'It's A Big Summer' For USA Rugby. FloRugby Expert On Eagles Vs. Romania
'It's A Big Summer' For USA Rugby. FloRugby Expert On Eagles Vs. Romania
USA Rugby hosts Romania in the first match of the America Series in Chicago. FloRugby reporter Philip Bendon said the Eagles are laying foundation for 2031.
USA Rugby opens its summer schedule playing one of its oldest rivals, Romania, at 8 p.m. EDT on July 5 at Seat Geek Stadium in Chicago.
Even if 2031 seems far away, the USA Rugby team is keeping that Rugby World Cup in the back of it’s mind and using the next seven years to build momentum before it’s time as host.
And that means supporting the national team, both on and off the field.
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“It's a big summer basically,” FloRugby analyst and reporter Philip Bendon said. “But I would say they're laying the foundations this summer for what they want to build on over the next sort of seven years.”
And that started with the addition of a new assistant coach in former English national Nick Easter to help head coach Scott Lawrence with the forwards.
“Nick Easter was a brilliant England No. 8, and he's a fantastic forwards coach,” Bendon said. ”I think you'll see improvements in the pack, which is where the USA struggled a little bit recently. So, in terms of their scrum, their line-out, their moral defense, they'll get better.”
The United States first played Romania 100 years ago, and while Bendon said the big test match for the Eagles will be its showdown with Scotland Rugby a week later, this first match of the America Series can help increase USA Rugby’s World Rugby ranking.
Here’s why fans should watch USA Rugby vs. Romania, which us streaming in FloRugby and FloSports.
USA Rugby Will Be The Favorite Against Romania
Yes, Romania played in the 2023 Rugby World Cup. No, Romania didn’t actually qualify for the Rugby World Cup.
It’s complicated. And it showed.
Romania played in the 2023 Rugby World Cup because Spain was disqualified for playing ineligible players.
The national team won’t apologize for playing in the Rugby World Cup, but Romania did lose three games to current No. 1 and No. 2 South Africa and Ireland, which play each other on July 6, and Scotland by a combined score of 242-8.
That’s not a typo.
But USA didn't qualify for the Rugby World Cup after a massive match against Portugal in November 2022 ended in a 16-16 draw. That eliminated the Eagles from a tournament they had played in six straight times.
So, despite playing a national team that did play in France in 2023, Bendon said the United States is the heavy favorite against Romania.
“They have a very good chance of winning that game,” Bendon said. “Head-to-head, the USA are a better team than Romania in terms of the talent they have available.”
USA Rugby Is Building Toward 2031, And It Starts With Romania
The goal for the USA is to be able to not just play well as the host country in 2031, but to be competitive against the best teams in the world. And Bendon said there are things helping the Eagles.
“The Major League Rugby has been a big benefit over the last four or five seasons,” Bendon said. “Which has been huge because it's been an outlay for USA and Canadian players to get professional experience at home (and) not having to travel to the European Leagues or the Southern Hemisphere.”
Bendon also said the rise in performance academies in the American and program-developing European style development centers could lead to even more success for the Eagles.
“I have a friend, James Stokes, who's playing for (RFC LA of Major League Rugby) at the moment, and he said that there's some really good young USA players coming through,” Bendon said. “So, I think what you'll find over the next, probably the next 2-3 years, World Rugby will take a more hands-on approach and start putting in levels underneath that.”
USA Rugby Vs. Romania
The matchup is part of the America Series and continues the rivalry between the United States and Romania.
This is the 100th anniversary of the USA vs. Romania match at the 1924 Paris Olympic Games and comes just one day after the Fourth of July.
The United States won the gold medal in 1924 in large part to its win over eventual bronze medalist Romania. The Eagles were heavy underdogs in the match against Romania, but Charles Doe scored 13 points, and the Americans won 37-0, before beating France 17-3 in the gold-medal game.
How To Watch USA Rugby Vs. Romania
The USA Rugby vs. Romania game is streaming on FloRugby and the FloSports app. Match replays, highlights and breaking news will be available on both platforms.
USA Vs. Scotland Rugby In July 2024
The United States will host Scotland at Audi Field in Washington D.C. on July 12 at 5:30 p.m. Eastern. That match will be streaming on FloRugby and the FloSports app.
USA Rugby Schedule 2024
- July 5: USA vs. Romania, SeatGeek Stadium, 7 p.m. EDT
- July 12: USA vs. Scotland, Audi Field, 5:30 p.m. EDT
- November 15: USA vs. Tonga, 6 p.m. EST
Romania Ruby Schedule 2024
- July 5: USA vs. Romania, SeatGeek Stadium, Chicago, 7 p.m. EDT
- July 12: Canada vs. Romania, TD Place, Ottawa 7 p.m. EDT
USA Rugby World Ranking
The Eagles are ranked No. 17 at World Rugby with 67.94 points. Romania is No. 20 with 61.66 points.
World Rugby Rankings On July 1
Here are the latest rankings from World Rugby:
- South Africa, 94.54
- Ireland, 90.69
- New Zealand, 89.80
- France, 87.92
- England, 85.75
- Scotland, 82.82
- Argentina, 80.68
- Italy, 79.41
- Australia, 77.48
- Wales, 77.26
How To Watch Rugby Matches In the United States On FloRugby
The URC will stream all its matches on FloRugby and the FloSports app in the United States. FloRugby and FloSports also are the U.S. home to:
FloRugby also is home to match archives and match replays.