HOUSTON, TX – If parents out there are looking for a team sport and athletes for their kids to look up to, they should look no further than Team USA and scrumhalf Mike Petri. Mr. Petri, like most rugby players – is a throwback. Mannerly, respectful and always polite.
A product of Xavier High School and Penn State, Petri is a kid from Brooklyn that had hard work in his genes. Mike, Sr. was and is a nose-to-the-grindstone guy and his son is no different. And pop was a pretty good athlete as well.
That combination of work and athleticism has this kid from a borough that isn’t exactly a Team USA breeding ground, representing America with the likes of top IRB players like Todd Clever, Mike MacDonald, Chris Wyles, Samu Manoa and Takudzwa Ngwenya. And his does so at a most precarious position – scrumhalf – where he’s in the line of fire from the big boys every play.
It’s no coincidence that Petri and Kelly have found success in rugby – they both played under Team USA Head Coach Mike Tolkin, who taught and coached at Xavier for years. After high school, both went on to more success at Penn State and 7s’s Champs Cal, respectively, so their rugby resume is as impressive as it gets in the United States.
That’s the back-story, here’s the interview – live from BBVA Compass Stadium:
We were also lucky enough to have post-game interviews with Eagles’ captain Todd Clever, fullback Chris Wyles and the stellar and stylish 2nd row, Lou Stanfill. Don’t worry, all the interviews are just over a minute!
Here is the the interview with Captain Clever.
Here is the interview with the Aviva Premiership star Chris Wyles:
Here’s the interview with the big man, Lou Stanfill:
And while we’re keeping you from what you should be doing, here’s something different with our globe-trotting correspondent with Sir Gordon Tietjens, the legendary Hall of Fame coach of New Zealand All Blacks 7s…
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