before, which added even more intrigue to the game. The game ended up being a great match that will go down as an all-time classic. 

Both teams had a few bumps on the road to the final. Clermont was the top team in Pool 5 by a mile.  They were 6-0 with a +149 point differential. That is an outstanding accomplishment. Only once did a team lose by less then five. That gave them the second seed in the knockout round. Toulon was also a top team in their pool, Pool 6. They had five wins and a loss with a +109 point differential. They were the fourth seed in the knock round. The knockout round started in the quarterfinals with Clermont facing fellow Top 14 team Montpellier and Toulon against Leicester. Clermont destroyed Montepellier 36-14, while Toulon  defeated Leicester 21-15. In the semi's, Clermont beat Munster 16-10 and Toulon won against Saracens. That set up the all-French final. 

Morgan Parra
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Clermont got the scoring started quickly into the game. Four minutes in, Scrum Half Morgan Parra had a kick at goal from behind the ten-meter line. That gave Clermont the early 3-0 lead. Parra ended up being the leader in the tournament in points with 115. He got these points from 24 kicks at goal, one try, and 19 conversions. Ten minutes later, Jonny Wilkinson tied the game at 3. Wilkinson was second to Parra in the points race with 108, 30 of kicks at goal and nine as a result of conversions. After that, no one could score for the rest of the half. After 40 minutes of play, the score was 3-3. 

Two minutes into the second half, Clermont's Left Wing Napolioni Nalaga gets a pass and runs down the sideline and just gets into the In-Goal for the try. However, due to the location of the try, Parra's conversion attempt was taken from about a foot off of a left sideline. He missed the attempt. This would come back to haunt Clermont.

Just four minutes later, in the 46th minute, Jonny Wilkinson hits a kick at goal to make the score 8-6.  Just two minutes later, Clermont extended their lead when Brock James got a try and Parra converted the conversion. 

Armitage and Wilkinson celebrate the title
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With 60 minutes done, Clermont were in control. Then, Jonny Wilkinson converted a kick at goal for three points. This brought the score to be with in six. Then in the 64th minute, Nalaga turned the ball over to Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe, who the passed the ball to Delon Armitage. Armitage had an open field ahead of him and ran it into the In-Goal for the the try. Jonny Wilkinson then converted the try. Toulon took the lead 16-15.


When the final whistle blew, Clermont won the possession game (68% to 32%), line-outs (14-10), and rucks won (119-42). They were the better team, but, they lost the match, 16-15. The Man of the Match was Outside Centre Mathieu Bastaraud. After the win, Wilkinson won the ERC European Player of the Year. This is Toulon's first ever Heineken Cup championship. This  victory comes after being second in the 2010 and 2012 European Challenge Cup Finals. 

Six Nations Championship

The Six Nations Championship is 1 of the best rugby tournaments, and 1 of the oldest, in the world. Originally, the tournament was called the Home International Championship and had only 4 countries competing, England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The 1st Home International Championship was held in 1883. France joined in 1910 and the tournament was renamed the Five Nations Championship. Italy joined just 12 years ago and it has been called the Six Nations Championship ever since. 


England was victorious in last years tournament but France and Wales had the advantage coming in as they finished 2nd and 4th respectively in the Rugby World Cup last year. Ireland and England lost in the Quarters of the tournament. Ireland to Wales and England to France. Scotland and Italy failed to get past the 1st round. At the start of the tournament, France was 3rd in the IRB's (International Rugby Board) Rankings, England was 5th, Ireland 6th, Wales 8th, Scotland 10th, and Italy 12th.


Wales started off well with a 23-21 victory over Ireland in Ireland when Leigh Halfpenny kicked a penalty in the last minute to win. England won 13-6 vs Scotland at Murrayfield in Edinburgh. With the victory, England won the Calcutta Cup. The Cup is given to the winner of England-Scotland game. France dominated Italy 30-12  to get the Giuseppe Garibaldi Trophy. This award is given to the winner of the France-Italy game. 

Italy vs England in the snow
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In Week 2, England defeated Italy 19-15 and Wales beat Scotland 27-12. The other match-up between France and Ireland at Stade de France was postponed for the 1st time since 1985. It was called off 10 minutes before kick-off because of parts of the pitch were icy. Fans at the game were furious and were jeering. Nothing the players could do, including applauding the crowd, could help. 


