update Three second-half tries carried Canada to a 33-18 Churchill Cup win over the United States Saturday in Edmonton, Alberta.
Trailing 18-11 after Todd Clever’s 47th-minute touchdown, the Americans conceded 15 unanswered points – including one of the afternoon’s two short-handed tries – before replacement Alipate Tuilevuka plunged over in injury time.
The defeat dropped the US to last place in the six-team tournament, won by the New Zealand Maori with a 52-17 victory over Scotland ‘A’. Over the course of three games, the US struggled to sustain pressure and thus to score tries, collecting two in injury time and the third with a man advantage.
Canada and the United States will meet again on August 12 in a World Cup qualifying match expected to determine the North American champion. Both teams first meet lightly regarded Barbados, with the Eagles set to play the Caribbean representative on July 1 in Santa Clara, California.
In Saturday’s preview, Canada gained the better of the first quarter’s exchange of penalty goals, wing James Pritchard converting both Maple Leaf chances while Jason Kelly hit one of two.
Man-of-the-match Justin Mensah-Coker scored the game’s first try at 25 minutes, made by a Canadian lineout maul driven into midfield. Though Kelly replied almost immediately with another three-pointer, Canada might have improved on its 13-6 halftime edge save for fullback Jeff Hullinger’s cover tackle on his opposite, Mike Pyke.
In the second period, begun with Canada playing short-handed, Mensah-Coker notched his second through a tap move launched by Morgan Williams. Clever’s try, from a lineout maul, then brought the Eagles to their high water mark.
Playing a man down for the second time, Canada moved to a commanding 25-11 lead through a try by Williams, again stemming from Maple Leaf mauling. Pritchard’s fourth quarter, including a penalty goal and a try made by Pyke, sealed the contest, with Tuilevuka’s score coming in stoppage time.
In the third-place contest, a last-minute try lifted Ireland ‘A’ to a 30-27 win over the English Saxons.
Canada 33 United States 18 (halftime Canada 13-6)
Canada
Tries: Justin Mensah-Coker (2), James Pritchard, Morgan Williams
Conversions: James Pritchard (2)
Penalty goals: James Pritchard (3)
Mike Pyke; Justin Mensah-Coker, Chris Pack, David Spicer, James Pritchard; Ander Monro, Morgan Williams; Dan Pletch, Pat Riordan, Rod Snow, Luke Tait, Mike Burak, Adam Kleeberger, Stan McKeen, Sean-Michael StephenUnited States
Tries: Todd Clever, Alipate Tuilevuka
Conversion: not available
Penalty goals: Jason Kelly (2)
Jeff Hullinger; Mike Palefau, Paul Emerick, Albert Tuipolutu, Jeremy Nash; Jason Kelly (Alipate Tuilevuka), Tyson Meek (Mose Timoteo); Mike MacDonald (Chris Osentowski), Pat Bell (Owen Lentz), John Tarpoff, Carl Hansen (Brian Schoener), Mike Mangan, Scott Lawrence (Mark Aylor), Todd Clever, Kort Schubert (captain)Referee: Peter Allan (Scotland)
Attendance: 7,983
Related:
New Zealand Maori 74 United States 6 (halftime: Maori 36-6)
Ireland 'A" 28 United States 13 (halftime: Ireland 'A' 16-6)
I have not had a chance to see the game. Accounts seem to suggest we were fairly well beaten and that fitness was an issue. I guess that is something that can be straightened out by August.
Is Thorburn likely to be coaching beyond August? I think it's reasonable to give Thorburn a shot and see what happens. I'm not sure there are any other coaches out there with similar credentials that are about to take up the Eagle cause.
I do hope Mike Hercus is fit and ready to go come August. Vilijon should also be ready to go and the backline will look pretty decent. The forwards are going to have a busy summer getting fit for the big match in August.
There were hints of good things to come in the Maori match ....
Posted by: doug lyons | 18 June 2006 at 19:59
A first choice backline will be looking very good. Need to watch the game again but Emerick and Tuipulotu were impressive, especially given the poor play of the halfbacks. Hercus will really get the backline going and with Viljoen back we will have another guy who can break the line, kick, and play fullback well from a positional standpoint.
Posted by: Goeagles | 18 June 2006 at 20:27
What we need to do is take advantage of the opportunities as they present themselves. So many were created by our our Italian Pro midfielders. They ran all over the canadians all day. We just didn't turn them into points. It was an ok game by the eagles, but if we think about it the only place to go from here is up.
Posted by: Go the Eagles! | 19 June 2006 at 05:39
On the night of a lot happening in the world of sports, Sportscenter used a clip from the NZ Maori haka on their nightly montage of highlights that start their broadcast. Of course no news story followed but maybe an early dividend from the ESPNU deal.
