JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND, Texas – The All-Air Force Men’s Rugby 7s team might not have achieved its championship goal in the Armed Forces Tournament Aug. 23-25 in Glendale, Colorado, but Maj. Saleem Razvi, the team’s project officer, said strides were made even though it finished second to the U.S. Army.
“We’re definitely getting there with our personnel and coaching staff,” said Razvi, a judge advocate with the 56th Fighter Wing at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona. “It’s definitely within reach.”
Air Force finished 3-1 in pool play. It beat the U.S. Marine Corps 19-5, followed by a 24-5 loss to Army. Air Force bounced back to beat the U.S. Coast Guard 26-17 and the U.S. Navy 29-12 to set up the final showdown against Army, which it lost 34-0.
“We definitely had some good possessions in our games,” Razvi said. “Our defense was pretty good, especially in the first game, and we had a lot more control. In the later match, we had a few injuries, especially to one of our past World Class Athlete Program players, Master Sgt. Cam Freeman, who had a contusion. We couldn’t utilize him.”
Razvi praised the play of 2nd Lts. Markez Davis and Ryan Roper, and 1st Lts. Jack Bristol and Victor Woo. Woo, of the Space and Missile Center at Los Angeles AFB, California, was selected to the Armed Forces All-Tournament Team.
“Everybody played well, but those guys had really good tournaments,” Razvi said.
The major also said teamwork and developing readiness and resiliency were emphasized.
“Sometimes within teams you focus too much on developing them as players and not really as Air Force members and being better people,” Razvi said. “A big part of what we focused on is having players participate and having leadership roles throughout the tournament. We didn’t have captains or one specific leader. We were trying to push more ownership and provide them the tools they need to succeed. The players are definitely the heart and soul.”
Women's tournament results
Four Airmen were chosen for the All-Armed Forces team that played in the Luptus Intus Women’s Elite 7s tournament Sept. 2-3 at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire.
Capt. Adekunbi Adewunmi of the 50th Operations Group at Schriever AFB, Colorado; Senior Airman Nkeiah Butler of the 94th Security Forces Squadron at Dobbins AFB, Georgia; Staff Sgt. Leanne Harden of the Air Force Elements/Logistical Support Squadron at Ramstein AB, Germany; and Capt. Melissa Thompson of the National Air and Space Intelligence Center at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, were selected.
Air Force and Army each had four selected to the team.
The team finished 1-3 in pool play and placed fourth in the tournament, which featured many of top female rugby players.
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