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Old Glory is excited to announce the signing of New Zealand Sevens legend, Kurt Baker, to the DC squad for MLR2023

Kurt will join Old Glory in a player-coach role where he will assist in coaching the backs as well
as play in the Fullback and Wing positions.

“We are really Happy to have Kurt on board.” Said Old Glory DC Head Coach, Josh Syms. “He’s
a tenacious competitor and a student of the game with vast experience in both 15s and 7s.
Kurt’s experience will be invaluable for our developing players and provide the backs the coach
they need to succeed.”

Kurt’s extensive career includes 53 International Test Tournaments, two New Zealand Sevens
Player of the Year awards, two World Cup Sevens gold titles, a silver medal in the 2020 Tokyo
Olympic Games, two-time gold medal winners of the Commonwealth Games, and four first
place titles with New Zealand in the World Sevens Series.

“To watch Kurt play is to understand what a ‘fierce competitor’ really is,” said Old Glory
Chairman Chris Dunlavey. “As a player, we’re confident he’ll bring a spark to Old Glory’s game,
and as a coach, we think he’ll elevate both the attitude and the skills of our whole squad. We
can’t wait to see his effect on our culture.”

In addition to his extensive sevens career, Kurt’s senior club experience includes 22
appearances for Manawatu, 57 appearances with Taranaki where he went on to score 110
points with the club, 10 appearances with the Highlanders, and most recently made 12
appearances with Hawke’s Bay where he helped the club win the Ranfurly Shield.

“I’m really excited to be joining Old Glory DC.” Said Kurt. “DC is a passionate team who are
motivated to win. I’m looking forward to this new challenge and opportunity to grow.”
Join us in welcoming Kurt to Old Glory DC!

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Syms, a New Zealand native, comes to Washington, DC, from the Hawke’s Bay Magpies, a top tier competitor of New Zealand’s National Provincial Championship (NPC). Syms was promoted to Head Coach of the Magpies in November of 2021 after a successful tenure as Assistant Coach. He recently led the team to the NPC Play-offs.

“When we embarked on the recruitment of a new head coach, we committed ourselves to meeting the world-class standard that we know it will take to succeed in MLR over the next few years,” said Old Glory Chairman Chris Dunlavey.  “This was truly a global search, in which we left no stone unturned.  Although it’s been a long journey, we’ve arrived at the end finding a unique up-and-coming talent in the world of rugby coaching. Old Glory fans should feel very excited to look forward to the Josh Syms era.”

As Assistant Coach, Syms helped lead Hawke’s Bay to their win of the Ranfurly Shield in 2020. Hawke’s Bay retained the shield until September 2022, successfully defending it 14 times. Hawkes Bay now holds the province’s third longest Ranfurly Shield reign.

“I’m really excited to be joining the Old Glory Family,” Said Syms. “I can’t wait to get into work and start creating a team that not only plays an exciting brand of rugby, but also represents our region and fans.”

Syms got his start in coaching as a secondary school teacher and coached first level cricket. After retiring from playing rugby in 2005, Syms began his rugby coaching career through coaching first fifteens and premier club rugby sides at Hasting Boys’ High School and Southland Boys’ High School.

“I am very excited about Josh joining the team,” Said Old Glory’s General Manager Marcelo Blanco. “I am confident about creating a great partnership where we can deliver a successful team on and off the pitch. Our fans should rest assured both the front office and the coaching staff are committed to delivering a great season.”

Syms will join the Old Glory side in Washington at the end of this year before the 2023 pre-season kicks off. He will be joined by his wife Ashley and his four children Archie, Luca, Sophia and Isobella.

Welcome to DC, Josh!

