In Print_2
Talen Energy Stadium, Chester, Pennsylvania
Sunday’s Total Attendance: 12,378
Saturday’s Total Attendance: 14,846 (New One-day record for this event)
Two-Day Total Attendance: 27,224 (NEW Two-Day Record for this event)
Men’s Championship Quarterfinal Game #1: UCLA 19, Penn State 12
Men’s Championship Quarterfinal Game #2: California 24, Arkansas State 14
Men’s Championship Quarterfinal Game #3: Arizona 17, Life 12 (OT)
Men’s Championship Quarterfinal Game #4: Kutztown 19. Dartmouth 12
Men’s Plate Quarterfinal: South Carolina 19, Saint Joseph’s 12
Men’s Plate Quarterfinal: Utah 5, Notre Dame 0
Men’s Plate Quarterfinal: Wisconsin 33, Temple 6
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Men’s Plate Quarterfinal: Indiana 31, Virginia Tech 7
Men’s Bowl Semifinal: Army 26, Clemson 0
Men’s Bowl Semifinal: Maryland 25, Boston College 12
Women’s Championship Semifinal: Life 24, Navy 0
Women’s Championship Semifinal: Lindenwood 15, Penn State 5
Men’s Championship Semifinal: UCLA 14, Kutztown 12
Men’s Championship Semifinal: California 38, Arizona 5
Men’s Plate Semifinal: Wisconsin 17, Utah 12
Men’s Plate Semifinal: Indiana 25, South Carolina 7
National Small College Rugby Organization Championship: New Mexico Highlands 31, St. Mary’s 7
Philadelphia Challenge Championship: Delaware 36, Mount St. Mary’s 10
Women’s Championship: Life 19, Lindenwood 10
Men’s Plate Final: Wisconsin 13, Indiana 10
Men’s Bowl Final: Army 10. Maryland 0
Men’s Championship Final: California 31, UCLA 7
NOTES: Fourth consecutive Penn Mutual CRC title for California.
California’s Jesse Millner was named the Penn Mutual CRC Most Valuable Player.
California takes home the Pete Dawkins Trophy for 4th consecutive year.
The Lindenwood women’s team upset the 3-time defending champion Penn State women’s team in the semifinals but lost to Life 19-10 in the women’s championship final.
Two-day attendance of 27,244 is a new Penn Mutual CRC event record, surpassing last year’s previous two-day attendance record of 24,952.
Saturday’s attendance also set a new single-day attendance record for the event, 14,846. ONCE AGAIN, THE PENN MUTUAL COLLEGIATE RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP AND TALEN ENERGY STADIUM (FORMERLY PPL PARK) WILL HOST THE VAST MAJORITY OF THE WOMEN’S, HIGH SCHOOL AND NSCRO MATCHES ON-SITE AT THE BRAND NEW ACADEMY FIELDS LOCATED ADJACENT TO TALEN ENERGY STADIUM. If someone is going to end Cal’s run at the Penn Mutual Collegiate Rugby Championship next year, they will need to match Cal’s technique and strength in the tackle. And as much as they might make us cringe, poor passes that don’t go to hand hurt a team less than poor tackles.
The plan this past Sunday was to keep some stats from as many matches as possible from the CRC. Then, use the numbers to write some kind of interesting analysis. Do you know what you get from tracking some statistics for one day at one sevens tournament? A mess.
I knew that from a small sample size, any meaning drawn from the numbers would be anecdotal rather than really quantitative. Still, there was hope in my heart that some trends would emerge that would allow me to go, “Aha! So that area of the game is what separated the quarterfinalist from the champion.” Or something like that. Instead, there was only a jumble of information from which no meaningful conclusions can be drawn.
Each match can be decided by something different, so no obvious trends jump out from one day’s worth of matches. I should’ve seen that coming; I didn’t.
My thinking heading into the day was that teams with a high number of passes completed would be winning teams. Turns out, not necessarily. For example, in the quarterfinal match between Arkansas State and Cal, Arkansas State had close to twice as many passes completed as Cal, and Dartmouth had more completed passes in their loss to Kutztown in another quarterfinal.
Sevens teams scoring tries and winning matches without necessarily needing to rely on more successful passes in not unique to this year’s CRC. According to World Rugby’s report on the 2014-2015 Men’s Sevens Series, 47% of tries were scored with between 1 and 3 passes in the build up. 11% had no passes in the build up.
