Six-time All-American track star Travion Clark sought the Glendale Raptors himself. The Raptors are drawing the eye of athletes from other disciplines.
One of the things we tweaked recently was our Glendale Raptors Rugby Academy, an elite development program for our younger players – under 23 years of age.
Following a strong victory against the Austin Huns, the Glendale Merlins traveled to Moraga, California last Saturday to take on St. Mary’s College in a non-league match. Traveling with the D1 team was Glendale’s Raptors Academy squad, which played against another St. Mary’s side following the Merlins match. Merlins head coach Luke Gross was very complimentary of the Californian competition: “St. Mary’s is a well-oiled machine. Their physicality and quality of play was among the best we’ve seen this season.”
The Glendale Raptors Rugby Academy Under-23 team defeated BYU Rugby in their season opener Friday in a bitterly cold match, which featured hard-fought play from both squads, at Infinity Park at Glendale.
Glendale Merlins U20 Men’s Rugby coach David Synnott spent some time talking with Dallen Stanford, The Rugby Corner and RugbyTown USA Commentator, about the new program and introduces us to a few of his players including Ryan James, Mika Kruse and Max Dacey.
The Glendale Merlins U20 Men took flight in its inaugural match on September 1, 2017 in Colorado Springs, CO, and never looked back. The U20 Merlins side battled the Air Force Academy Development Team, made up of mainly underclassmen and athletes brand new to the sport, in a lopsided try fest that showcased Glendale’s potent attack.