## END ##

Join Old Glory DC this season.  Season tickets are available now! BUY SEASON TICKETS HERE

About Old Glory DC

Old Glory is the first and only professional rugby team in the nation’s capital, Washington, DC. Old Glory DC plays at Segra Field in Leesburg, VA, and competes in Major League Rugby (MLR), a North American league that includes teams in New York, Boston, Atlanta, Toronto, Houston, New Orleans, Salt Lake City, San Diego, and Seattle. Established in 2018, the team was founded by life-long DC area residents, business leaders, and rugby players Chris Dunlavey and Paul Sheehy.  In 2019, the Scottish Rugby Union joined the partnership, committing both financial investment and operational support to the organization.  The upcoming Major League Rugby season kicks off in early 2023. For more, visit oldglorydc.com

Contact For Old Glory DC

Paris Malone

parismalone@oldglorydc.com 

Presented by Cuisine Solutions

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As the first and only head coach in the history of Old Glory DC, Coach Douglas joined the team before its first official MLR game, leading the team through a four-game exhibition season in 2019, five games of the pandemic-shortened 2020 MLR season, and the team’s first full MLR season in 2021. At the time of his departure, Douglas was the longest-tenured head coach in the league.

“Andrew has been both our coach and our player talent manager since the beginning,” said co-owner Chris Dunlavey. “He assembled our team each year, built the foundation of Old Glory’s culture from scratch, and led us to the successes we have been able to achieve so far. He is a real rugby professional, a great coach, and above all a very good man. We’ll consider him part of the Old Glory family forever.”

The team anticipates establishing an interim coaching structure for the balance of the 2022 MLR season while conducting a world-wide search for its head coach of the future.

“As challenging as this change will be, this gives us an opportunity to course-correct for the rest of 2022, and also to commit today to the direction we want to take this club long-term,” said co-owner Paul Sheehy. “We will soon share details of our plans for the future, which will focus on the sustainable growth of a regional, domestic player development pathway that will ensure consistent competitiveness of Old Glory teams year in and year out.”

Added Dunlavey, “We wish Andrew and his wonderful family the very best for the future.”

About Old Glory DC

Old Glory is the first and only professional rugby team in the nation’s capital, Washington, DC. Established in 2018, Old Glory DC competes in Major League Rugby (MLR), a North American league that includes teams in New York, Boston, Atlanta, Toronto, Houston, New Orleans, Salt Lake City, San Diego, Austin, Seattle, Los Angeles, and Dallas.

The Old Glory ownership team is led by DC natives and life-long rugby players Paul Sheehy and Chris Dunlavey and includes the Scottish Rugby Union. The organization seeks to grow the sport of rugby in the region through community engagement, by promoting an alternative path for personal development through sport, embracing the unique values of rugby: respect, inclusion, community, integrity, and passion.

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“Playing volleyball, basketball, and soccer, I was always one of the more physical people,” Kat said of her initial attraction to rugby. “Just short of getting carded or fouling out all the time. Rugby said don’t hold back. It was a sport that said you don’t have to short yourself, just come out and be as strong as you possibly can.”

When Kat came to the University of Mary Washington for her undergraduate studies, she had every intention of playing volleyball. However, the sport didn’t start until October, and when rugby players came around to the dorms looking for new recruits during the first week of school, Kat gave it a try. Suffice to say, she never saw the volleyball court again and was stuck on the pitch. 

After graduation, she pursued a law degree at Howard. Kat remained active by competing in triathlons, but all that came to a grinding halt in 2012. An unfortunate sky-diving accident left her with multiple fractures and injuries that took eight surgeries over a couple of years to recover from. 

“I didn’t know if I’d be able to run again, and I can’t compete as a solitary person, but I still have my brain and the things I tapped into like resilience and internal strength and stamina,” Kat said. “It just reminded me of playing rugby, how much I missed the game, the strength I got from it, and how much it helped me be confident in myself. When I was that injured, I felt I needed to tap into that element again. If I could pass that on to other athletes and kids trying to find their way, I’m contributing something awesome to the world.”