When adjusted for time of possession, the team with the highest passing rate last season was Japan; the team with the lowest passing rate was South Africa. England, USA, New Zealand, and Fiji were all clumped in the middle. This is more evidence that making lots of passes is not correlated with winning. With so many players displaying most valuable player qualities and stats, it is hard to narrow down an All-CRC squad to just seven players. Rugby Today decided on the top 12 guys that had the most impact on the tournament. Either they were integral parts of their team’s plan or led the tournament in stats, all deserve praise for exemplary play.
Niall Barry – The UCLA back was the CRC try leader with six leading UCLA to its first ever final.
Jack Braun – Led Dartmouth to an undefeated pool record and scored two tries against Kutztown in a tight quarterfinal match.
Zinzan Elan-Puttick – After missing last year’s tournament due to injury, he added a new dynamic to the Red Wolves’ offense. He tallied five tries and four conversions in four games.
Chad Gough – As the stalwart of the Utah team, the forward did it all. He scored tries, played tremendous defense, was disruptive in the breakdowns, and kicked the Utes’ conversions.
Wes Hartmann – The big forward captained another talented Kutztown side. Known for the dirty work, he scored the game winning try against Dartmouth.
Cody Melphy – In his first CRC, Melphy didn’t disappoint. He was one of the most dynamic and attacking players on the pitch all weekend.
Jesse Milne – As tournament MVP, his presence was felt both offensively and defensively.
Seb Sharpe – The UCLA vet displayed his experience and skill scoring five tries for the Bruins. He also made a number of crucial tackles making him one of the best all-around players at the CRC.
Tyler Sousley – The young Arizona product had a hat trick against Navy and showed tremendous pace all weekend.
Jake Syndergaard – The Badger was the overall points leader. After a rough loss to UCLA, he led Wisconsin to a plate title.
Evan Towle – He was the architect of the biggest upset of the tournament when Virginia Tech beat Life in pool play.
Russell Webb – The Cal captain arguably could have been the tournament MVP. Life won its first-ever major tournament title last week, claiming top billing at USA Rugby’s College 7s National Championships in Cary, N.C., and the Running Eagles backed it up Sunday, winning the Penn Mutual Collegiate Rugby Championship. In both tournaments, Lindenwood stood in their way in the final. Sunday, they beat the Lions 19-10.
“It is just absolutely exciting,” said Life head coach Rosalind Chou. “We love the competition, both weekends, just being challenge to really test our mettle, and we really appreciate all the great teams that we’ve played, and it’s just great to see our hard work pay off.”
No matter what game or how many minutes in, the Running Eagles never kept running, displaying superior fitness all weekend. Even in second half of the final when captain Nicole Strasko picked up a yellow card, she had the fortitude to make her way to the sin bin at a dead sprint.
“In addition to being very physically fit, we’re very mentally strong to push through even if their bodies are tired,” said Chou. “[Strasko’s] the most mentally strong player I think I’ve seen at the collegiate level, and she just knows how to do her job and leads the troops really well.”
The yellow card didn’t hurt Life in the final, as the game was already in hand, but Strasko did plenty of damage to other teams all weekend. When a teammate made a long break but couldn’t go all the way, it was often Strasko streaking in support to take the offload. She was rewarded with the tournament MVP award.
“We put ourselves to the test and we did really well and we couldn’t have done it without our coaches and staff and teammates side by side pushing each other,” Strasko said.
Also big for the Running Eagles was Megan Rom, who handed out a lot of monster handoffs throughout the competition. A loosehead prop in 15s, she is a bruising runner. One of rugby’s biggest story lines of the last year was the game’s 15s superstars giving 7s a go ahead of the Olympics. So far, that experiment has borne little fruit. South Africa, Australia and New Zealand have all named their squads for Rio, and only one 15s star, Sonny Bill Williams, has made the cut.
Missing out on Olympic selection were New Zealand’s Liam Messam, South Africa’s Bryan Habana and Australia’s Nick Cummins. Quade Cooper also made a run at the Olympics, playing in a couple of stops on the HSBC 7s World Series last season, but it’s been known for some time he wouldn’t be considered. Springbok Francois Hougaard was named as a traveling reserve for Rio, but he’ll only earn the title of Olympian if someone in the 12-man squad gets injured.
Even though Manu Samoa didn’t reach the Olympics, losing to Spain in the final of the repechage qualifier in Monaco, it didn’t appear as though capped 7s All Black Tim Nanai-Williams, Sonny Bill’s cousin and a star in Super Rugby, would have been in the fold even if they had. He switched his allegiance to Samoa, using the Olympic loophole in international eligibility regulations, and it was speculated he’d be a part of the 7s program in 2016.
