GLENDALE, CO – There were three matches involving Canada that we had our Eagle-eye on yesterday and we’re still scratching our heads a bit, wondering which countries were playing each other. Here’s why:
EAGLE MEN VS CANADA: In Glendale, the captain of Team Canada, Pat Riordan, who was the NBC/Universal post-game interview, has a thick Irish brogue. Their outside center is Daniel Tailliferrer Hauman van der Merwe, a is South African. For the USA, the Brothers Karamazov/Suniula and Aussie Hayden Smith, won’t be mistaken as being from Mike Petri’s Brooklyn neighborhood anytime soon. So we’re left wondering: Did the USA really lose to Canada? If they did, it was largely because flyhalf Nese Malifa continues to kick with the wrong foot. Or maybe he’s just a Southern Hemisphere kicker; because that’s where he’s from. Either way, we’re downright apoplectic pondering his choices, misses and inability to find touch. But he wasn’t the only culprit in his squad’s loss. The Eagles continue to knock the ball on and take head-scratching penalties in the Red Zone. They also failed to score with two Maple Leafs in the Penalty Box for Cross Checking and Roughing, respectively. Fix the kicking and eliminate the dopey mental errors and the Americans south of Ontario can make some noise in New Zealand.
EAGLE WOMEN [WEagles] VS SOUTH AFRICA: This one was bit more cut and dry. It was played in Canada against a group of South Africans that played for… South Africa. New York Rugby Club standout Vanesha McGee, a personal friend of RWU, scored two trys, running the ball with controlled abandon as the Eagles exacted revenge for their 3-point loss to Lady Boks last Tuesday. Vanesha was too fast, too strong and dresses up nice. Christy Ringgenberg, who wrote about his match yesterday – was right on the money!
CLASSIC EAGLES vs CLASSIC CANADA: Our man Tyson Meek, who moonlights on us as the University of Oklahoma Rugby Coach, gave us an inside peek at this tres cool match of fire-in-the-belly older stars squaring off against each other again. Unfortunately, as an Old Boy I not only forgot the result can’t be certain if I was indeed on the pitch or not. Too many concussions and Cooper’s, I’m afraid. We’ll check in with Tyson and the lads when we meet for our early morning stroll and get back to you then.
THE RECAP: We are certain the WEagles won and secured 3rd in the Nation’s Cup. All three of the above matches did have one thing in common – other than the curiously diverse accents: Each one of them has us chomping at the bit to see them all play again – as soon as possible. Thanks to NBC/Universal, we’ll be able to do just that. Go to their Facebook Page and give them a Thumbs Up, so they know they’re doing the right thing by us all.
Tune in tomorrow for some more stuff you can’t find anywhere else.
P.s… Mike MacDonald (1), Colin Hawley (11) and Paul Emerick (13) had solid games.