Kat educated and certified herself in the USA and World Rugby Coaching, even becoming a World Rugby Coach Educator in 2021. She started as the girl’s assistant coach with Fort Hunt High School and eventually became the team’s head coach in 2015. The squad would go on to win multiple 15s and 7s titles. In 2017, Kat began to coach the NOVA Women’s Rugby Club, winning the D1 Women’s Club National Championship in 2019. 

Kat’s next step in her rugby journey wasn’t one she was expecting. “During COVID, the Robertson and Sullivan Foundation was created by Carille Guthrie, and that’s all about creating sustainable rugby programs at HBCUs. They planned to start with Howard,” Kat stated. “I put up my hand and said, ‘I’m here in DC, a Howard grad, and I’d be more than happy [to help]’… I said if we couldn’t find anyone [to be the head coach], I would sign on to Howard and focus on giving that program the sustainable background and backbone that it needs. It melds the two big things I care about which is the game and bringing the game to communities that really haven’t been invited to the table.”

Community is one of the things Kat is most passionate about. “The one thing that’s really wonderful to see at Howard with the program is how much it’s brought the community together. Part of that is those relationships I had beforehand, and when Howard came along, I needed to lean to them to give us some meat behind everything. I see that because I was able to lend a hand to many different programs before, when I needed the assistance and support, the community was able to do that.”

“One thing I can do in the DMV is get the community talking to each other and recognizing that when one team shines, we all shine,” Kat continued. “Really make rugby itself have a good presence in the DMV… DC has an exciting, wonderful community full of intelligent people who want to support good causes, and that’s what rugby can do. We can come together and elevate what the sport means, especially to those who don’t know much about it.”

As rugby continues to grow within the United States, Kat has a tight finger on the pulse of how administration within the rugby community needs to pivot and improve to get the sport to the next level. 

“The biggest obstacle for rugby in the US is that we are not organized, we don’t present ourselves professionally, and especially when you are talking youth and high school, you are selling a sport to parents,” Kat explains. “When you can’t put out a schedule three months when the kids are going to play, you are not going to get on that parent’s schedule. In the more, gendered factor, while the game itself is equitable in the rules, the equipment, and the field, the way men and women approach the game and what it means to them is vastly different. For women, it does tend to be an identity. It helps them become more confident, more steadfast in who they are as a person. So the depth of love that women have for this game is so immense. We have protected it with every ounce of our being for decades and that’s a big thing that I’ve seen with the Women’s Rugby History Project that I work on with the US Women’s Rugby Foundation.”

One of the people Kat has impacted is Howard Women’s captain Takunda Rusike.  “Immediately, I knew she had a lot of knowledge about rugby, and growing the women’s game specifically,” Takunda said. “There are a lot of things that make Coach Kat a great coach, but I’d say the biggest thing is how she pushes her foot on the gas, encouraging myself and the team to push harder.” 

“Already as a new team, the growth has been exponential, and it is because of how Coach Kat pushes us to be better than our best,” Takunda said. “A large lesson I’ve taken away from Coach Kat is the importance of effort, and consistent effort has in achieving goals, especially in women’s rugby where we do have to push for a spot.”

While rugby has plenty growing up to do in various areas, it’s still meant to bring people together for a common goal. “I’ve seen tons of different people come and try rugby,” Kat reflected. “We’ve had cheerleaders, drama kids, your typical jock girls, and everybody comes out and loves the game for something different. So any time we get a rookie, I tell them to give us three practices because there’s a lot to love about this game. If we don’t cover a certain skill in the first practice, you might not get to it until the second or third practice, and that might be the thing you love about rugby.”

“Come give it a try,” Kat concluded. “I think it’s great to learn to deal with mistakes and keep going, to learn to get knocked down and get back up. You are one person out of 15 on a pitch, all with the same goal. You are there to protect each other, and there is no other team full-contact sport that’s like that, especially for women.”

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Facundo Joins Old Glory with 33 appearances for Uruguay with his first international test in 2016 against Canada in the Americas Rugby Championship. Facundo was selected to the Uruguay roster for the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

In 2021 Facundo joined the Uruguayan Rugby Union team, Peñarol, who compete in the Superliga Americana de Rugby (SLAR).