Perhaps not surprisingly, Williams and Hougaard, the only 15s superstars to commit themselves fully to the entire World Series, are the ones going to Rio. Both played in six tournaments last season, more than any of the other big-name 15s guys. Messam played in four tournaments, Cummins three, and Cooper and Habana just two a piece.
Team USA’s selections will be announced in the next few days, and two guys who haven’t been regulars on the circuit recently or ever are in the mix. Having not played for the 7s Eagles since 2009, Wyles played sparingly in the North American Olympic qualifier last summer, and he rejoined the setup for the Rio camp after helping Saracens win the English and European titles. Nate Ebner and the New England Patriots bowed out of the NFL playoffs in the NFC Championship Game in January, and he was at the Olympic Training Center within weeks. He rode the bench for the USA in Hong Kong and played in Singapore and Paris.
Joining them in a similar, but-not-too-similar, situation is Andrew Durutalo. The big man was a regular for the USA 7s team for two-and-a-half seasons before taking a 15s contract with Super Rugby’s Sunwolves last year. Though he didn’t play in a World Series stop this season, he’s not as far removed from the team as Wyles or Ebner.
Will the late-comeing Americans go the way of their international cohorts?
The way I see it, as long as Durutalo is fit enough, he’s a lock. He is a large reason the 2014/2015 Eagles wer slightly better than the 2015/2016 World Series squad. And the way the other positional battles fall into place, there’s probably only room for Wyles or Ebner, though it’s entirely possible neither will be picked.
Rest assured that if either is, it’s because Friday believes their presence gives the team the best chance to succeed, a.k.a they’re on form. If it was Wyles, that would mean the USA has as seasoned and experienced a playmaker as any other team in Rio, and if Ebner were selected, it’d mean the Eagles have one of the most impressive physical specimens in the competition. The final installment of the rankings are out and we have some movement at the top. After the three respective championships were played this past weekend, there is some more clarity yet more ambiguity.
Cal shocked BYU on BYU’s campus to win the Penn Mutual Varsity Cup. The win snapped the Cougars two year unbeaten streak and was the first lost BYU ever suffered on South Field. Cal earned its way to the top of the rankings.
It gets complicated at number two, however, because Life managed to defeat St. Mary’s in Moraga. The Running Eagles finished off an undefeated season with the DIA National Championship victory. Since the DIA champs did not face off with the Varsity Cup finalists, it is tough to gauge. Nevertheless, Rugby Today determined that BYU had a better resume than Life and remains at number two while Life remains third.
By virtue of the fact that Central Washington nearly knocked Cal out of the Varsity Cup, the Wildcats come in at number four. St. Mary’s, who came up just short in the DIA final to Life, finishes fifth. The Gaels had close losses to BYU, Cal, and Life, earning a top five spot for a successful season with a tough schedule.
Although the top of the rankings saw most of the clarification, UC Davis is the biggest mover this week. The Aggies won their second consecutive DIAA National Championship over Notre Dame College. Davis moves up to 17th slotting in front of fellow DIAA competitors NDC and AIC. Lots of players impressed at the 2016 Penn Mutual Women’s Collegiate Rugby Championship, and the top teams set a high standard. The champion Life squad was full of players dangerous in attack and defense, but Megan Rom, Nicole Strasko, and Kaitlyn Broughton were the individuals who seemed to keep popping up in important moments. Below is the full squad of 12 for our tournament Dream Team.
Nicole Strasko – Three tries on the final day and the MVP; she’s a big-time player.
Megan Rom – Rom had a weekend full of big runs and big hits.
Kaitlyn Broughton – Broughton’s role was often as a distributor, though she found plenty of gaps for herself over the weekend.
Davon Thomas – Lindenwood’s lynchpin in attack, with most things running through her.
Kerri Hands – One of the highest work-rates in the tournament, she was a key figure in both attack and defense for Navy.
Elaine Santiago – Gas, gas, and more gas.
Nikki Ciccarelli – The NSCRO Select side improved as the weekend went on, and Mount Saint Mary’s Ciccarelli was often the attacking spark.
Sierra Snap – Four tries in the quarter-final win over Princeton. Four.
Gabe Armstrong-Scott – Princeton’s playmaker was at the center of everything for the Tigers.
Alena Olson – Michigan had an up-and-down weekend, but Olson was consistently strong.
Corinne Heavner – Penn State’s defense was strong, thanks in no small part to Heavner, and she also bagged quite a few tries.
Jennese Bacon – Another player who only needed only a little space to make something happen.
