'On the field a total disaster. Off the field, a total disaster... a nadir for American rugby'
A former USA Eagle has branded America’s annihilation at the hands the All Blacks a ‘nadir’ for the sport in the United States and a much-needed wake-up call for the union.
Ian Foster’s All Blacks routed their hosts 104 – 14 in an utterly one-sided affair. The Eagles – who were shorn of many of their internationals and relying on MLR players – were put to the sword with minimal fuss at the FedEx Field in Washington DC. It’s a difficult scoreline to digest for USA Rugby, who recently announced their ambitions of hosting the 2031 Rugby World Cup.
Tony Ridnell – who was speaking on the American-based Rugby Wrap-Up podcast with Matt McCarthy – described the thrashing in the capital as the low point in what was a dire weekend for a number of America’s national teams.
“On the day on Saturday, it was a slap in the face. The All Blacks were athletically superior to us, one through 15.
“For an America team to look like that athletically… just looking at the opening kick-off. One phase, All Blacks score.
“There were several tries that were scored that looked like the All Blacks were in a training run playing against a defensive side that was playing 50 per cent speed, which is the way we used to train.”
Ridnell, who won 14 caps for the Eagles in the 1980s and 90s, suggests the humiliating loss must serve as a call to action for American rugby.
“I don’t think we should get down or really bummed out by any individual, about any coaching, whatever, but we have to recognise this is a nadir for American rugby.
“Our Junior Selects lost to Brazil, 33 to 20, down in Brazil to a Brazilian junior team. That’s bordering on the point of disgraceful.
“Losing to Uruguay the way we did, it’s bordering on the point of disgraceful.
“It’s all the things leading up to this time, for us to be slapped in the face like we did this weekend. That might be the only optimistic thing to take away from the weekend, the fact that if we are going to bid for a Rugby World Cup in 2031, the kids that going to play at that World Cup at ages 15 to 18.
“That tells me that we need to put every single resource we can into growing and developing the high school game.
“This match – in my opinion – on the field a total disaster. Off the field, a total disaster.
“We made less than $200,000 dollars net. The All Blacks made 1.3 million and the promoters made seven figures as well.”
Ridnell even suggested that All Blacks won’t be happy with the performance, despite the scoreline.
“Quite frankly, if I was in the All Blacks coaching set-up, I’d be a little disappointed in how that second half went. An All Black team turning the ball over 15 times, it doesn’t happen that often.
“To be realistic, the score was kind to the United States. The All Blacks could have put four or five more tries.
“This was not a [New Zealand] second team, if you watched the Rugby Championship, all of these players featured.
“Obviously guys like Whitelock and Cane hadn’t played in a few weeks. And they’re going to come out like mountain lions and they did.
“I don’t think the New Zealand setup would be happy with the way the run of play went. It’s certainly not going to prepare them to play Wales this weekend in front of 60,000 singing Welshmen.”
Comments on RugbyPass
If he had stopped insisting on playing in the backrow, instead of wing, where everyone told him he should, he would have been a Bok years ago….
11 Go to comments‘Salads don’t win scrums’ 😂 I love that.
19 Go to commentsCan’t wait for the article that talks about misogyny in Ireland. Somehow.
16 Go to commentsI would like to see a rule change, when the attacking team is held up over the try line, by allowing the defensive team to restart a goal line drop out releases the pressure for the defensive team, but what if the attacking team had to restart a tap 5m out from the defensive team it gives the attacking team to apply more pressure, there are endless options for the attacking side and it will keep the fans in suspence.
2 Go to commentsLess modern South African males predictably triggered.
16 Go to commentsMy heart is with Quins, but the head is convinced Toulouse have too much. Ntamack is back, his timing and wisdom has been missed.
1 Go to commentsWow, what a starting line up for the Sharks) Tasty up front,kremer vs Tshituka or venter …fiery ,,Lavannini ,,will he knobble etzebeth? Biggest game for belleau?
1 Go to commentsIt was rubbish to watch, Blues weren’t even present. Did what they had to do, nothing more. Should be better next week against canes.
1 Go to commentsI’ve just noticed that this match has an all-French refereeing team. Surely a game like this ought to have a neutral ref? Although looking at the BBC preview of the Saints game, Raynal is also down as reffing that - so there may be some confusion about who is reffing what.
1 Go to commentsIf Havili can play anywhere in the back line, why not first 5. #10.
11 Go to commentsThe dressing room had already left for their summer break before they ran out in Dublin that year, and that’s on the coach. Franco Smith has undoubtedly made progress, particularly their maul, developing squad players and increasing squad depth. And against a very tight budget too. That said they were too lightweight last year and got found out against both Toulon and Munster in consecutive games. Better this season so far but they’ve developed something of a slow start habit occasionally, most notably losing at home to Northampton who played them at their own game. Play offs will ultimately show whether there has been tangible progress on last year, or not…!
2 Go to commentsAustralian Rugby has been a disaster, by not incorporating learning from previous successful campaigns. QLD Reds 2011 - Waratahs 2014. Players, coaches and administrators appoint there representatives for scheduled meetings, organisation’s agreement’s assessments and correspondence. This why a unified Rugby Union under one entity works. Every Rugby nation has taken that path. Was most difficult in the Northern hemisphere with over 100 years of club rugby before the game become professional. Took a lot of humility for those unions to eventually work together.
7 Go to commentsThough Wilson’s sacking was pretty brutal, it wasn’t just down to that Leinster game; Glasgow had a lot of 2nd half collapses that season, in the URC and Europe, and only just scraped into the playoffs. Franco Smith has definitely been an improvement, some players are delivering far more than they did under Wilson.
2 Go to commentsjesus - that front 5!
1 Go to commentsShould be an absolute cracker of a game! Will be great to see DuPont & Ntamack in tandem once again🔥
1 Go to commentsBest team ever…. To have played? These guys are still pressure chokers. Came nowhere when it counted. What a joke
81 Go to commentsMusk defends anonymous terrorism, fascism, threats against individuals and children etc etc But a Rugby club account….lock ‘em up!!!
2 Go to commentsActually the era defining moment came a few years earlier. February 2002 to be precise, when Michael D Higgins as finance minister at the time introduced his sports persons tax relief bill to the dial. As the politicians of the day stated “It seems to be another daft K Club frolic born in Kildare amongst the well-paid professional jockeys with whom the Minister plays golf” and that the scheme represented “a savage uncaring vision of Ireland and one that should be condemned”. The irfu and Leinster would be nowhere near the position they are in today without this key component of the finances.
5 Go to commentsIt is crystal clear that people who make such threats on line should be tried and imprisoned. Those with responsibility in social media companies who don’t facilitate this should be convicted. In real life, I have free speech to approach someone like Reinach and verbally threaten him. I am risking a conviction or a slap but I could do it. In the old days, If someone anonymously threatened someone by letter the police would ask and use evidence from the postal system. Unlike the Post, social media companies have complete instant and legal access to the content in social media. They make money from the data, billions. Yet, they turn a blind eye to terrorism, Nazi-ism and industrial levels of threats against individuals including their address and childrens schools being published online all from ananoymous accounts not real people. They claim free speech. Free speech for anonymous trolls/voilent thugs threatening people under false names? The fault is with the perps but also social media companies who think anonymous personas posting death threats constitutes free speech.
2 Go to commentsSo if this ain’t the best Irish team ever then who exactly is? I don’t remember any other Irish team being this good & winning a series in the Land of the Long White Cloud. Yes I may rip them often for 8 X QF RWC exits & twice not even making it to the QF, but they’re a damn good team who many think can only improve, including me!
81 Go to comments