"I've been at a few EIRA tours and assemblies and the experiences are different," added Liberty Patriots scrumhalf Marek Wright. "They all have the same standards but there are different routines. On a tour like this with 43 guys, it's hard for five staff to manage, so a lot of being on time and be where we need to be is on us."
That helps develop leadership and responsibility, and it's been working out.
On the field, the Chilean style of play has been a new experience for the players.
"In the States the game is more physical," said Kanevsky. "What we've seen here is more technical, more moving the ball outside and making people miss."
"Also in defense they're way more disciplined that we've seen in the US," added Missoula Stampede center Bo Morrison. "They don't have too many guys shooting up, and instead they will corral you into the spot that they want."
"They are very, very skilled," added KC Jr. Blues flanker Luke Connell. "Their scrums are amazing. Their lineouts are quick. Their mauls have been really, really hard for us to stop. That's a team thing we need to work on."
The South American style of play values turnovers, which means you need to protect the ball at all times.
"The breakdowns are tough," said BC High hooker Cillian O'Callaghan. "They go into the breakdowns quick, and if you're too slow they will poach the ball quickly. So we need to be connected."
Speed and technique makes up for a size disparity, and while the Americans have been able to win so far, they have been challenged.
"One thing that surprised almost all of us was that while all of the Chilean players are kind of small, they hit hard and they are really strong."
The post-match feeds have been fun, too, and the after-match culture is strong in Chile. Beef and sausage sandwiches (churrasco and choripán) are the post-match food of choice, which is just fine with the EIRA players.
For some, this has been a refreshing change from the unfortunate trend in the USA where the visiting team does not break bread with the hosts.
Seeing as a couple of the games got a bit chippy, the post-match meal carries that much more important.
The players laughed a bit about that, saying there were some heated moments in the games only for everyone to be friends over sausage sandwiches later.
The team has been training at the Chile National Training Center in the La Reina community of Santiago, and that is where Tuesday's match with the Chile U18s will be.
This is where the national team, and also the Selknam in the South American competition, train.
The national training center for Chile Rugby—often referred to as the High Performance Rugby Center (CARR) or Estadio Municipal Mahuida—is located at Av. Alcalde Fernando Castillo Velasco 11095, interior Parque Mahuida in the commune of La Reina, Santiago. It serves as the primary base for the national teams, including Los Cóndores and Selknam