SINGAPORE 7S PREVIEWSHARE TWEET SHARE 0 COMMENTS
By Colin E. Flora - USA Sevens Analyst on April 16, 2016
2016 Singapore Sevens Preview
For the first time since 2006, the Sevens World Series travels to Singapore. Last weekend, the teams competed in what is routinely considered the preeminent sevens tournament, the Hong Kong Sevens. As we have become used to this year, Hong Kong provided numerous upsets, but the top four tracked the current standings.
For the United States, Hong Kong provided a second consecutive plate final defeat. As a result, the Eagles have still yet to claim hardware on the season. Of course, with the readjustment to expectations, what would once have been a season highlighting victory in the plate final has given way to realistic aspirations of a cup victory to match the title in the 2015 London Sevens. In order for team USA to keep hopes alive of a cup title in Singapore, the Eagles will need to survive a third consecutive tournament in a difficult pool.
Pool A Pool B Pool C Pool D
Fiji New Zealand South Africa Australia
England United States Kenya Wales
Samoa France Scotland Argentina
Portugal Canada Russia Japan
In many ways, Pool A is the most intriguing. Highlighting the pool is the final match on Day 1 between Fiji and England. While matches between Fiji and England have always been ones to watch, the fact that Fiji’s coach, Ben Ryan, was England’s coach until 2013 adds to the excitement. Fiji tops the series and has won two of the last three tournaments, including Hong Kong last week. Although Fiji came through Hong Kong unscathed, a near upset to Canada (19–17) to start the tournament and a close victory over Kenya in the cup quarterfinal (12–10) threatened to derail the charge.
While Fiji has had a prototypically Fijian season, three cup titles and atop the standings, England has had a rather atypical season. The English started the year with a loss in the Dubai cup final to Fiji, but has thrice missed the cup round, finishing dead last in Las Vegas. In Hong Kong, the England of old returned. With the exception of a bizarre draw against Russia to end pool play, England played well. The lone loss came in the quarterfinal to Australia (14–5), before shutting out Kenya (33–0) and the United States (19–0) en route to the plate.
Samoa poses the biggest threat to England once more reaching the quarterfinals. In any given match, Samoa can beat most any team. But there is no consistency in this Samoan side the past two years. One advantage Samoa might have is a team from a nation more accustomed to the warm conditions the teams are set to face in Signapore. In Hong Kong, the heat and humidity got the best of some teams. Perhaps this is the advantage Samoa needs to send England back to the bowl competition.
For Portugal, it is rapidly becoming make-or-break time. The Portuguese have finished last in five of seven tournaments and are six points behind Russia for relegation. Although a cup round birth seems out of the question, some signs of life will be necessary if Portugal is to avoid the fate of its Iberian neighbor two years ago.
In Pool C, South Africa is the clear favorite to top the pool. It would be unimaginable for South Africa to miss the quarterfinals, but not unimaginable for South Africa to finish second. As recently as Las Vegas, Kenya posted a 3–0 pool record with a blowout (22–0) victory over New Zealand. In Hong Kong, the road was much tougher for Kenya and the team did barely enough to reach the quarterfinals. Kenya hammered Samoa (24–0) to start the tournament and then had tough losses to New Zealand (5–0) and France (17–10) before being swept on Day 3, losing 12–10 to Fiji and 33–0 to England.
Pressing Kenya for the second spot will be Scotland. The Scots reached a first quarterfinal back in Vancouver, but have been a consistently strong side in the bowl competition–four bowl finals and one victory. In Vancouver, Scotland posted a meaningful victory over Argentina to reach the cup round and has some impressive wins at times this season. Perhaps most notably a 19–0 bowl victory over England one tournament removed from England’s finals appearance in Dubai.
This could also be a very important tournament for Russia. Just over a year ago, Russia surprised many by winning the series-qualifying tournament in Hong Kong. As a result, this is Russia’s first year on the series. Things have gone largely as would be expected, but Russia has not been hapless by any means. Although it is a long shot, Scotland’s and Kenya’s vulnerabilities provide Russia the best chance so far for reaching a quarterfinal. That said, this will be the sixth time the two sides meet in pool play this year and Scotland stands at 5–0.
Pool D is a very interesting pool. It is the only pool draw in Singapore that includes four teams that have reached the cup round. Australia and Argentina have combined for three second-place finishes and the last time Japan competed on the series it reached the plate final in Las Vegas. Thanks to Japan’s strong showing in Vegas and the fact that Japan is a non-core team this year, after relegation last year, Wales has ridden the surge of weak pool draws to consecutive quarterfinal drubbings.
Australia is the favorite to top Pool D but is not invincible. In Hong Kong, Australia finished second in the pool after a 22–7 loss to the United States. In the cup round, it was a mixed showing. Australia defeated a talented England (14–5) in the quarterfinals before a drubbing by Fiji in the semifinals (34–5). In the third-place decider, South Africa got the better of Australia by a conversion (14–12).
