PDA

View Full Version : World Cup Repechage: Samoa vs USA



DIEHARD
08-11-07, 10:02 AM
Superpower of Superpuff?

It?s not often that the United States goes into anything as underdogs, but the world superpower knows it has a massive challenge on when its international Rugby League team face tiny Pacific Island nation Samoa in the semi-finals of the 2008 Rugby League World Cup Repechage competition at the Halton Stadium, Widnes on Friday evening.

The USA, team known as The Tomahawks, haven?t come to Britain just to make up the numbers. They?ve targeted taking the tenth and last qualifying spot for next year?s World Cup Finals in Australia.

To achieve that goal they have to beat Samoa and then overcome the winners of the other semi-final between Lebanon and Wales in the Qualifying Final at Featherstone next Wednesday.

The Tomahawks qualified to face Samoa when they beat Japan 54-18 in a decider played in the States last month.

American National Rugby League President David Niu, himself a veteran league player, knows what the boys from States will face when they play Samoa who just missed out on automatic qualification.

Niu, a former St George player in Sydney, Australia, said: ?We?ve proved our serious intentions by bringing in Matthew Elliott from Sydney?s Penrith Panthers club as our head coach as well as some experienced players from Australia and Britain who have US qualifications.

?We would really have liked to have done this job with all US-born players but we?ve had to be realistic given the size of the task facing us against Samoa.?

Some of the US preparations went pear shaped when they were beaten 70-0 by Cumbria in a warm-up game at Barrow last Sunday but Nui was dismissive of that result.

?Conditions for us were not ideal for us and Matthew didn?t get the chance to run some of the guys in the combinations he wanted,? he said.

?We?ve had the rest of the week to run that game out of our system and focus on playing Samoa. There?s no way we?ve come all the way across the Atlantic and not have hopes of winning, no matter what the odds might be.

?Matthew has one or two things up his sleeve which will be revealed on Friday evening.?

Nui also believes that the Tomahawks have done well to reach this point in the World Cup?s development.

?Given that we have a cluster of clubs around Philadelphia and one out on a limb at Jacksonville, Florida we?ve done a fantastic job,? he said. ?Qualification for the World Cup would be massive for us because of the recognition it would bring for the sport back in the States.

?I?ve worked hard for ten years to get the game this far in America and no matter what happens there?s no going back now.?

By John Huxley

http://www.rugbyleagueworldcup.com

DIEHARD
08-11-07, 10:06 AM
Vagana On A Mission

Nigel Vagana, the 32-year-old, who plies his trade for NRL club South Sydney, has returned to his family roots in a bid to help Samoa through to the 2008 Rugby League World Cup Finals in Australia.

He said: ?My parents were from Samoa and I?ve been brought up as a Samoan living in New Zealand?.

After playing 37 Tests for New Zealand between 1998 and 2006, Nigel retired from the global game following the 2006 Gillette Tri-Nations Tournament but changed his mind about leaving representative Rugby League opting to play for Samoa in the 2008 World Cup qualifying repechage competition and, hopefully, next year?s Finals.

Samoa, who were edged out of the qualifying places in the Pacific Group by Fiji and Tonga, now have to bid for a place in the Qualifying Final for the Tenth and last spot in next year?s Finals by beating the United States Tomahawks in the repechage semi-finals at Halton Stadium, Widnes on Friday evening.

If they win they win they will face the winners of the other semi-final between Lebanon and Wales at Featherstone.

?Not to be in next year?s World Cup finals would be very disappointing for everybody in Samoa,? said Nigel. ?We?re a proud nation and we love our Rugby League.

?That?s why we?re doing as much as we can to prepare to do the best that we can against the Tomahawks.?

Vagana concedes that the Samoans will start as firm favourites against the Americans who lost their warm-up game against Cumbria 70-0 in Barrow last Sunday but he says that the Pacific island?s players are not being influenced by that performance.

?At the end of the day its 80 minutes of Rugby League and 13 guys against 13 guys,? he said, ?and the history of Rugby League is littered with examples of shock results.

?The Americans will be going to Widnes all fired up and ready to give it their best shot against us so we?re taking nothing for granted.?

Vagana, the cousin of Bradford Bulls prop forward Joe Vagana, will also be watching the outcome of the other semi-final between the Lebanon and Wales with particular interest.

He was a member of the Samoan squad that was beaten by Wales 22-10 at Swansea in the 1995 World Cup in a match that has been labelled as one of the code?s classic all-time games.

By John Huxley

http://www.rugbyleagueworldcup.com

Old Diehard
08-11-07, 12:05 PM
?Not to be in next year?s World Cup finals would be very disappointing for everybody in Samoa,? said Nigel. ?We?re a proud nation and we love our Rugby League.

GO SAMOA!~

~lee~
10-11-07, 08:07 PM
I got to see a bit of this game, they should have worked out before they shouldnt both wear blue, it must have been hard on the refs to tell them apart at times. Samoa were clearly the better team, USA only had one goalline defender - Matty Peterson who won the man of the match award. It was good to see USA put a few points on the board and even though they lost, they seemed happy at the end and enjoyed the experience.

Coaster
11-11-07, 04:04 PM
The game is on now on Bigpond league TV

http://www.bigpondvideo.com/leaguetv

Free usage for Bigpond users