The 2019-2020 MAC 15s season has recently kicked off. Schuylkill River’s rookie class has already proven themselves to be huge assets to our Club on and off the field and our Board of Directors is excited to lead us into the future. Here’s some info on them:

Board of Directors:
President – David Codell
Dave began his playing career with Second City Troop Youth before suiting up for Drew University where he did a little bit of everything as a 4 year officer (including 3 as Club President), 3 year Captain, and 2 year player coach. After graduating with a degree in economics and enrolling at the Villanova University School of Law, Dave joined the Second City Troop Men’s side. He served in various Board positions for Troop before becoming Club President from 2011 onwards, and also earned an MVP award for his on-field performance in 2013. Dave became a high school rugby coach in 2007 and continues to coach to this day, currently as a member of the Narberth Otters.

With the merger between Troop and Schuylkill in 2015 Dave became a Board Member at large for Schuylkill before stepping into the shoes of Schuylkill’s legendary founder and Club President Chris Bailey in 2016. Dave prides himself on giving back to the local rugby community and has been instrumental in helping to set up Schuylkill’s program at the Northeast Frankford Boys and Girls Club alongside Philadelphia Women’s Rugby and the North Philadelphia Nomads U-19 team. In addition to the positions mentioned above Dave has also coached at Haverford College, Schuylkill’s U-19 7s program, Cabrini University, and Narberth’s summer flag rugby program.

When Dave isn’t on the rugby field, he’s working in Insurance and Risk Management Services for a large Hospital System.

Vice President – Ricky Schneider
A native of Texas, Ricky got his start playing for Texas State University before joining the Austin Blacks and then the San Marcos Greys. As a prop, Ricky gained valuable experience with the Blacks playing alongside USA Eagle, a current professional rugby player, Chris Baumann. After earning a Masters in International Relations from Texas State Ricky enrolled at the Villanova University School of Law to study international law and joined Schuylkill River Rugby’s front row. In addition to his domestic playing experience, Ricky also has international rugby experience having played in Cambodia and South Africa.

Despite being relatively new to the team, and the Philadelphia rugby community, Ricky has already stepped in and made an immediate impact by helping with rugby clinics for several local youth teams and by becoming a member of the East Penn Rugby Referees Society. Furthermore, Ricky has taken an active role in Schuylkill’s player development process by overseeing our strength and conditioning program and setting up off-season workouts specifically targeted for the front row players.

Treasurer – Matt Hughes
Matt grew up in a rugby family in Drexel Hill, PA. His father John “Skunk” Hughes played for Second City Troop and is a member of the Schuylkill River Rugby Hall of Fame. His brother Sean also played for Monsignor Bonner and Villanova. Off the field Matt is currently working at a grinding and dispersion company called NETZSCH in Exton PA. At Monsignor Bonner High School Matt played flanker and 8 man for 3 years for coach Jeff Preston who was a USA Eagle. As a senior he served as team captain and was player of the year.

From there Matt moved in to Villanova University where he graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering. At Villanova he was a 4 year starter and 2 year captain under a incredible group of coaches that included Jack Foley, Steve Green, Tom Dugan and Biddy Boyle. At Villanova Matt played mostly at 8 man and prop but also started matches at the remaining pack positions as well as center. He holds the distinction of playing every A and B side match for 3 consecutive years. Off the field he served as Treasurer for 2 years and Recruiting Chair for 1 year.

Matt joined Schuylkill River in the summer of 2015 as a 7s player and won 2 MAC Open Championships with the U23 Academy. In Matt’s first year as a member of Schuylkill River’s 15s program he established himself as a D1 player.

Match Secretary – Ryan McHugh
Ryan grew up in the Northeast Frankford section of Philadelphia and graduated from Roman Catholic High School before attending St. Joseph’s University and picking up the game of rugby along the way. In his professional life Ryan is small business owner who runs a painting company.

As a rugby player/admin Ryan has done it all. His past and present coaching positions include Schuylkill River’s 7s open side and U-19 side, Roman Catholic, Neumann University, Temple University, St. Joe’s Prep, and Princeton University. Ryan has also volunteered with the Northeast Frankford Boys and Girls Club, the Wissahickon Braves, and the Narberth Otters flag rugby program. Ryan has also earned MVP honors 5 times in his men’s club rugby career and has served on various Boards in all positions.

Ryan has been a key component in Schuylkill’s commitment to giving back to the local community and connecting with the Philadelphia youth through rugby through his tireless involvement in our numerous youth initiatives. As he enters the twilight years of his playing career it is admirable to see his commitment to passing along the game of rugby to the next generation.

Recording Secretary – Dan Callahan
Born and raised in Northeast Philadelphia, Dan got his start playing rugby with the Northeast Raiders U-19 program where he played under current Schuylkill River teammate Greg “Loopy” Mininger. Dan went on to play for Kutztown University as a scrumhalf where he played alongside future USA Eagle and Pro Rugby player Niku Kruger. Dan graduated in 2013 with a degree in Cinema, Television and Media Production and is currently employed as a Videographer for QVC Inc. in West Chester PA, and does freelance video work in the greater Philadelphia area.

Dan has stepped away from the field as a player in order to focus on his professional life but he remains active with the Club in his new role and has taken the lead in greatly improving Schuylkill River’s social media presence with his graphic design skills and attention to detail. As a side note, since taking a Board position Dan has identified his life goal as striving to get a photo of Joel Embiid wearing Schuylkill River gear.

Director of Rugby – Pat Boyle
The pride of Tamaqua Pennsylvania, Pat has enjoyed an incredibly successful career in rugby to go along with a professional career that has seen him become the Budget Director for a New Jersey State Agency. At Villanova University Pat earned an invite to the USA 7s All American Camp and played summer 7s with the men’s team Lehigh Valley where he earned two trips to USA Rugby’s 7s national championship. As the founder of Schuylkill River’s 7s program Pat has gone to Nationals 9 times, won the MAC 5 times, and captained the side for 6 years. He has also served as the MAC 7s Coordinator from 2013 to the present. Pat’s other 7s playing accolades include making the MAC 7s All-Star Team 3 times and captaining it twice, taking tours to Paraguay and Trinidad & Tobago with the Atlantis 7s side, and playing with Cradle of Liberty in the City Selects tournament in 2015. Pat has also coached Temple in 2013 and Villanova in 2014 at the Collegiate Rugby Championship tournament in Chester.

As a 15s player Pat has played Division 1 men’s club rugby with Baltimore-Chesapeake, Potomac Athletic Club and Schuylkill River. While playing for Potomac, Pat competed in the Rugby Super League which can be looked at as a predecessor to today’s current Major League Rugby professional league. As a member of Schuylkill River’s 15s program Pat has served as Captain for 6 seasons and he helped guide Schuylkill River to a MAC championship and 5th place finish nationally in 2013.

Pat’s off-field contributions include serving as Schuylkill’s Match Secretary from 2008-2009, and Potomac’s Treasurer from 2010-2011. Pat took on Schuylkill’s Director of Rugby position in 2016 and deserves credit for immediately forming Schuylkill’s extremely successful U-23 Academy 7s team.