U.S. Embassy, Wellinton New Zealand – USA Rugby – Eagles road to the Rugby World Cup, 2011.
October 21, 2011 Leave a comment
This is a great little story about the benefits of rugby that some youngsters in America are discovering. Play Rugby USA is doing such a great job spreading the joy of rugby.
“Before I did rugby, I didn’t have enough energy to write and I used to get tired, but after rugby it was fun and I just started doing my work and since I got my progress report the grades got better,” one student said.
October 18, 2011 Leave a comment
Mike Petri
The New York Times’ George Vecsey does a nice little post-mortem of sorts on the USA Eagles’ Rugby World Cup tournament by speaking with our scrumhalf, Mike Petri. Like most of Vecsey’s stuff, it’s worth a read.
Petri, a licensed stockbroker, was in the thick of the wonderful madness that is the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand. Now he’s back in his quiet life, New Zealand and the tournament a long way behind him.
October 17, 2011 Leave a comment
Lost amid the glorious spectacle that is the Rugby World Cup is the fact that for the first time ever Rugby Sevens will be contested at the 2011 Pan American Games – and the USA Eagles will be there.
This is the real beginning of the campaign for Olympic Gold. With Rugby sevens set to join the roster of Olympic sports in Rio in 2016. On October 29-30, Team USA will be one of eight teams from the Americas to go for Pan American gold in Guadalajara, Mexico.
Team USA’s sevens team is currently ranked No. 12 in the world and competes in the IRB Sevens tournament played across the globe every year . The team headed to camp last week and will head to Mexico in one week – the day after the Rugby World Cup final to be held in Auckland between New Zealand and France.
Also competing in the Pan American Games in the U.S. pool are Uruguay, Guyana and Mexico. The other pool will be contested between Argentina, Canada, Brazil and Chile.
The team will head to camp on October 14 to prepare for the games and will depart for Mexico on October 24
October 5, 2011 Leave a comment
stephen paea
A nice story from Sam Worthington of Fairfax Media about Stephen Paea, a Kiwi who’s with the Chicago Bears outfit. The full story can be read here.
Stephen Paea could easily have been playing for the All Blacks or Tonga at the Rugby World Cup – instead the Auckland-born man mountain finds himself living the American dream as a National Football League rookie for the Chicago Bears.
The 23-year-old stands 1.85m and weighs a whopping 137kg, with that bulk a prerequisite for his position as a defensive tackle.
Paea, who was drafted as a second-round pick, is yet to play after four games of the NFL season but has signed a four-year deal with the Bears.
Paea said from Chicago that his family moved from Auckland to Tonga when he was two months old but a visit to New Zealand, aged 12, sowed a sporting seed.
“My dream was to play rugby for the All Blacks but fortunately I found my way here to America to play football,” Paea said.
“I was there when Andrew Mehrtens was the No10. But Jonah Lomu, he was my favourite, I wanted to be just like him growing up.”
Paea played either No8 or second five-eighth as a schoolboy star in Tonga before relocating to the United States in 2004 as his family sought more opportunities for their children.
It was initially a shock to the system as the Tongan clan spent time in Kansas, Utah and California, but as Paea’s body grew so did his reputation on the football field.
He was recruited by Oregon State University where he gained YouTube infamy with a video that showed him bench-pressing 225 pounds 44 times. Read more of this post
September 30, 2011 5 Comments
The USA Eagles put in solid efforts against quality opposition over the past few weeks. If you have any messages that you would like passed on to the Eagles, post them in the comments area below.
Also, have your say in the Poll below:
September 28, 2011 Leave a comment
Bad luck Eagles, well done Italy. Italy won the Rugby World Cup match in Nelson by 27-10. Thank-you USA Eagles for your time in New Zealand – you did well.
