GRR: National Teams
“A tale of two halves” is the phrase being used to describe the USA’s 21-16 loss to Samoa during the first leg of the Pacific Nations Cup. Samoa dictated the first 40 minutes, staying on offense and trying to knock the spirit out of the USA.
AJ MacGinty was frank about his Eagle debut: Samoa was brutal; there were some nerves to overcome; he made mistakes. But the flyhalf also showed some spark. He played a different game in the second half and helped rally his team to within a try of Samoa, while also keeping the visitors off of the scoreboard.
A second-half surge saw the USA record a respectable 21-16 loss to Samoa tonight in San Jose in front of 10,017 fans. Samoa was held scoreless in the second half, and that was a big triumph, but the visitors’ 21 points was just enough for the victory.
USA 15s MNT Coach Mike Tolkin may have thrown fans a couple of curveballs in his selections, but we should have been sitting on the curve all along.
Next week, the Women’s Junior All Americans (WJAAs) will be convening in Greeley, Colo., for a selection camp ahead of the late-August Can Am series (details yet to be disclosed). The assembly will be run by interim head coach Wil Snape, who has been heading the program since Danielle Miller stepped down.