Eamonn Matthews could receive rugby award

Men’s rugby senior making program proud in hopes of award

“In high school, I was an under 18 all-American, here at Bonaventure, I was an under 20 all-American and this season, I was the most valuable player of the Rugby East, which is our conference,” said Eamonn Matthews, a senior member of St. Bonaventure University’s division I club rugby team.
Matthews is no stranger to getting recognized for his talent on the field, but as his rugby career at Bonaventure comes to a close at the conclusion of the spring season, he may receive his highest honor yet.
Matthews is in the running for the Sorensen & Scholz Collegiate Rugby Player of The Year. Equivalent to the Heisman Trophy in NCAA Division I college football, the Sorensen & Scholz award recognizes the best ruggers in the nation. After a panel of coaches and administrators selected players, Matthews found himself in the picture for this year’s award.
The voting is online and is open to anyone. The first round of voting will end April 19 and will be narrowed down from there. The winner of the award will be invited to a gala event in Seattle, Washington on June 8.
Matthews currently leads the fan vote by roughly 12 percent, over players from much larger schools like Arizona, Army, Navy and Arkansas State, to name a few.
“It’s been absolutely amazing,” said Matthews. “We’re the smallest school on that list. Just to see the support I’ve gotten in the fan voting. It’s been the best part of this experience so far.”
Matthews said, “It has been so humbling for me. When you look at that list, you can debate for all of the players based on skill until the sun goes down. I’ve had alumni reach out to me on Twitter. Over the weekend, I had people that I never met before tell me that they threw me a vote. It’s amazing to see how the community has supported me and come together.”
While Matthews is thrilled about getting this kind of recognition, he hasn’t forgotten about the people that have helped him get to this milestone in his career. Matthews, who said he has been fortunate with great coaches throughout his career, gave the biggest tip of the cap to his parents.
“More than anyone, I thank my parents,” said Matthews, speaking with great pride. “I’ve also been blessed with the coaches I have had. But all of the behind the scenes stuff, I give it up to my parents. They help me put things back into perspective. My parents have been by number one supporters since I started playing. I owe everything to them.”
Andrew Tui Osborne, head coach of the Bonnies men’s rugby club, said that Matthews is more than deserving of this honor, explaining how hard Matthews works on and off the field. Osborne spoke highly of Matthews’ character and leadership.
“He is so deserving of this nomination,” said Osborne. “Hopefully he gets it. Eamonn is probably the hardest working player on and off the field. The leadership he brings with his actions. Everyone turns to Eamonn for answers and leadership when the coaches aren’t around. He’s a skilled player and he’s brought into the culture that the coaches have brought on. He makes sure that everyone is doing their jobs in this program.”
The Bonnies’ men’s rugby club has been on the rise, finishing No. 12 in division I club after the fall season. While Matthews is excited about the attention he’s gotten, he hopes that this kind of recognition helps the overall being of the program as well.
“This is really a tribute to Tui [Osborne], and culture changes he’s lead,” said the humble-spoken Matthews. “The guys he’s been able to bring in have been more prepared to play at this level. When you have a school as small as we are, and we aren’t a huge rugby name just yet, this definitely helps our program. Give credit to the coaches and all of the guys here. They’ve all bought into what he’s been talking about.”
Matthews added, “We’ve gotten more attention this year. We’ve had a couple of articles posted about us from the national rugby community, talking about us and recognizing what’s going on over here in Olean. It’s been really cool to see.”
Osborne also spoke to what this kind of accolade would do for his program.
“It’s a positive thing, and would bring more attention to our program,” said Osborne. “We finished our fall season No. 12 in the nation. So having this from Eamonn would be an addition to everyone turning their heads, saying ‘What’s this school in Western New York doing? What are they doing differently? And what can we know more about?’”
On top of Eamonn’s recognition helping the program, Osborne also said that the recent success of the program has helped him be more recognizable, too.
“I think it really boosted his belief in himself,” said Osborne. “This shows him where rugby can take him, especially now that we have a new USA Pro League. I think he’s really opened up to some of the options out there for him. He can continue playing at a professional level.”
On top of talking about the possibility of receiving well-deserved high honors, Matthews spoke to the goals and aspirations he has for himself and his team as they dive into spring season. For Matthews, there is still things left to accomplish. Leaving the program better than it was before is one of the things left on his list.
“We have three major tournaments we are going to,” said Matthews. “We could qualify for contenders in May and June. So, to at least make one of those is one of my goals. And then leaving the program better than it was when I came here. The last two months I want to help clean up the loose ends that are left toward the end here, and really making sure the next guy up is ready to take over.”
Matthews, expressing great thanks to fans, teammates, coaches, friends and family, offered his last thoughts.
“I think everyone has already voted at this point,” said Matthews, with an echoing laugh. “But if you ever find yourself bored, go vote again. You can vote more than once. Every vote counts.”
To vote for Matthews, log on to florugby.com.