**********************************************************************
BOULDER, Colo. – The USA Eagles put everything on the line in their final match at the 2011 Rugby World Cup (RWC). They lost to Italy 27-10 at Trafalgar Park in Nelson, but have gained thousands of new fans across New Zealand and the world. (Photo Credit: USA Rugby)
“I am very proud of how the team performed in our final game at the RWC. I felt they showed tremendous spirit and commitment for the full 80 minutes. We really made Italy work hard for their victory, and stayed in the game until near the end,” said Eagles Head Coach, Eddie O’Sullivan.
Photo credit - USARUGBY.ORG
“For some reason we got on the wrong side of the referee and a penalty count of 19 to 7, which mitigated against us in sustaining continued pressure on Italy. Once we got some flow to our game, we put them under pressure on numerous occasions,” continued O’Sullivan.
Italy had a dream start to the match as captain Sergio Parisse found a hole in the defense, and dived over for the opening points in the third minute. Mirco Bergamasco kicked the conversion for a 7-0 lead.
The Eagles came back strongly, and scored a fantastic try. Todd Clever took an excellent lineout, with Roland Suniula finding Paul Emerick on the run. The powerful center broke through two tacklers, and with a deft Sonny Bill Williams back hand flick pass sent Chris Wyles over for the try. Wyles added the two points, and it was 7-7 after 20 minutes.
Prop Mike MacDonald had another monster game, rumbling through the Italian defense. His work rate was outstanding, and was highlighted as one of the Eagles players of the tournament along with captain Clever. MacDonald also became the most capped USA player at a RWC with 11 appearances.
Later in the half Wyles traded penalties with Italy’s Bergamasco to make the score 10-10. The Eagles had plenty of attacking opportunities playing an expansive game plan, but could not convert this into points. On the Italian side, nippy flyhalf Luciano Orquera dived over to score his team’s second try. Bruising prop Martin Castrogiovanni bull-dozed his way over on the stroke of half time, putting Italy in front by 20-10.
In the second period some amazing Eagle defense prevented scores from Italy. Louis Stanfill, Hayden Smith and Emerick were all heavily involved shutting down certain Italian tries. The level of commitment was outstanding, with Italy putting 50 points on Russia last week.
The Italians pressured the Eagles in the final 20 minutes seeing a penalty try during scrum time, and Stanfill receiving a yellow card in the process. One would not have noticed the Eagles were a man short as they defended their line fiercely, and on attack carried the ball through some great phases.
Italy defended extremely well, and the score remained 27-10, with the Eagles exiting the RWC in 4th place in Pool C ahead of Russia.
“Overall it’s been a very enjoyable World Cup. We set our goal of beating Russia and pushing some of the Tier 1 Nations, which we achieved. The Eagles have definitely won over a lot of supporters in New Zealand during this RWC.” said the Head Coach.
The USA squad will depart for America tomorrow, with many players returning to their day jobs following almost two months on tour. The Eagles can hold their heads high for what was a very brave and spirited performance at the 2011 RWC. Every member of the USA team were presented with medals for taking part in the RWC tournament. - USA Rugby
RWC 2011 RESULTS | NEW ZEALAND
September 11, 2011: USA 10 Ireland 22 (Stadium Taranaki, New Plymouth)
September 15, 2011: USA 13 Russia 6 (Stadium Taranaki, New Plymouth)
September 23, 2011: USA 5 Australia 67 (Wellington Regional Stadium, Wellington)
September 27, 2011: USA 10 Italy 27 (Trafalgar Park, Nelson)
September 27, 2011 Leave a comment
Junior Sifa
The Nelson Mail writes about Junior Sifa’s return to Nelson, where he has a long rugby playing history.
The USA Eagles take on Italy tonight in Nelson at 7:30 p.m. (New Zealand time). The match will be broadcast LIVE on Universal Sports at 2:30 a.m EDT (re-aired at 8 p.m EDT), and then will be shown delayed online 24 hours after the game. View the complete viewing schedule at UniversalSports.com.
There promises to be a fired-up capacity crowd in Nelson for the game tonight. The U.S. returns most of its starters to the line-up, hoping for a victory that will automatically qualify them for the next Rugby World Cup.
The Italians, though, are also focused on this game, and it should be a pulsating contest.
