Sports Diplomacy

USA Sevens finish 11th in IRB tourney

On May 14, 2012, in General, Rugby, by sportsdiplomacy

Nu'u Punimata tangles with a French defender. Photo credit: Martin Seras Lima.

By USA Rugby

The USA bounced back from a 19-28 loss to Wales in the Bowl Quarterfinals to clear Russia by more than 20 points and fought to the last second against France in the Shield Final.

Since USA Head Coach Alexander Magleby took over in March, the team has improved, but the wins have still proven elusive.

“I wish for the boys that they could get a few more wins out of it, but the important part is building the foundation,” said Magleby.

The coach cited the 2013 Rugby World Cup Sevens qualifiers in August as the targeted competition now that the Series has concluded. The outlook for that tournament looks good as parts of the USA’s game have proven lethal.

The Eagles finish the IRB tournament on 41 points and in 11th place.

The USA attack has become more potent in the last four tournaments and snappy attack and individual brilliance typified the Eagles’ London offensive campaign. Colin Hawley is playing the best sevens of his career, Shalom Suniula is growing into his role as playmaker and captain, and Zack Test is great on both sides of the ball.

Mike Palefau was a leader by example and was often the cool head for the team and exemplified a killer instinct on attack. Andrew Durutalo and Peter Tiberio were impactful when they came on and Durutalo’s power earned him a starting spot from Hong Kong onwards.

As a unit though, the Eagles’ defense has something to be desired. Looking forward, the team will address the issues and continue to improve.

The USA will look to the Rugby World Cup Sevens qualifiers this August and then begin preparations for the 2012-2013 Series that will start in the Fall of 2012.

Box Scores:
Bowl Quarterfinal

USA 19
Tries: Hawley, Palefau, Test
Cons: Enosa (2)
Wales 28
Tries: Smith, Thomas, Price, Walker
Cons: Walker (3), Jones

–

Shield Semifinal

USA 38
Tries: Durutalo, Palefau, Test, Edwards (2), Hawley
Cons: Enosa(3), Suniula

Russia 12
Tries: Ostroushko, Galinovskiy
Cons: Yanyuskin

—

Shield Final

USA 12
Tries: Hawley, Durutalo
Cons: Enosa

France 19
Tries: Delmas, Saubade, Laousse
Cons: Albaladejo (2)

USA Sevens team gains two points in Glasgow

On May 6, 2012, in Rugby, by sportsdiplomacy

The USA Eagles fell behind Kenya to 12th in the IRB Sevens standings after a mixed-bag tournament in Glasgow last weekend.

Still, earning tournament points is always a good thing.

In the end, USA was beaten by Kenya – a team they’d beaten in earlier round play – in the Shield Final, by 22-17. It’s now on to London for the tournament finale this weekend. Coach Alexander Magleby believes that, on a good day, his team can compete with the best and are steadily improving. In pool play, the Eagles played the Aussies close, until giving away two tries in the final two minutes and losing 29-14. They also played the English hard, tied 12-12 until deep into the second half, before going down 19-12. In their final pool game, the Eagles beat Kenya 29-14, with emerging star Rocco Mauer scoring two tries.

That performance put the Eagles into the Bowl quarterfinal against Russia, where they lost by just one point to move to the Shield segment of the four-trophy format of a Sevens tournament. The points from Glasgow put the Eagles in 12th place, tied on points with Kenya and just two behind Scotland. With just the London tournament remaining, the Eagles will have to shine to meet their pre-season goal of a top ten finish.

For the record, the New Zealand team extended its lead at the top of the table to 11 points over Fiji.

Keelhaulers get oh-so close

On May 1, 2012, in Rugby, by sportsdiplomacy

The Keelhaulers came from 16 points down in the second half of their semi-final game against University of North Florida to win 31-26 and book their place in the Division 3 National Championship game.

The cadets from California Maritime (see below post), who visited New Zealand last year, gave it a good run in the finals against Salve Regina University of Rhode Island. In the end, though, they fell just short, losing 22-15.

Our friend Steven Hiatt, the cadets’ coach, wrote to us, saying “We were over the line THREE times, but couldn’t get points from any of those. Despite the loss, (it was a) great run and great experience for the lads.”

Hear, hear and well done from all your friends in Wellington. Steve also reports that it’s possible to watch both matches at ustream.tv: http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/22228100 (Championship Match: Cal Maritime vs. Salve Regina Univerity), http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/22197989 (Semi final Cal Maritime vs. University of North Florida)

Our friends the Keelhaulers are on a tear

On April 26, 2012, in Rugby, by sportsdiplomacy

Last summer – well, winter here in New Zealand – a ship named the Golden Bear pulled into Wellington Harbor. Aboard were some 300 cadets from the California Maritime Academy.

