@CletiusMaximus - I know you follow rugby, is Olympic rugby similar to soccer where you are getting mostly youth players?
Olympic rugby is “7’s” which is a fun game but for me not real rugby. It is wide open, very little scrumming or rucking. The good news is that the 7s game is perfectly suited for this US team in that it favors raw athleticism over skill and tactical knowledge. We qualified by dominating the North American tournament, going undefeated and beating Canada in the final.
The US has two games today. The first is against France and we will undoubtedly lose. Not only are they the host, but for reasons no one really understands, the man who is widely regarded as the best rugby player in the world decided to switch to rugby sevens last year so he is suiting up for France in this tournament. Antoine DuPont - it’s an absolute joy to watch him play. This would be like Leo Messi playing soccer for the Argentina beach soccer team or their futsal team - just very odd but oddly interesting.
The second game today is against Fiji which we will also likely lose based on current form but we have a decent shot - a better chance than the early game. Uruguay is tomorrow and I think we may even be favored in that one. Two wins will surely get us through to the knockout rounds.