USA Rugby’s Boys winter U18 camp carries with it some significant potential.
After all, as USAR Pathways Manager Brendan Keane said to GRR afterward, these are the guys who will be in the conversation for 2027 and 2031 Rugby World Cup selection.
In fact, we might see them treated a little differently as a result. It’s worth noting that the USA team has attended the Correndon Summer Tour the last two years—no complaints; it was international competition and challenging in some ways—and haven’t lost a game in six matches. Surely that isn’t the pinnacle. Surely future Eagles need to be tested.
USA U18 Head Coach Dom Wareing invited 52 players to the camp, and while injuries kept a handful at home, about 48 attended. For Wareing, the athleticism and rugby ability was pleasing, but he was most enthusiastic about the character.
“It was the best assembly we’ve had in terms of camaraderie,” Wareing told GRR. “As students of the game they were excellent. If you can raise the level of play of the people around you, and you can help others gel into a team, that’s the kind of player we want.”
Cohesion was a huge part of what Wareing is trying to achieve; he and coaches in the age-grade system are reasoning that many of these players will be teammates in the future, and unity now is important.