It was a great visit. The cadets were wonderful, hosting some of Wellington’s fine folks aboard the ship and visiting the sights around the city. But they also played a tough game of rugby against Victoria University. It was tough not only because the students had just disembarked from a cross-Pacific voyage, because some of them had never played competitive rugby before, but also because they ran into a very good Billy Goats side.

Rugby May 31, 2011 - The Keelhaulers of the California Maritime Academy vs Fighting Billy Goats of Victoria University.

The Keelhaulers have a long, proud rugby tradition – one that they have just added to, with the possibility of yet more to come.

Our friend Steven Hiatt, the coach, reports that the Keelhaulers won their Division 3 regional championship last weekend in Nebraska against Wayne State. Yes, he reports, that makes theirs a very large region, as Nebraska is a long way away from California. So, coming up this weekend, the team is off to the Final Four in Glendale, Colorado.

While it’s a little late to hop over for the games, the semi-final games will be streamed on the web. So, go have a look, if you’re keen: Webstreaming as well: The Saturday Semi-Finals, the Sunday Championship game as well as the 3rd place game will be on the web at www.nscro.org and www.usarugby.org . You can read more about it here: http://www.eteamz.com/NSCRO/news/index.cfm?id=5368779&cat=0

From L.A. to New Zealand, a rugby tour

On April 23, 2012, in General, by sportsdiplomacy

ICEF Rugby team at Westpac Stadium

A wonderful group of U.S. High School ruggers – both boys and girls – recently visited New Zealand on a tour. They played some good rugby but, more important, experienced the warm welcome of New Zealand culture. You can read the story of their travels here on Ambassador Huebner’s post.

Good start, rough finish for USA hockey

On April 23, 2012, in Field Hockey, by sportsdiplomacy

After beginning the second Four Nations tournament with a convincing win over India, the USA women’s field hockey team slumped to three successive defeats to close it out.

On Thursday, it was a hard-fought loss to hosts New Zealand. Rachel Dawson and Keli Smith-Puzo’s goals were not enough to earn the U.S. a point, as they lost 3-2 to the tournament’s top team. Still, they pushed the Black Sticks, who won the first Four Nations tournament, held earlier this month in Auckland.

On Saturday, the USA went down 5-1 to Australia, the eventual Four Nations’ champions, with Claire Laubach scoring the lone U.S. goal.

As it was in the earlier Four Nations’ tournament, the third-place game was contested between India and the United States. This time, however, it was the Indians who took the bronze, carving out a 1-0 win against the Americans. In the gold medal match, Australia knocked off New Zealand 3-1 for a bit of revenge.

USA gets off to a good start

On April 19, 2012, in Field Hockey, by sportsdiplomacy

The USA women’s field hockey team got their second Four Nations tournament off to a good start with a solid 3-0 win over India. This tournament, the second in a week in New Zealand, is being played at Lloyd Elsmore Hockey Stadium.

Shannon Taylor, Paige Selenski, Michelle Cesan scored for the U.S.

In Wednesday’s other game, the Kiwis and the Aussies tied 3-3. These teams have shared the spoils, with each team recording one victory in addition to this tie.

Next up for the Americans are the New Zealand Black Sticks. They’ll be trying to reverse the loss from the first four Nations tournament last week.

USA women beat India, take 3rd

On April 16, 2012, in Field Hockey, by sportsdiplomacy

The USA women’s field hockey team outlasted India to win 2-1 in overtime and take third place in the Four Nations hockey tournament being hosted in Auckland. Shannon Taylor and Lauren Crandall scored the goals for the United States.

New Zealand turned around an earlier defeat by Australia to beat their old foes 3-2 to win the first Four Nations tournament. The second tournament gets under way on Wednesday. It continues through April 22.

USA hockey ties India, loses to NZ

On April 16, 2012, in Field Hockey, by sportsdiplomacy

The USA women’s field hockey team secured a 1-1 tie with India, before losing 3-1 to host New Zealand on Sunday. They will now face India again on Monday to fight for third place in the four-team tournament. The NZ Black Sticks will take on old foes Australia to duke it out for the tournament win.

USA lose first game in NZ hockey tournament

On April 12, 2012, in Field Hockey, by sportsdiplomacy

The USA women’s field hockey team took a bit of beating at the hands of the Australian Hockeyroos, losing 4-0 in their opening game of the Four Nations tournament in New Zealand. The American women, ranked 10th in the world, will today take on India, before facing the New Zealand Black Sticks on Sunday, April 15. In yesterday’s other game, New Zealand held on to beat India 2-1.

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