Wales has played better of late than throughout most of the season, but the story of Wales the past two seasons has been quarterfinals by atrocious pools. Japan and Argentina should each be favored to send Wales back to the bowl competition. After a strong start to the season, Argentina has slipped into the bowl competition the last two tournaments, but dominated Scotland (26–0) to win the bowl in Hong Kong. Similarly, Japan looked solid in Vegas and came out victorious last weekend in the series qualifier. It will be interesting to see which of these two teams can make it out of pool play. The pool should be topped by Australia (3–0) and anchored by Wales (0–3). Second place should come down to the winner of Argentina-Japan to finish pool play. It is, however, entirely possible that this is a pool that will see Australia, Argentina, and Japan split their matches to hold 2–1 records to be decided by points. It is also within the realm of possibility that Wales can string together some victories and finally earn a quarterfinal.
For Eagles’ fans, Pool B is a third straight tough pool that threatens to end the unprecedented streak of nine-consecutive quarterfinals. New Zealand will be the favorite to top the pool, but if the Eagles play solid rugby, they can topple the All Blacks Sevens. The problem is, if the Eagles are off both France and rival Canada can claim huge victories. In Dubai, a victory by France left the United States needing a first-ever victory over New Zealand to reach the quarterfinal. It would be the first of three victories over the Kiwis to start the season.
The Eagles will be boasting a strong side but not an ideal side. Heading into Hong Kong, Carlin Isles was injured and left Coach Friday needing to bring Nate Ebner into the lineup. Ebner was in Hong Kong for the 10s competition, where his side fell in the final. Due to Ebner’s recent transition back to rugby from the NFL and having already gone through heavy competition, Friday carried Ebner on the roster but did not use him. This weekend, Ebner remains in the lineup and should expect to see some playing time.
Another change from what had been the anticipated roster for Hong Kong is Ben Pinkelman. Since joining the squad for Wellington, Pinkelman has become a mainstay, adding three tries in Hong Kong. His rapid ascension and maturation belie his youth. His youth is what triggers his exclusion for Singapore. Pinkelman is still a student at Colorado State and has returned to tend to his studies. In his place, Mike Friday has called Pat Blair back into the roster. This is Blair’s second appearance with team USA this season as he joined the injury-ravaged squad for Vancouver. Blair is a series veteran and showed well in the Falcons team that won the Las Vegas Invitational.
Remaining from Hong Kong is Madison Hughes who was in peak form in Hong Kong. Also making a strong showing in Hong Kong was Danny Barrett. Although Barrett has been a strong contributor all season, he showed more regularly his signature brutality and strength to which to which we became accustomed last season and in the buildup to the XVs World Cup. Most memorably, Barrett powered through two Welsh defenders in highlight-reel fashion. Keeping his run of great form in the absence of his fellow speedster is Perry Baker. With Carlin Isles out, Baker has become a try-scoring machine beyond what we have become accustomed to. If Isles had been out all season, Baker may well be leading the series in tries. That said, the side is certainly missing Isles. Baker’s magic has kept the train on the tracks, but without the ability to swap fresh legs onto the pitch, six matches can become draining on even a great athlete like Baker.
The full squad for the Eagles is:
Nate Ebner
Pat Blair
Danny Barrett
Garrett Bender
Zack Test
Peter Tiberio
Folau Niua
Maka Unufe
Nate Augspurger
Madison Hughes
Perry Baker
Martin Iosefo
The action gets underway Saturday (4/16) and concludes the following day (4/17). Make sure to check back for a complete recap of all the action. The HSBC Sevens World Series was born in 1999. As of this time last year, only eight teams had ever claimed a cup title: New Zealand, Fiji, South Africa, England, Australia, Samoa, Argentina, and France. The United States broke through at the London Sevens in 2015 to increase that number to nine. In the series return to Singapore for the first time since 2006, Kenya increased that number to ten.
Kenya’s victory comes a little more than a year after the program all but imploded under budgeting issues and allegations of doping. The victory also comes in the second tournament after a dead-last finish in Vancouver. Recent results aside, this has been a day long in the making. Kenya is a proud rugby sevens nation that has long been recognized for playing an exciting brand of rugby and with fan support unmatched, at least among nations to have never previously lifted a cup title.
Kenya first reached a cup final at the 2009 Adelaide Sevens where the Kenyans were throttled (26–7) by South Africa. It would not be until 2013 that Kenya once more reached the final, this time losing 24–19 to England in the 2013 edition of the Wellington Sevens. In Singapore, the Kenyans left no doubters.
