Samoa Defeat Mistake Riddled USA

Samoa got their World Cup campaign off to a good start with a less than thrilling 25-16 victory over the USA. Samoa, as expected, came after the Eagles with a punishing attack plan. The assault forced the USA into a stunning 29 missed tackles and kept the Eagles on their back foot most of the match.

Samoa was also the beneficiary of penalty trouble from the USA as the Eagles were pinged for 14 penalties compared to seven for Samoa. Half of the penalties yielded by the USA were in their own half, keeping them under pressure a large portion of the match.

“We’ll take the win at the end of the day,” said Samoa Head Coach Stephen Betham. “We’ve got a lot to tidy up before next weekend. Today was a good start and we need to build on it.”

Samoa was first on the board with an 8th minute penalty goal from Tusi Pisi, his first of four on the day. The lead was one that Samoa would not relinquish for the rest of the match as they led almost from start to finish. Samoa added to their lead in the 20th minute when Tim Nanai-Williams crossed over after collecting a nifty grubber from Pisi about ten meters out from the USA goal line. Nanai-Williams provided probing attacks throughout the match from his fullback position leading all players with 84 meters gained and three clean line breaks during the match.

The score was extended to 11-0 in favor of Samoa after another Pisi penalty in the 28th minute.

Having yielded the bulk of possession to Samoa for the first 30 minutes of the match, the USA was finally able to put together an attack into the Samoan half. The foray produced the Eagles’ first points of the match as AJ MacGinty connected on a penalty to cut the score to 11-3.

Looking as if the tide was beginning to turn, the USA produced the try of the match off of a turnover. USA Captain Chris Wyles was on the receiving end as he scored off of a movement that included a nice line break by MacGinty. The missed conversion left the score at 11-8 with less than five minutes to play in the half.

Unfettered by the run from the USA, Samoa was able to add to their lead with another Pisi penalty just before halftime to leave the score at 14-8.

Samoa needed to get on the scoreboard first in the second half and did just that as their Captain, Ofisa Treviranus, staked them to a 19-8 lead with a try. Pisi continued his fine kicking with another penalty goal in the 51st minute to extend Samoa’s lead to a comfortable 22-8.

The USA attempted to claw their way back into the match with a 53rd minute penalty from MacGinty, but unable to turn the tide. The Eagle scrum held up throughout the match, but the lineout let the squad down repeatedly. The USA struggled to retain possession and squandered a few promising opportunities.

As the Eagle penalties mounted, Samoa continued to punish the USA for their discipline issues. Mike Stanley, in for Pisi, added another penalty in the 70th minute to push Samoa’s lead out to 25-11 with less than ten minutes to play.

The USA attempted one last comeback and were rewarded with a try from prop sub Chris Baumann that left the score at 25-16. With less than five minutes to play in the match, the USA were desperate for a quick score, but as had been the theme they were undone by mistakes in the dying moments.

Any hopes of an upset from the USA were dashed with a mistake riddled performance from the Eagles. While the USA were not done any favors by referee George Clancy, it was the Eagles’ tackling that was ultimately to blame for the loss. The squad will need to improve first-up tackles drastically to have any chance of keeping close to Scotland in their next match.

“You don’t want to give possession away and we did that,” said USA Head Coach Mike Tolkin. “The penalty count definitely contributed to that. It put us on the back foot all game.”

“At times we physically matched them,” said USA Captain Chris Wyles. “Our discipline and execution let us down.”

While it appeared to be a comfortable victory for Samoa, there is plenty of reason for concern. The margin of victory should have been much wider given the number of gifts they received from the USA. While South Africa was upset yesterday by Japan, they will still be a favorite to sweep the rest of their matches. Samoa, Japan, and Scotland will have a very narrow margin of error if they intend to reach the quarterfinals.

The USA returns to action on Sunday September 27th against Scotland while Samoa takes on South Africa on Saturday September 26th.

Scoring Summary

Samoa 25

Tries: Nanai-Williams (20′), Treviranus (46′)

Conv: None

Pen: Pisi (8′, 28′, 39′, 51′), Stanley (70′)

USA

Tries: Wyles (34′), Baumann (74′)

Conv: None

Pen: MacGinty (31′, 53′)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzCzjouzu48