The USA HS All American U17 team put their opening match behind them and in fact put their opening host country behind them.
The schedule perhaps wasn't the easiest for the HSAA U17s, as they had one day to prepare to play the French U17 team. That was tough, as the French kids just picked them apart.
See the highlight video here: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2lega6_france-usa-17-ans-le-resume_sport
But now the Americans are in Liege, Belgium, to play yhe Belgium U17s on Saturday and again on Tuesday.
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Before leaving France, the HSAA team got to meet one of their alumni, USA flanker and Stade Francais professional Scott LaValla. The team toured the Stade Francais stadium and met with the Eagle player, who was clearly pleased to see them.
There's some culture to soak up in Liege, which is about 1,500 years old and which has had an annoying habit of being captured by some invader, general, or monarch or other every hundred years or so. The players got to see the daunting stairway of Montagne de Bueren, which is very large, and the beautiful LIege Cathedral.
Now they have a job to do in taking on Belgium. It's a mistake to think that because Belgium's men's rugby team is not ranked highly that their HS players can't play. The sport has a strong influence from France, and because Belgium is very small - about the side of Massachusetts and Rhode Island together - and so their age-grade team can assemble pretty much whenever they need to.
What the HSAA team will be able to do is bring their physicality, and perhaps combine that with a little ball security.
| Name | H.S. Year | Height | Weight (lbs.) | Position | Club | State |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ian Abbott | Junior | 6'3" | 180 | Lock | Herriman Rugby | UT |
| David Ainuu | Sophomore | 5'10" | 250 | Prop | Prairie RFC - Yelm | WA |
| Keanu Andrade | Junior | 5'7" | 195 | Hooker | Danville Oaks | CA |
| Ian Crilly | Senior | 6'2" | 190 | Flanker | Fallbrook Youth Rugby | CA |
| Ruben de Haas | Sophomore | 5'10" | 162 | Scrumhalf | Little Rock Rugby Club | AK |
| Sean Dowling | Sophomore | 6'4" | 268 | Prop | Ft. Hunt Warriors | VA |
| Owen Duvall | Junior | 6' | 240 | Prop | Coastal Dragons YRFC | CA |
| Beau Falco | Junior | 6'2" | 215 | Flanker | SCV Tigers | CA |
| Leki Fotu | Junior | 6'6" | 255 | Lock | Herriman Rugby | CA |
| Anton Grigoriou | Junior | 6'2" | 190 | Flyhalf | San Clemente Gators | CA |
| Zach Heisterkamp | Junior | 5'11" | 195 | Flanker | St. Edward Rugby | OH |
| Evan Holm | Junior | 6' | 170 | Wing | Edina Rugby CLub | MN |
| Ryan James | Sophomore | 6' | 158 | Wing | Aztec Warriors | CA |
| Liam Jimmons | Junior | 6'5" | 230 | Lock | Back Bay Sharks | CA |
| Mikaele Kruse | Junior | 6' | 185 | Center | Bullard Rugby Club | CA |
| Patrick Madden | Sophomore | 5'11" | 185 | Fullback | San Diego Young Aztecs | CA |
| Sosefo Mailangi-Ray | Junior | 6'3" | 225 | Prop | Back Bay RFC | CA |
| Sim Mander | Junior | 6'1" | 190 | Center | St Paul's Rugby | UK |
| Maxwell Nail | Junior | 5'11" | 200 | Hooker | Fort Hunt | VA |
| Soh Nakayama | Junior | 5'8" | 140 | Scrumhalf | Greenwich High School | CT |
| Quinn Perry | Sophomore | 6' | 215 | Center | Santa Monica Dolphins | CA |
| Dillon Shotwell | Junior | 5'11" | 225 | Prop | Kingwood Rugby Club | TX |
| Justus Tavai | Junior | 6' | 230 | No. 8 | Los Angeles Rugby | CA |
| Tomasi Tonga | Junior | 6' | 180 | Center | Herriman Rugby | UT |
| William Vakalai | Sophomore | 5'10" | 205 | Center | Penn High School | IN |
| Nathan Watts | Junior | 6'3" | 250 | Prop | Richardson Rugby Club | TX |
| Jack White | Sophomore | 6'2" | 205 | No. 8 | Penn High School | IN |
| Marcos Young | Junior | 5'8" | 150 | Flyhalf | Key Biscayne Rugby | FL |
Boys High School All-Americans | JV Tour
v France - Marcoussis, France - Tuesday, March 31
v Belgium - Liege, Belgium - Saturday, April 4
v Belgium - Liege, Belgium - Tuesday, April 8
