(Jackie Finlan of The Rugby Breakdown wrote the following for USA Rugby; see the original article here.)
USA RUGBY – At first glance, it appears that there is just one senior women’s club in the whole state of Iowa. Palmer College, the current Midwest DII club champion, is the only post-collegiate women’s team in USA Rugby’s CIPP database, but the reality is that there are several clubs building momentum in the Hawkeye State. Teams are playing in Decorah, Des Moines and Cedar Falls, and they’re all working together to establish club rugby within state borders. [Lead photo: Bob White Photography]
Iowa Phoenix is the new team out of Cedar Falls and it was created with Midwest rugby luminary Steve Murra in mind. The former University of Northern Iowa and Midwest U23 Thunderbird coach was massively influential to the women’s collegiate game, and it was a huge loss for the rugby community when he passed in February 2016.
In his lifetime, Murra withstood consistent pleas from his players to start a women’s club in Iowa. But in August 2015, when the U23 Thunderbirds went on tour to Wales, UNI alumna Kassie Drey finally convinced the coach to have a go.
Photo: Bob White Photography
“When you graduate, everyone tells you that you’ve got to go to the cities to play. And Minnesota is a great place for Iowa players to go and play, but we have phenomenal athletes in-state and a lot of colleges with rugby teams. Let’s build a team that [Iowa] college girls can go to,” Drey recalled her pitch. “Finally Steve agreed and we were throwing out team names – it ended up coming from him: You will be called ‘Phoenix,’ because you’re washed-up rugby players who will rise again.”
Tragically, Murra didn’t have a chance to see the Phoenix come to fruition, but he was always in mind when the conversation resurfaced in subsequent years.
“After he passed away, there was always some talk that we needed to start a team but it wasn’t until last year at the Midwest U24 LAU tournament that we decided to do something,” said Meghan Flanigan, a UNI and Thunderbird grad who now coaches the Panthers and Iowa U24s. “Every team that we played had women’s club players. Illinois had North Shore girls, Minnesota had Amazons, Wisconsin had Wisconsin women, and we just had our college girls. That is when we decided it was time to build a team.”
Photo: Bob White Photography
Drey, Flanigan, Sheree Haslemore, Kelsie McDowell and Britta Nelson were integral to those early building stages. Iowa union president Matt Simon was also very supportive, as were local men’s teams in opening up their pitches for home games. Phoenix, Decorah and Des Moines set up a mini-series between them for the fall, the prototype for a potential league in the future.
“Everyone was excited, but I think people were still a little cautious because we’ve been talking about a team for so long, for five years,” Flanigan said of the local reaction to Phoenix. “The first weekend [in Decorah], we didn’t have as many players as we hoped for, but that stoked attention. People saw that we were ‘walking the walk’ and now it’s growing like wildfire. People have been reaching out: Can we play? I live here; is there a team near me?”
The roster filled with former Iowa collegians, except Haslemore, who is a Winona State grad. Some have Iowa or Midwest select side experience; others are totally new and connected through their rugby-playing boyfriends. As interest grew, the leadership considered the best way to proceed in terms of player retention.
Photo: Bob White Photography
“Unfortunately, I believe we lose a lot of our female players due to pursuing their careers and family commitments … The majority of our team has experienced sacrificing life for their rugby careers,” Drey explained. “Our main goal is to provide an environment that doesn’t pressure our athletes to put rugby first. Instead, view rugby as a time to come together and bond over a sport that we love.
I believe we are categorized as a social team; unfortunately, ‘social rugby teams’ have received a bad connotation,” Drey continued. “We hope to be a competitive yet flexible side in our ways of organization. … I believe our laid back approach is one of the many reasons people are asking to be a part of Iowa Phoenix. We do not want to ostracize or turn anyone away because they cannot make a certain amount of practice or games.”
Winning and losing weren’t really the objective of the fall, but then muscle memory took over and former teammates relished the opportunity to connect on the pitch again.
Photo: Bob White Photography
“Oh my gosh, yes, it was so much fun,” Flanigan said of running around with her old teammates again. “It’s like riding a bike: Get on and go.”
In the short-term, the team will continue to build visibility and market itself to the Iowa colleges, letting them know that there are multiple playing options after graduation. It wouldn’t hurt to get in front of the high schoolers as well. IAYRA hosts a fall 7s season for the girls, however, the Iowa Hawkettes, the state all-star program run by McDowell, just added 15s. In the longer term, the Phoenix would love to compete in a proper league and against teams from other states.
“We don’t know what the road ahead will hold for us in 3-5 years but we will strive to give back to the Iowa rugby community in our pursuit of growing the sport,” Drey explained. “We hope that someday one of our Iowa teams – Decorah, Des Moines or Quad Cities – could field a team to competitively compete in the WPL. As of right now, our focus is to help build up the Iowa teams. Our next step would be to fill a Women’s Iowa Select Side team. We can only become stronger if we surround ourselves with a community that cares.”
Photo: Bob White Photography
It’s sentiments like that that carry the mark of Murra, and Phoenix keeps him close in more ways than one. He’s represented in the team colors: Green for the Midwest, blue for his noteworthy eyes, and black for UNI. He’s represented on the jerseys with a feather and his initials are on the sleeve.
“He’s definitely honored and an inspiration,” Flanigan said. “He did so much when he was here to grow rugby and specifically women’s rugby. To honor him and continue his legacy, that’s where our motivation to keep pushing and growing comes from.”