USA v Canada
Pacific 4 Series
Canada the current Pac-4 champions, had to work very hard to subdue an Eagles side, happy to be playing at home in front of a ‘sold-out’ crowd. And Kate Zackary was back on her home patch.
The Maple Leafs dominated possession almost throughout, yet they had difficulty turning it into points. Sione Fukofaka, though unhappy with the result, will be pleased to see his team exert so much pressure.
Alev Kelter fended off her first tackler, but the Eagles were caught holding on, still in their own half. Canada built thrusts close to the line. The Eagles defended bravely, but Lauren Jenner offered the attackers two penalties. Alex Tessier opted for a kick to the corner, where Gillian Boag’s throw wasn’t on line. That was a first chance gone.
Canada won the first scrum with a penalty, and later Jenner twice found fault with Hope Rogers on her record-winning 52nd appearance. A bit harsh?
A rolling maul almost brought Canada their first try, but stern defence caused a knock-on.
We had an early view of an abiding Eagles’ weakness, their inability to clear their lines; the chief culprit McKenzie Hawkins, who all too often kicked short.
It took the visitors nine minutes to make their mark. Justine Pelletier made a sharp break around the edge and was over before you could blink. 0-7
But it was curious how unwilling the visitors were to spread the ball wide, when defences seemed spreadeagled. It rarely moved beyond No 10. The pack knew their business; they were sharper to the breakdown, winning the verdict several times.
The TMO had to take a long hard look at a grounding by Gabrielle Senft. Decision: no try; the ball bounced away under pressure.
It was still all Canada. The veteran Karen Paquin made two sharp thrusts to remind us of her quality. There was a worry as Kelter had her neck checked after two hard thrusts.
At last Hawkins sent an attacking kick deep, but Schell replied with interest. Another poor Hawkins penalty kick failed to reach Canadian territory, though only a few metres away.
On the quarter-mark, all worked perfectly for the Maple Leafs. Three delightful slip passes, then Pelletier offered Paquin a Bourdon-type reverse. She went through a huge gap to score. Oh, sorry, it’s TMO time again. A tiny knock-on at an earlier breakdown undid the good work.
At last the USA established a position inside the opposition half, and Ilona Maher made a half-break. Every time she was anywhere near the ball, the crowd roared. There’s celebrity for you. But by the time she was substituted early in the second-half, she had little to show for her efforts.
More Canadian pressure brought a dramatic charge-down by Tessier of another Hawkins’ kick. The ball flew away into touch in-goal for a 22 drop-out. Kelter kicked straight out, and it cost seven points.
From a scrum on the 22 Senft broke fast; a deadly step took her into space. She was brought down, but Laetitia Royer was there to go over. 0-14
Just before the break, Canada did try to run the ball, but Tahlia Brody stripped the ball on contact. In a trice Zackary cut a sharp line in midfield to run in under the posts amid scenes of delirium.
Half-time 7-14
Rouet may have talked about all those missed chances (two tries only from overwhelming possession), but the ball hadn’t moved smoothly out behind. American problems seemed more deep-seated.
Canada built multiple phase through the pack. At last the ball went wide, where Krissy Scurfield dropped a long Tessier pass. Her face was a picture.
Suddenly a new feature: Olivia Ortiz sent a diagonal into the right corner to win a fine 50:22. Before play could continue, Rouet sent on four bench players. The move was to have its effect. The presence of DaLeaka Menin alone altered the balance of power.
As the Eagles built a promising attack it was Menin who stopped it in its tracks. Her pack produced three delightful tip-on passes, but one was deemed forward.
Now more TMO drama: Courtney O’Donnell was found guilty of a high tackle. She saw yellow, but it wasn’t raised to red later. Her side’s response was to seize the initiative again. As the Eagles lost another line-out, they were camped on their line again.
The pattern remained the same: the Canadian pack very sharp, with quick tip-ons, but the backs not completing. This time a Tessier cross-kick was spilt by Fancy Bermudez. The pack reacted by driving their opponents into the ground.
Things didn’t work out as planned. An unwise pass saw Kelter intercept and run half the field to the left corner. The crowd erupted. And naturally Hawkins had to produce by far her best kick to bring the scores even.14-14
But now it was a yellow for Charli Jacoby, only recently on. She would reappear just before the close. This helped restore the balance in Canada’s favour; but they were still unusually ragged. One more inaccurate kick by Kelter won them easy territory. They produced an outstanding rolling maul that gained aorund 20 metres, and O’Donnell scored. Schell struck another much harder conversion. She waited in vain for applause. 14-21
For just about the first time the Eagles passed the ball right down the line, but the white shirts had the move covered. Jacoby’s yellow also remained that colour, but Hawkins kicked straight out once more.
The visitors finished the show with a fine line-out move. As the ball came wide, Schell cut through at top speed, drew the last defender and fed Sarah-Maude Lachance. She went over to ensure victory and a valuable bonus-point
Result: USA 14 Canada 26
Teams
USA
1 Hope Rogers 2 Kathryn Treder 3 Keia Mae Sagapolu 4 Hallie Taufoou 5 Erica Jarrell 6 Tahlia Brody 7 Kate Zackary (captain) 8 Rachel Johnson 9 Olivia Ortiz 10 McKenzie Hawkins 11 *Erica Coulibaly 12 Alev Kelter 13 Ilona Maher 14 Emily Henrich 15 Bulou Mataitoga
16 Paige Stathopoulos 17 Maya Learned 18 Charli Jacoby 19 Rachel Ehrecke 20 Freda Tafuna 21 Taina Tukuafu 22 Gabby Cantorna 23 Nicole Heavirland
*uncapped
Canada
1 Brittany Kassil 2 Gillian Boag 3 Rori Wood 4 *Rachel Smith 5 Laetitia Royer 6 Fabiola Forteza 7 Karen Paquin 8 Gabrielle Senft 9 Justine Pelletier 10 Alex Tessier (captain) 11 Krissy Scurfield 12 Taylor Perry 13 Shoahanah Seumanutafa 14 Fancy Bermudez 15 Julia Schell
16 Emily Tuttosi 17 Mikiela Nelson 18 DaLeaka Menin 19 Courtney O’Donnell (née Holtkamp) 20 Tyson Beukeboom 21 Julia Omokhuale 22 Sarah-Maude Lachance 23 Claire Gallagher
*debut
Referee: Lauren Jenner (FIR)
Match Afterthoughts
All through this run-in period to the World Cup managements have been sifting through their optimum choices for the trip to England.
Kévin Rouet and Sione Fukofaka were of the same mind. Neither felt he was putting out his strongest side, any more than John Mitchell and his French counterparts did at Twickenham.
It was a surprise and delight to see the name Karen Paquin restored to the Canadian starting list. She is very much one of the grandes dames of Canadian rugby.
Was there excessive pressure on some US players? PWR, then WER, then this!
The two teams now have a fortnight’s break before battle-stations are resumed in the southern hemisphere.
It was good to see a large enthusiastic US crowd.
The Stadium itself
The CPKC initials stand for Canadian Pacific Kansas City. A bit of a surprise, but this is where the only direct rail link between Canada and Mexico runs, crossing the Missouri.
Even more unusual, the arena itself, opened in March last year, is the only one in the States (and the world?) to have been created specifically for women’s sport. It’s home to the local NWSL soccer team, the Kansas City Current.
So arranging to play the latest USA-Canada rugby contest there was especially appropriate.