Join us in welcoming Facundo to DC!

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OGDC will celebrate St. Patrick’s Day at Segra Field as the gates open at 2:00 pm. The first of two curtain-raisers starts at 2:30 pm with Mary Washington University battling Bowling Green. At 4:30 pm, Virginia Tech takes on James Madison as part of the Iron Vine Series Rugby Invitational. The MacMillan Pipe Band will provide the music during the pre-game and halftime, and Celtic Harpist Abbie Palmer will be on stage in the VIP Club House. The Beer Garden will be back by the Sheehy Showcase next to the north try zone for all fans. 

Reloaded After the Bye

The bye allowed the coaching staff to assess the first third of the season and put an optimum lineup on the field for Sunday. The arrival of Felix Kalapu gives the forward pack a boost and flexibility with increased depth. Another roster change is Jake Ilnicki replacing Jack Iscaro, who is out with a lower body injury. 

With the team as healthy as it is, it gives the coaching staff more options. “At the root of it, it gives us more competition,” Renata Roberts-Te Nana said. “Healthy competition is going to be massive. Whatever game plan we feel like we want to use this week, we have the tools necessary to do that. Whether we want to be more crash and bang or watching out for the high balls, we got the skillset and everyone available now to execute the game plan that Coach Douglas wants.”

In the forwards, Ilnicki, Rob Irimescu, and Kyle Stewart will line up in the front row. Api Naikitini and Stan South are your locks with Kalapu, Cory Daniel, and Luke Campbell manning the back row. Mo Katz, Dante Lopresti, Dom Bailey, Fintan Coleman, and Will Vakalahi will be the impact subs. 

Consistency breeds success as the coaching staff will roll out the same backline starters as the Legion match. Captain Danny Tusitala and Rohan Saifoloi are the halfbacks and Junior Sa’uand William Talataina will man the centers. Peni Lasaqa and Doug Fraser are the wings with Roberts-Te Nana completing the back three at fullback. Mike Dabulas, Owen Sheehy, and John Lefevre are the covers on the bench.

All Eyes on Atlanta

With the bye in the rearview, Old Glory is focused on the next challenge with Rugby ATL on Sunday. After playing its best game of the season at San Diego, DC knows it needs to finish plays and, ultimately, play a full 80 minutes to beat a team like Sunday’s opponent. 

While building on the positives from the San Diego match, the impetus is clear. “We’re going to have to finish,” head coach Andrew Douglas said. “We had enough opportunities to score and win the game, but we didn’t take those opportunities. We need to be more ruthless in the 22 and finish. We got ourselves in good parts of the field and just didn’t complete.”

Roberts-Te Nana added, “When the opportunity arises, we just have to be able to call for the ball where we are literally slowing everything down to a halt [inside the 22]. We are letting the defense set and wait for the perfect picture where sometimes you just got to beat them with speed. So this week, we have to play lightning quick, but with a lot of precision.”

Old Glory DC hung tough against Atlanta in Week 1 for 55 minutes until it fell apart. The Ratlers return a physical forward pack led by Johan Momsen and Matt Heaton. ATL was without Kurt Coleman, Joaquín de la Vega Mendía, and Duncan van Schalkwyk last weekend against the Gilgronis, but the trio of Martini Talapusi, Harley Davidson, and Austin White filled in exceptionally. The center combo of Will Leonard and Ryan Nell is lethal and attracts a lot of attention.

“We know we can compete with Atlanta,” Douglas said. “Our set-piece was pretty good in that first game, and when we were connected defensively, we were good. We have to be in the game for a longer period of time than we were. We have to be more consistent in our approach both on offense and defense.”

“In everything we do, we have to do it quickly, efficiently, and try to run these boys around the field,” Roberts-Te Nana said. “They like to be brutal and fast and are quite robotic in what they do. As long as we are on the same page, if we play heads-up rugby, we’ll be alright. Expect a really fast game. High intensity.”

