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The US Eagles will indeed be playing in Spain on November 10, but it won’t be against the Leones after all. Confirmation has come from the Spanish Rugby Federation (FER) that the two sides will play a neutral-venue test match at Anoeta Stadium in San Sebastián on the first weekend of the November test window.
It won’t be the first time the Eagles have played such a match. They faced Tonga at the same venue in November 2016, losing a close match 20-17. Samoa have never played there before but have played neutral tests in Europe before, most recently against Canada at Grenoble in November 2016.
For the Eagles it represents a significant challenge. They have never before beaten the Manu in a test match, losing all five previous encounters. The two teams met twice in 2015, Samoa winning 21-16 at San Jose’s Avaya Stadium during the Pacific Nations Cup and 25-16 in Brighton during the 2015 World Cup.
The Samoa test completes the USA’s November schedule. It will begin with the Māori in Chicago on November 3, and following Samoa will continue in Bucharest against Romania on November 17 and finally Ireland in Dublin on November 24.
Meanwhile the FER has also confirmed two test matches for the Leones in November. Spain will host Namibia on November 17 at a venue still to be decided and Samoa on November 24 at the Estadio Complutense in Madrid. A third test on the November 10 weekend is being sought but an opponent has yet to be finalised.