Posted by: Jason Maloni | 19 June 2006 at 06:39
I saw that game and thought we just got our tactics wrong. We haven't got a good maul, we tried it too often and couldn't defend their mauling.
Meek and Kelly simply aren't good enough, the sub scrum-half looked much better. Our half backs lost us the game.
The players looked beaten before the game started for some reason, I just hope they were holding back because Canada were easily the better side.
Posted by: Phil | 19 June 2006 at 09:51
I'ts been a while. I believe that deconstruction might lead to rebirth. USA rugby could finally allow cataclysm dictate it's path.
Consider the points of value. Professionalism is paramount to the USA's regrowth. When rugby first became professional in Europe it was a disaster. Nobody knew how to handle the transition. Clubs collapsed and imploded and benefactor's stepped in and out so fast it was a joke. Somehow it developed and the doomsayers have been proven wrong.
It took a long, long time. Ten years infact.
The southern hemisphere took a route to consistent international success by securing the services of their best players to central contracts. This limited their club time and stopped them from overplaying. Look at England right now. How can anyone be effective when you've played 42 games and have a summer to recuperate, only to be told that you have to go on tour and limit your recovery time.
The suggestion is therefore, that the players in the NA4 and Eagle player pool should sign contracts to an elite management group within the USA rugby family. It should be an autonomous enterprise protected from the amateur game. It should be able to generate it's own income and find it's own partnerships without interference from the governing body. Has anyone read "Winning" by Clive woodward. There is a workable management template that is relevant to the scenario present in US rugby.
It does take a long time. America loves a winner, but rugby is a game which evolves and takes time to catch up to. Understand that and find your own style and niche and learn from history.
Posted by: geraint Hill | 19 June 2006 at 13:54
Geraint Hill - well said!
We did well against Ireland 'A', and the real Ireland team gave the All Blacks a run for thier money. Not a bad effort, considering all the C-Rap that went on between USAR and.......
So we didn't do so well against the Maori - Neither did the British and Irish Lions.......
And if you banked on a 1 point victory as your saving grace, against Canada last season - this year, it was about right. They beat us fair and square - and now we need to live with the shame.
0-3 That's the cold hard facts.
I expect better. Don't you?
Not sure what other readers want/need/like - but I want to see some Gawd Dangit wins on the board. And at this stage, I don't give a rat's how they come.
Mongral!!! - not mongral. Disciplined, focused, controled - aggression, that may actually intimidate the opposition.
We have no one that scares the opposition in our Eagles squad. MacDonald and Tarpoff played outstanding rugby. I would have gone for MacDoanld for the MVP - but others say different. And Tarpoff, is on a rugby comeback. He gave his all - hat's off to the man.
The scrum is a shocker though - and the attention to the ball at phase play, is terrible. No horsebits - but someone needs to get the boots working - on, or/at the ball area. The rules state 1 whole meter around the ball.
Clear the dang path to the ball - let YOUR scrumhalf go get it, and send YOUR backs off to the races with clean, go forward ball.
Mongral - has nothing to do with it.
Go to mediazone and watch the games yourself. Replay the breakdowns. We did ok - we just need to get a whole lot cleaner at the breakdowns.
Wasn't Emerick Awesome......
Posted by: Blackadder | 19 June 2006 at 15:59
With the second leg of the NA4 coming up should one squad consist of basically the Eagle test side and reserves and the other as a trial side? The reason I throw this out there is that it is critical to make the Eagles work more effectively as a unit and that takes time.
With few, if any camps and only Barbados coming up prior to the August RC qualifier I would use NA4 as a tune up for the Eagles.
I think the Eagles can beat Canada but it's going to take a great effort and single minded dedication for 80 minutes of rugby this summer.
Having seen only a little bit of the US / Canada game I feel that Hollinger is a keeper for sure - great instincts and athletecism. In the pack I like Clever - best player to come along since Dan Lyle and has the looks of a future captain.
Speaking of Lyle - has he been tossed out of US rugby completely? We sure could use him to coach the re-tarts. He was the best player in the air in world rugby for re-starts. We're sorely lacking in that area at the moment.
All due respect to Tyson Meek - I'm sure he is a great club and even rep player but he just doesn't have what it takes at the top level. He gave up the first three points at the base of the scrum under only modest pressure because his passing doesn't seem up to snuff and then he tried a pop / box kick inside the Canada 22 when a well placed grubber behind the 6' 5" Canadian fullback would have made far more sense. I think it makes a lot more sense to have a guy that tall play the ball on the ground rather than in the air.
Posted by: doug lyons | 19 June 2006 at 20:24
Dan Lyle is on administrative leave and I don't know who really knows when he will be coming back.
Posted by: Ruck And Mauler | 19 June 2006 at 21:28