Putting It All Together

After five straight losses, Old Glory has had to do some serious soul-searching over the bye. “We’ve had to take a deep, hard look at ourselves and make sure we’re all doing it for the right reasons,” Roberts-Te Nana stated. “We have to trust each other and know that all of the pieces are there. The team, coaches, and owners are there, and we have to put out that performance and create that hope to win a game. Build on it because winning becomes a habit.”

With the trust, belief, and health on their side, OGDC needs to fight and keep fighting until the final whistle. “We need to stay in it the whole game for however long it takes to win this game. We need to be in the game laser-focused the whole time. We can’t switch off like we did the first time at 55 minutes and think that’s going to do the job. From the first kickoff to the last whistle, everyone from #1 to #23 with coaches included has to be on their game without switching off,” Roberts-Te Nana concluded.

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“Felix is an exciting talent from Auckland,” said Head Coach Andrew Douglas. “He comes highly regarded and appears to be a very professional, courteous young man who is a stellar athlete on the field. I’m really excited for the future Felix has in US rugby and I think he will take the league by storm.”

Felix comes to DC having spent time with Auckland Rugby in the National Provincial Championship and been a product of Auckland Grammar School 1st XV rugby squad.

“I’m excited and grateful for this opportunity to play for Old Glory DC,” said Felix on signing with Old Glory. “I’m looking forward to meeting the brothers, coaches, staff behind the scenes, and the fans! Let’s get the season started. Cannot wait!”

Watch Felix in action this weekend by purchasing tickets to Old Glory’s home matches, available on Ticketmaster. 

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Given the nickname “Hot Sauce” by his best mates Cooper Vuna and Terence Seu Seu back in 2008, and the name stuck. Not many of his teammates or Old Glory fans know it now, but everyone in Major League Rugby will soon find out. 

 

At age 34, the 5’9”, 215 lbs. bruiser comes to the USA after playing nearly 15 years of rugby league worldwide. Junior is ready to embark on a new journey and bring his experience and physical presence to Old Glory DC. 

Born in Auckland, New Zealand, Sa’u started playing rugby back in grade school when he was six years old. His family moved to Brisbane, Australia, when he was eight, and when Sa’u was 11, he was introduced to rugby league. 

Reflecting on his fondest rugby memories, Junior said, “My debut against the Bulldogs was a dream come true for me… The following year, I had a goal to play for New Zealand. I was lucky enough to play for New Zealand and selected for that tour. [In 2013,] representing Samoa [was one of my biggest accomplishments.] My parents were born in Samoa, so to get the opportunity to represent where they’re from was an honor for me.”

 

Junior’s career brought him to the Melbourne Storm, the Salford Red Devils, Wakefield Trinity, and finally the Leigh Centurions in 2019. In 13 years of rugby league, Sa’u appeared in 252 games and racked up 89 tries. 

 

 

Having tackled league rugby, Sa’u turned his sights to returning to the sport he grew up playing: rugby union. Junior first entertained coming to America to play in the MLR through a friendship with Danny Tusitala. 

After talking with head coach Andrew Douglas, Sa’u signed with Old Glory in the late fall of 2021.

 

“It’s exciting to have a player with Junior’s resume at Old Glory,” said Douglas. “He’s a powerful, dynamic runner and a fearsome defender. His experience at his levels in League will bring confidence to other players. He’s an exciting signing not just for Old Glory, but for Major League Rugby as well.”

Sa’u can’t wait for his wife, Jasmine, and children, Lavon, Amaiya, and Elias, to visit and is incredibly thankful for all the support they have given him. His love and commitment to the well-being of his family have shown him a path for his post-rugby life. 

 

“[I really have a passion for] working with children in need. I had been doing that for the last six months before I came over. It’s something that I really want to do with my life after footy. Just helping kids in need and bring some positivity in their lives.”

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