By Austin Willis

A 60-22 loss to Canada U20s in College Station, Texas, on Tuesday means the Junior All-Americans' shot at a World Rugby Trophy is likely over. But don’t expect a similar score in the second test, scheduled for Saturday in Houston. The USA lost their matchup against the Canadians on poor execution but not on talent or physicality.

Uncharacteristic Mistakes

Junior All-Americans captain Ruben de Haas was the highest profile player on the field, but in the first 15 minutes, his inaccurate box kicks handed Canada several extra possessions. De Haas sent two kicks straight out on the full and left one hanging straight to the fullback in the midfield. This forced the Junior All-Americans to defend several extra Canadian phases before the Texas sun could set. 

De Haas would make up for his mistakes with a nifty run off the scrum to slot a converted try on the last play of the half. De Haas’ try put the Junior All-Americans down only five at the conclusion of the first half.

(Photos: Allison Bradfield)

Canada’s Outside Attack

The strength in Canada’s game was the speed and accuracy of its backline passing. The flyhalf would spot green space on the outside, and in a flash, the ball would be through the hands onto a winger at pace.

The Junior All-Americans were able to track down the outside runners in the first half, but following a critical red card on the USA’s Bronson Teles, the Junior All-Americans were spread too thin to cover the outside channel without leaving holes in the midfield. Teles will likely receive some sort of citation, but a more disciplined USA side will fare much better with 15 men able to corral the outside attack.

Possession Battle

In the second half, Canada dominated the possession battle. The visitors had methodical drives and let the Americans make the mistakes. The Junior All-Americans strung together two long drives that resulted in brilliant tries, but before and after those two drives the Americans starved themselves of the ball via handling and kicking errors.

The USA U20s were not outmatched, they were just out gamed. Credit to the Canadians for forcing these errors, but do not expect the next match to be a blowout. Headin into Game 2 on Saturday, the USA will look to work on its outside channel defense and demand better discipline, kicking, and handling.