For team USA, Singapore was a far cry from the excitement and joy that surrounded Kenya.
Day 1
Singapore would provide some of the most memorable upsets of the season, but it did not start that way. Pool C got things started. The opening match saw South Africa demolish Scotland (33–0). Kenya then took the pitch and took care of Russia (21–7). In the second round of matches, South Africa continued winning, but with a closer match against Russia (21–10). Kenya stumbled against Scotland and fell to a late draw (12–12). A South Africa victory over Kenya and a strong win for Scotland over Russia would mean that Scotland, not Kenya would reach the cup round. Kenya controlled its own destiny, however. If Kenya could defeat South Africa, then Scotland had no hope.
Scotland took the pitch against Russia first. Scotland soundly defeated Russia, but not without conceding seventeen points (36–17). This left Scotland at -14 in points differential, meaning Kenya would need to lose by more than twenty-eight. Kenya did, in fact, lose to South Africa but only by fourteen (14–0). This sent the Kenyans through to the cup quarterfinal and left Scotland to fight for the bowl.
Pool D was an interesting pool with each team having reached the cup round at some point in the season. Australia entered the strong favorite to top the pool, but Argentina entered desperate to snap a two-tournament bowl-round skid. The inspired Argentines, fresh off a bowl victory in Hong Kong, upset Australia (12–7). Japan, having just earned the right to return to the series as a core team in 2016–17, looked to build on a plate final in Las Vegas, which was Japan’s last series event. Japan succeeded in its first match, defeating Wales (26–19).
In the second round of matches, Japan gave Australia a game, but was unable to send Australia to a second loss (17–12). In the other match, Argentina continued to show great form, doubling up Wales (42–21). This left the third round as the decider. A Japanese upset over Argentina and an Australian victory would mean a three-way tie. Japan came close, but in the end was only able to claim a tie (21–21). Australia had little trouble with Wales (31–12). At the end of Day 1, Argentina topped the pool and Australia claimed the second seed to advance to the quarterfinal. The result knocked Wales out of consecutive quarterfinal appearances and prevented Japan from a second-consecutive quarterfinal.
In Pool A, the early story was Samoa upsetting series-leading Fiji (28–14). Portugal tried to follow suit with an upset over England, but was unable to mount enough offense to support a solid defensive performance. In the end, England came out on top (14–7). Against a Fijian side no doubt angry with a loss to Samoa, Portugal did not stand a chance: Fiji 38, Portugal 0. Things got even more interesting when England defeated Samoa (12–5). In the final round of pool play, Samoa defeated Portugal (28–12) and Fiji beat England (26–12). England’s low scoring proved its undoing as the English finished behind both Fiji and Samoa, respectively, on points differential.
For North American rugby fans, the opener to Pool B between Canada and the United States carried a great deal of excitement. Pool play began with France blanking New Zealand (24–0). Clearly Pool B was going to be every bit as difficult to advance from as many feared. The United States carried a record nine consecutive quarterfinal appearances into Singapore. If the Eagles were to make it ten, they would need to start by defeating Canada.
The first half could not have gone better for team USA. Madison Hughes got things going with a try after chasing a kick through the Canadian defense and then chipping the ball into goal and diving on it for the score in the right corner. The second score came when Perry Baker stole the restart and ran directly under the post for the second try. Hughes added the conversion to push the lead to twelve. The following kickoff was again stolen by Baker. The Ball worked to Hughes who chipped through the line for Zack Test and the try in the left corner. Again, Hughes was unable to connect on the conversion. Baker was again able get a hand on the restart, but this time was unable to bring it in. The Eagles would eventually regain possession and add a fourth try when Folau Niua kicked through the Canadian defense for Zack Test’s second try. Hughes added the conversion to push the lead to 24–0, where it would remain at half.
In the second half, the Eagles struck again early. Baker stole the restart and passed it to Danny Barrett for a try under the post. Hughes added the conversion. Canada would answer back with two converted tries, but the final score of the match would go the way of the United States when Hughes was able to score from an offload by Maka Unufe. Final score: USA 36, Canada 14.
With New Zealand looking vulnerable, hopes quickly sored of the United States topping the pool. First things first, however, team USA needed to defeat France. Typically, two victories would be enough to reach the cup round, but as England proved, it is not always enough. New Zealand beat Canada (24–17), meaning that even with a win over France, a tenth consecutive quarterfinal would not be assured by a win over France.
The match began with both teams playing sloppy rugby. France won the kickoff but was backed up early and lost possession by throwing an errant pass into touch just outside its own five-meter line. The Eagles won the lineout but lost possession when Danny Barrett was dragged into touch at the French five-meter. Ultimately, the Eagles would strike first when Madison Hughes picked the ball from the back of a scrum and ran a perfect line for a try in the right corner. Hughes, who struggled throughout the tournament from the boot, missed the conversion. It would come back to haunt him. France would add a five-pointer of its own to level the match at the break.
In the second half, France added two converted tries within the first three minutes to put the United States under serious pressure. Hughes closed the gap when he scored a try under the post from a pass by Zack Test and added his own conversion. Perry Baker soon added a third try in the right corner. Folau Niua stepped in for the long-distance conversion attempt to draw the match level. The conversion was no good. The final restart came with less than a minute remaining. The kickoff went behind France, but the Eagles could not get to the ball before the French. France managed to hold onto possession as time expired. With no time remaining, France booted the ball to touch to leave team USA needing a fourth ever victory over New Zealand to reach the cup round.
Before this season, the United States had never defeated New Zealand. The Eagles did so three times to start the year. New Zealand entered the match particularly vulnerable with captains Tim Mikkelson and D.J. Forbes out. A loss for New Zealand would mean falling to the bowl competition for the first time in program history. No other nation has reached the cup round in every tournament.
Perry Baker won the opening kick and turned on the speed to try and catch the right edge, but the All Blacks Sevens’ defense was swarming and kept him from finding space. New Zealand soon earned a penalty and booted for touch at the USA 10. The Kiwis won the lineout and broke through the American Defense for an unconverted try in the right corner. It did not take long for New Zealand to strike again with a converted try. The All Blacks Sevens added a third try and a conversion before the half to lead 19–0 at the break.
In the second half, the United States struck first when Maka Unufe broke several tackles to score under the post. Madison Hughes added the conversion with over four minutes left. Perry Baker looked to have a second try for the Americans when he kicked through the defense then chipped the ball into in-goal. By the time Baker was able to bring the ball into hand, he was unable to stop his foot from hitting the dead ball line, costing the score. The resulting dropout came with 2:49 left. New Zealand kicked deep, forcing team USA to work from deep in its own territory. The Americans managed to work into New Zealand territory when Danny Barrett tried to kick through the New Zealand defense for Perry Baker. Unfortunately, Barrett misread the defense and New Zealand had no difficulty scooping up the ball. Folau Niua forced a turnover at the New Zealand ten-meter line and soon kicked through the defense to Zack Test for a try in the left corner with just over a minute left. Hughes was unable to add the conversion. The restart came with fifteen seconds remaining. Baker was able to steal the restart and passed inside to Martin Iosefo, but the ball soon fell loose to the deck. New Zealand managed to kick the loose ball down field and into touch.
The loss left team USA in the bowl round for the first time since last year’s Tokyo Sevens. With France defeating Canada (26–19), New Zealand would be the second seed and France atop the pool.
Day 2
After a disappointing Day 1, team USA looked to make a run through the bowl competition to claim the hardware on offer. Before the Eagles took the field, England defeated Wales (26–17), Scotland was victorious over Canada (26–19), and Portugal surprised Japan (14–7). This left the United States facing off against series newcomer Russia for the first time this season.
Getting his first start, Nate Ebner replaced Garrett Bender from the Day 1 lineup. Russia kicked deep to start the match and soon forced a turnover to setup great attacking position. At times, gaps formed in the USA defense but Russia proved incapable of exploiting them before conceding a penalty. From there, the Eagles executed textbook passing through the chain to eventually put Perry Baker in position to step through a tackle to score under the post. Madison Hughes added the conversion for the 7–0 lead. Danny Barrett added a second first-half try in the left corner to give his side a 12–0 lead going into the second half.
In the second half, Russia was awarded the first score of the half despite the replay clearly showing the Russian player had spilled the ball prior to reach the try line. The Americans answered back with a try from Maka Unufe off a great pass from Barrett. The conversion was no good. A fourth try came when Zack Test carved up the defense for the 135th try of his career. Hughes added the conversion to set the final margin: USA 24, Russia 5.
In the other semifinal, Scotland defeated rival England (19–14). It is the second time this season that the Scots have topped their British rivals in the bowl round. The loss for England comes just one week after winning the plate in Hong Kong. Inconsistency for what will be team Great Britain must remains a serious concern for selectors. For team USA, its semifinal opponent was Portugal. Though a historical sevens contender, Portugal has fallen to dead last among core teams and will be lucky to avoid relegation at year’s end.
