Nowhere to go from here but up this summer for the North American rugby union sides. Here’s the weekend tally for the North American outcomes at all levels:
- In the Barclays Churchill Cup’s opening weekend, the United States took a 64-10 beating from the England Saxons (England’s second-level national side, previously known as England “A”), while Canada was beaten by Scotland A (Scotland’s second-level national side).
- Meanwhile, in the Junior World Championship (world championship for national teams of players under twenty years of age), the scorelines were more lopsided. South Africa cracked the ton on the United States 108-18, while Canada fell 81-12 to Australia.
- Finally, the England Counties side, a touring team put together in 2002 to provide amateur and semi-professional English players international playing opportunities, won 27-3 over a U.S. select side (essentially a U.S. “A” made up of players who did not make the U.S. Churchill Cup side).
It’s important to point out that there is no great shame in those results, as the representative sides each North American side played were packed with great players, but hopefully things will look better for the North American sides this week. In the Churchill Cup, the United States will next take on Ireland “A” on Wednesday, while Canada will face Argentina “A” on Saturday. In the Junior World Championship, the USA lines up against Samoa and Canada faces England, with both matches scheduled for tomorrow. The U.S. select side also gets one more crack at England Counties tonight.
Below are brief highlights from the North American sides’ first Churchill Cup outings. Most of the action is from the European sides, with exceptions:
