Job Done; USA Men Books Paris 2024 Spot

The Final

Canada know what they had to do; keep the ball and be strong in contact, which could potentially force a missed tackle.

So that's what they worked on. The Eagles defended well and eventually a well-executed turnover set up a USA chance. Pinkelman did an excellent job of keeping his feet and looking for support and finally Williams looped around and scored in the corner for a 5-0 lead.

Canada won the restart and kept testing the USA line. Once again the Eagles got a turnover and set up a chance, moving the ball well. With one pass needed to put the ball in under the posts, they dropped the ball and Canada countered quickly. It was an excellent effort from the Maple Leagues as they didn't rely on one player to take it all the way and worked the ball back and forth before finally getting Elias Hancock in under the posts. The kick as good and Canada led 7-5.

But there was still time left in the first half and the USA has some quick-strike players. The Eagles took the restart, moved the ball to the left, and then to the right, where Baker torched his defender and raced 55 meters to score a brilliant try. The conversion was good and the USA entered halftime up 12-7.

Who would score next, it seemed, would have the momentum. Canada got a penalty off the kickoff and looked to attack from a lineout deep in USA territory. But Joe Schroeder stole the lineout and the ball was quickly sent to Williams, who made one tackler miss and galloped on for 85 meters to score under the posts. It was a back-breaker for Canada. The USA, with Tomasin's conversion, were now two converted tries ahead.

"Joe did his job; he went up in the lineout, got a steal," said Williams. "Naima flicked the ball. I saw a space and I just attacked it."

As time went on it was clear the Eagles had to keep the ball and they did a snappy job of that. Finally, Schroeder broke through, pushed off a tackler, and when he was finally dragged down he floated an offload to Lucas Lacamp in support. Try, and a 24-7 lead.

Canada still had time and an intentional knock-on by Baker, resulting in a yellow card, opened up the door a little bit. And yes, they did score (the manner of their scoring was a little dubious—when you're tackled and you release the ball and then get up to regather, you should take your hands off the ball). But there wasn't enough time. The USA got a penalty right after the restart and Tomasin tapped and sent the ball into the stands.

Ultimately it was job done. It wasn't always pretty or perfect, but it was an interesting illustration of how valuable experience is. It was the experienced players who made the big plays. But at the same time, everyone made a key play at some point.

And it's taken care of @USARugby@TeamUSA captain Kevon Williams reflects on qualifying for @Paris2024pic.twitter.com/rjYqWigbMr

— Alex Goff (@goffrugbyreport) August 21, 2023

The USA joins hosts France, World Series top-four teams New Zealand, Argentina, Fiji, and Australia, Europe champs Ireland, and South American champs Uruguay for the men's Olympic rugby event in Paris. There are four more spots: Africa, Oceania, Asia, and the final qualifier tournament winner.

Canada moves on to the final qualifier along with third-place RAN team Mexico, and also Chile, Brazil, Great Britain, Spain, and six others to be decided.

Canada Women Win Easily

It was a walk in the park for Canada as they won the women's RAN 7s easily, beating Mexico 53-0 in the final. Overall, Canada outscored their five opponents 288-7.

Canada joins hosts France, World Series top-four teams New Zealand, Australia, USA, and Ireland. (Ireland actually finished 5th but France was 4th so that doesn't count.) Also qualified are South American champs Brazil and European champs Great Britain. Four more teams are set to qualifier.

Canada women taking care of business. Fancy Bermudez tells it like it is. pic.twitter.com/BcXDlU0qHI

— Alex Goff (@goffrugbyreport) August 21, 2023

Poetry

Williams mentioned a poem he uses as inspiration and it is by Edgar Albert Guest and it is titled See it Through.

The first stanza is as follows:
When you’re up against a trouble,
    Meet it squarely, face to face;
Lift your chin and set your shoulders,
    Plant your feet and take a brace.
When it’s vain to try to dodge it,
    Do the best that you can do;
You may fail, but you may conquer,
    See it through!

See the rest of it here>>