Above: Landry (left) with Brodie Orth (right) each received their first Cap.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
By Victor Drover
February 15, 2015
Milwaukee, WI – The Milwaukee Barbarians Athletic Club today announced that Pewaukee native Ben Landry has made his first international appearance for the USA Eagles, America’s national rugby team.
Landry’s rugby career began in middle school and continued through college with stints at both the University of Wisconsin at Platteville and the University of Wisconsin at Whitewater. In 2013, he joined the collegiate All Americans.
After playing a season with the Milwaukee Barbarians, he moved to Washington to train with the National Team Assistant Coach Justin Fitzpatrick at the Seattle Saracens.
On Saturday, Landry was selected to play in an Americas Rugby Championship (ARC) fixture in the number five jersey against Canada at Dell Diamond in Round Rock, Texas. Earning the selection or Cap — as the honor is called in rugby circles — was the natural result following two years of being on the radar of the national team.
Landry was selected for the USA Rugby AIG Men’s Collegiate All-Americans’ 2014 New England Tour and was called up to join the USA Selects in the 2014 ARC campaign. Last February he was invited to the United States Olympic Committee Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, California to try out for the 2015 Rugby World Cup team.
“I was very lucky to be able to get my first cap at home,” said Landry of the 30-22 victory over Canada. “The energy in the stadium was amazing and It was great to have my parents able to come to the game and share that experience.”
As a capped player, Landry’s next goal is to find an professional contract such as the in the upcoming PRO Rugby league, or with an overseas club. In 2014, Landry signed with Premier Rugby Management but he is currently without representation.
When asked about a possible return to the gridiron — a sport he also played in college — Landry confirmed that rugby was currently his main focus.
About the Milwaukee Barbarians
The Barbarians or Barbo’s is the premier Rugby Union club in the state of Wisconsin and was formed in 2012 through a strategic partnership between two local Milwaukee teams.
As a member of USA Rugby — the sport’s National body — the Barbarians compete at the highest level by fielding a Division 1 team in the Midwest regional competition. The Barbarians also field a Division 3 team in the local Wisconsin-Illinois conference. Both competitions run a split season that plays September through November and March through May.
The Barbarians train and play their home games at Zablocki Park located at 3717 W Howard Ave, Greenfield, WI 53221.
More information on the Milwaukee Barbarians can be found online at http://milwaukeerugby.org.
About the USA Eagles
The United States men's national rugby union team, nicknamed the Eagles, represents the United States in the sport of rugby union. The national team is managed by USA Rugby, which is a member of the North American and Caribbean Rugby Association, one of six regional governing bodies under World Rugby, the international governing body for the sport.
The Eagles are the reigning Olympic champion in rugby, having won gold at the 1920 and 1924 Summer Olympics, and are currently ranked 16th in the world. Rugby has not been played at the Olympics since 1924, but makes a return in 2016 at the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
More information can be found online at http://usarugby.org/mens-eagles.
Contact
To learn more, please contact:
Victor Drover, President
Milwaukee Barbarians Athletic Club
Tel: (262) 309-4140
[email protected]
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