The USA Under-20 camp is underway and the first day for what we call the AIG Men’s Junior All Americans was about getting the lay of the land.

The players were put through fitness and athletic testing and then after dinner their day wasn’t done, as they split up into various units to get some offensive basics down.

Interim Head Coach JD Stephenson, who heads up the Lindenwood St. Charles program in DIA Rugby, is running the show but with the experienced and knowledgeable eyes of Scott Lawrence, Michael Engelbrecht, Paule Barford, Kevin Battle, and Justin Goonan working the players, also.

The players were run through sprints, vertical jump test, and the yo-yo test. Then later in the day the halfbacks split off, while the centers worked in their stuff, and the back three had other tasks to work on. The forwards went with Barford to work on set piece.

Sunday the defensive work begins, and as the staff looks to put together a side that can beat Canada’s U20s and qualify for the World Rugby Junior Trophy.

In the end, said Stephenson, they have a large group of talented rugby players, so it comes down to who fits.

“It’s not for everybody,” said Stephenson. “We are looking for talented players who can click and gel quickly into a team.”

Stephenson said he and the other coaches are not coming in with any preconceived notions of how they want to play. They want to see their talent first. If the best group is small and fast, then they formulate an approach around a small and fast team. 

“We’re working a lot on our culture and the demands of the game and being on this team,” said Stephenson. “We have a really diverse team and that’s great. It adds to the program.”

If you look at the squad, you will see no players from well-known rugby powers such as Cal, BYU, St. Mary’s, and several others. That’s not surprising as the U20s play in the middle of those teams’ preparation, and historically only a few players from those teams have been available when the U20s have games.  

But the coaches, and USA Rugby HP Director Alex Magleby are not crying over that particular glass of spilled milk, instead saying they have players from a variety of walks of life who have athletic and rugby talent, and the desire.

And in fact, many of the players on the list are highly-thought-of, with a very large group coming from the HS All Americans. Watch out, though, for the players developed somewhat under the radar by programs that help young athletes who aren’t necessarily going to college - Life West, Matropolis, 1823, Belmont Shore.

See here for the full list of players. Also of note, some players who you may have heard of before and expected to see again on the U20s are simply being held out while the coaches look at other players. Ben Cima, Hanco Germishuys, and Malcolm May are all expected to play a significant role in the team going forward, but aren't in camp now.