The clubs had a week off and then resumed on February 25th. In the 1st game of Week 3, Ireland blew out Italy 42-10. Wales defeated England 19-12 to win the Triple crown. The Triple Crown is awarded given out to 1 of the British Isles teams that beats each of the other teams. France beat  Scotland 23-17. 


The game between France and Ireland was made up in the 2nd off week of the tournament. France came back from 11 points down to tie it at 17 and thats how it ended, in a 17-17 tie.


Week 4 had a match-up of England and France in which England upset France 24-22. Wales won against Italy 24-3. Ireland beat Scotland 32-14 to get the Centenary Quatch, an award given to the winner of Ireland-Scotland.

Wales celebrates as Champs
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The Wooden Spoon award for the worst team of the tournament. For the last 4 years the "honor" went to Italy. This year, the game between Scotland and Italy during Week 5 would decide who got the spoon. Italy beat Scotland 13-6 as Scotland got the Wooden Spoon. England beat Ireland 30-9 to get the Millennium Trophy, a trophy given to the winner of the England-Ireland match-up. Wales defeated France 16-9 to win not only the Championship, but another award, the Grand Slam. The Grand Slam is the award that is given to the team that wins all of it's games in the tournament. 

2011 Rugby World Cup Final: End of a Great Tournament

2011 Rugby World Cup logo
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The Rugby World Cup has been held since 1987. The 7th annual Rugby World Cup recently played it's last game of the tournament. There are two main different types of rugby, rugby union and rugby league. The Rugby World Cup is the world cup for rugby. It was played in New Zealand and 20 teams participated. Those teams are Argentina, Australia, Canada, England, France, Fiji, Georgia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Namibia, New Zealand, Romania , Russia, Samoa, Scotland, South Africa, Tonga, United States of America, and Wales.


Here are 3 main points to remember about the tournament, from 3rd to 1st.


3. Performance of Teams

Tonga came within 2 points of making the knockout round
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There were 4 pools of 5 teams. Top 2 teams in each pool make the Knockout Stage. In Pool A, New Zealand went undefeated. Both France and Tonga went 2-2-0 (Wins-Losses-Draw), but France made the Knockout Stage due to having more points. Canada went 1-2-1 and Japan went 0-3-1. In Pool B, England never lost and Romania never won. Argentina went 3-1-0, Scotland went 2-2-0, and Georgia went 1-3-0. Pool C saw Ireland go without a blemish and Russia go without a victory. Australia went 3-1-0, Italy 2-2-0, and the US went 1-3-0. South Africa led Pool D with a perfect record, followed by Wales with a 3-1-0, Samoa 2-2-0, Fiji 1-3-0, and Namibia 0-4-0.


In the quarter-finals, Wales def. Ireland 22-10, France def. England 19-12, Australia def defending champs South Africa 11-9 and New Zealand def. Australia 33-10. That made the semi-final match-ups, France-Wales and New Zealand-Australia.

Morne Styen
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2. Stat Leaders Are Led By South Africa's Morne Styen and New Zealand's Colin Slade 


South Africa's Morne Styen was the top scorer of the tournament with 62 points, 10 more then the runner-up. He also tied for  1st in conversions with New Zealand's Colin Slade. France's Vincent Clerc and England's Chris Ashton had the most tries with 7. Slade and France's Morgan Parra had the most points in 1 game this tournament with 23 points. Fiji's Vereniki Goneva had 4 tries in 1 game, this year's tournament record. New Zealand had the most overall points with 301 points. The biggest score differential of 1 game was a 87-0 win by South Africa against Namibia. 


1. The Finals


In the semi's New Zealand beat Australia and France beat Wales. That made the final New Zealand (All Blacks) and France. Both of these teams  faced each other in the final in 1987. The Australian Wallabies and Wales faced off in the bronze medal game, the same as 1987, too. The end result was different, though. In 1987 Wales won. Australia won this time 21-18.

New Zealand vs France
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Both New Zealand and France started the tournament in Pool A. In their earlier meeting, New Zealand won easily 37-17. The Final wasn't as one sided. New Zealand started off strong with Tony Woodcock scoring a try (5 points) but the conversion was missed. Then, in the second half, Stephen Douglas of New Zealand kicked a penalty to make it 8-0. France responded quick with a try scored by Thierry Dusautoir and Francios Trinh-Duc converted the conversion. That made the score 8-7. That's the way it ended with New Zealand winning it's 2nd championship, it's first since 1987.