Coach Friday went with a different looking starting lineup that left his captain and Danny Barrett on the bench. There was not much offensive success for either team in the first half. Nate Ebner was able to score the lone try of the half–his first career–when Zack Test managed to draw two tacklers and pass back inside to Ebner for the try under the post. Nate Augspurger added the conversion. In the second half, team USA blew the scoring open. Maka Unufe scored from a set piece off a pass from Pat Blair. Peter Tiberio added the conversion. The next score came when Portugal lost possession after two Portuguese players collided. Martin Iosefo got the ball moving forward and passed to Blair who passed to Ebner for another try. The conversion was no good. The next score came from Zack Test who sliced the defense for a score under the post. Augspurger added the conversion to set up the final score: USA 26, Portugal 0.
This left team USA right where it hoped to be once the cup round was out of reach: the bowl final. The United States entered as the favorite over Scotland, but not a strong favorite. The usual Eagles starting lineup took the pitch with the exception of Nate Ebner in place of Perry Baker. Scotland got on the board first after several minutes of a back-and-forth defensive struggle. Scotland scored and added the conversion just over four minutes into the half. It looked like the match would head to half with Scotland up by 7 as the waning minutes drifted away. Scotland tried to kick through the American defense but Maka Unufe looked primed to kick the ball to touch to end the half. Instead, the hard charging Scottish player arrived at the same time as Unufe who had attempted to position himself to kick the ball laterally into touch when a boot across the end line would have met the same result. The decision turned it into a soccer battle between Unufe and Scotland’s Robertson. Robertson got the better of Unufe and chipped ahead for the try. After the conversion, the match stood 14–0 in favor of Scotland at the half.
Zack Test added his sixth try of the tournament two minutes into the second half to inch his side closer to Scotland, but Hughes’s missed conversion left it a two-score game. Martin Iosefo knocked the restart ball back to Nate Ebner and the Eagles moved quickly inside the Scotland five-meter. The possession was lost when the ball was knocked loose from Test’s hands. Scotland won the five-meter scrum and tried to run from in goal. The Americans managed to force an untidy ball from the ruck and pounce on it. The ball worked to Unufe who pounded through the defense for the second try. Again, Hughes failed to convert, but this miss hardly mattered. The final restart came with under two minutes remaining. Unufe contested the ball but could not get a hand on it. Barrett then forced a turnover at midfield and the ball ended up in Folau Niua’s hands. Scotland was penalized and Niua kicked to touch inside the Scotland ten-meter. The Eagles won the lineout and worked the ball down the line, assisted by a possession saving tap pass by Hughes. The Eagles continued to hammer forward until Nate Ebner was tackled and called for a penalty with no time remaining. Scotland booted the ball into touch to end the match: Scotland 14, USA 10.
Falling to the bowl round is troubling at this late stage in the season. However, it merits note that the bowl final, though there a victor, is exactly where team USA was with two tournaments remaining last year. In the last two tournaments, the Eagles finished fourth and first. The pool draw for the next tournament, in Paris, provides favorable matchups for a return to the cup round. The pool includes Argentina, France, and Canada. Each are teams team USA can beat or lose to. It will not be easy, but the United States should be expecting a quarterfinal birth from that pool.
In the other competitions in Singapore, Wales defeated Canada (24–22) in the shield semifinal to drop Canada to last place and Russia did the same to Japan (17–15). In the bowl final, Russia comfortably slayed the Welsh dragon (24–7).
In the cup competition, the surprising Day 1 results led to an unbalanced bracket. The top four teams were each in the top half of the bracket with the less established nations in the bottom half. In the top half, Fiji edged Australia (19–14) and South Africa just got by New Zealand (12–7). In the lower half, Argentina booked a birth in the semifinal with a win over Samoa (12–7) and Kenya hammered France (28–7).
In the plate semifinal, New Zealand throttled Australia (31–7) and Samoa beat France (21–7). It was a disappointing finish for France after a great Day 1. The losses for Australia were also very disappointing after reaching four consecutive semifinals. In the plate final, Samoa claimed a second plate title in the last three tournaments, edging New Zealand 26–21.
In the cup semifinal, Fiji and South Africa battered each other in what many expected to be the de facto cup decider. Fiji came out on top: Fiji 26, RSA 21. In the other semifinal, Kenya got by Argentina (15–12). South Africa made short work of Argentina in the third-place match (28–0). Many expected Fiji to do the same against Kenya, but those of us who expected a blowout were right only in that there was a blowout, but dead wrong on who would prevail. Kenya turned on the style to finally bring home a cup to a nation that has long deserved it: Kenya 30, Fiji 7.
The series returns for the final two tournaments in May with the France Sevens in Paris.