The New York Rugby Club Women kicked off their sevens season this week with the addition of Lara Vivolo and Lucy Oswald to the coaching staff. Lara and Lucy will join Head Coach Ryszard Chadwick, who last year coached the NYRC Women through an outstanding summer sevens season, including a program-high placement at the 2017 USA Rugby Club 7s National Championships.

“Following what was NYRC’s best ever summer 7s season, the club continued its success into the fall WPL Championship,” said Ryszard Chadwick, 7s Head Coach. “This success is by no means the end of our journey as a club, and the coaches are committed to providing an environment of growth and learning for players. James English, 15s Head Coach, has done a fantastic job of building a culture of excellence and accountability which feeds into the 7s season.”

“On that note, I’m very happy to bring in this year two new coaches to work with me in the sevens season. Last year we had 50 players represent NYRC 7s, and this summer we are happy to support that player volume and enthusiasm with an even more robust coaching staff. I’m personally excited to work with these two coaches, who have their own areas of expertise in the education field and on the field coaching – Lara with West Point and Lucy with Columbia.”

Lara Vivolo comes to the program with a wide range of experience coaching and playing women’s rugby at a high level. Lara is an NYRC as well as USA National Team alumnus, having played for the New York Rugby Club for over a decade and the USA National Team from 2008-2010. Lara participated in the 2010 Women’s World Rugby Cup and retired from the national team with 9 caps. Lara was a coach with Play Rugby USA from 2010-2013. She started the men’s and women’s Varsity programs at Rye High School and the women’s program at Manhattanville College. Lara currently teaches in the public schools of the Tarrytowns and serves as the Assistant Women’s Coach at West Point Army for 15s and 7s.

Lucy Oswald joins the coaching staff as a recent NYRC alum and one of the players that represented the New York Rugby Club at the 2017 7s National Championship. She was also rostered for both prior NYRC 7s Nationals bids (in 2014 and 2015) and is also an alum of the Northeast ODA. Lucy is currently a teacher at the Cathedral School and the Head Coach of the Columbia University Women’s Rugby Team.

Lara and Lucy’s commitment to NYRC 7s will allow players more opportunities for feedback from multiple voices and therefore more opportunities to grow. With the Northeast changing the qualifications setup for nationals this year, the New York Rugby Club is very excited for the challenge ahead and looks forward to a season of growth!