The little community of Richmond, outside Nelson, will have put a bit of fire in U.S. bellies after a heart-warming celebration of all things American, including a parade. Being so warmly embraced so far from home has got to feel good.
September 26, 2011 Leave a comment
From Tasman District Council:
Click to view webcam.
The Stars n Stripes Block Party, on Monday 26 September, is part of the Richmond Festival and celebrations for the Rugby World Cup 2011.
Click for a larger image.
Read more about the Richmond Festival.
Located in Richmond, this temporary camera faces east toward the parade route, down Queen Street and in to Sundial Square to the left of the foreground.
September 26, 2011 1 Comment
USA Eagles arrive in Nelson
USA Eagles Head Coach, Eddie O’Sullivan, has named his best possible team to face Italy at Trafalgar Park in Nelson for the Eagles’ final match of the 2011 Rugby World Cup (RWC). A win for the USA would mean automatic qualification for the 2015 RWC.
The match will be broadcast LIVE on Universal Sports at 2:30 a.m EDT (re-aired at 8 p.m EDT), and then will be shown delayed online 24 hours after the game. View the complete viewing schedule at UniversalSports.com.
In Pool C, Australia (3rd in world rankings) and Ireland (6th in world rankings) are on course for the RWC quarterfinals, with only two teams from each of the four pools advancing. The USA are currently ranked 17th and Italy are 10th in the world. The Italians have made tremendous strides in rugby since joining the Six Nations competition in 2000. Earlier this year Italy defeated France 22-21.
“We are very excited for this final pool match, and have several players fresh for the encounter. We have a very short turn-around following the Australia match in Wellington, and have planned accordingly,” said O’Sullivan.
The Eagles have impressed at the 2011 Rugby World Cup, starting with an inspired performance against Ireland on September 11. Despite losing 22-10, the Eagles won thousands of fans for a brave effort, scoring near full time through Paul Emerick. During that match, prop Mike MacDonald became the most capped USA player of all time with 63 appearances.
In the next pool match four days later, the USA defeated Russia 13-6 to record an historic win in the RWC. It was a bruising battle in which the Russians defended tremendously to keep the score line that close.
This past weekend fourteen changes were made to the team that won against Russia, as they faced Australia, winners of the RWC in 1991 and 1999. JJ Gagiano’s try against the Wallabies was one of the moments of the match at a packed Wellington Regional Stadium, with the majority of fans screaming wildly for the Eagles. Famous New Zealand commentator Murray Mexted said, “I’ve been to hundreds of matches in Wellington, and this is the loudest I have ever heard the crowd.”
Off the field, the USA squad has been heavily involved with the local communities in the various cities. This afternoon some of the players will attend the Tasman 7s, featuring 600 youth rugby players from many local regions. Tomorrow the Eagles will be at the Richmond Parade, meeting the Mayor as well as the US Ambassador to New Zealand, David Huebner.
On the field, Todd Clever returns to lead his country as captain. The flanker has been vital for the United States, devastating with both ball in hand and on defense. Louis Stanfill is the blindside flank with Nic Johnson at eight man, both possessing an outstanding work rate. Read more of this post
September 24, 2011 Leave a comment
The Eagles were comprehensively beaten by Australia, but the Eagles managed to score one try. Here it is:
Welcome to RugbyUSA, the website focusing on the U.S. Eagles’ road to the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand, as well as the enduring American passion for the game. Help us here at Embassy Wellington generate buzz for the Eagles by contributing to the website, sending us story and link suggestions, sending us photos and videos, or providing feedback about the site. You can easily reach us here, on Twitter (@usrugbynz) or by email at usrugby.nz@gmail.com . Thanks. We look forward to hearing from you.
| GAME | DATE | TIME | LOCATION |
| vs Ireland | Sep 11 | 18:00 | New Plymouth |
| vs Russia | Sep 15 | 19:30 | New Plymouth |
| vs Australia | Sep 23 | 20:30 | Wellington |
| vs Italy | Sep 27 | 19:30 | Nelson |
|
