Nations Cup Rugby TODAY! USA vs South Africa at 2pm EST and Canada vs France at 3pm EST

There is more Nations Cup Rugby action today! Its starts at 2pm EST with USA vs South Africa and finishes with Canada vs France at 3pm EST.

You can either view the at Scrumhalf Connection or go directly to the Ustream site here. Each match will also be archived and available at Ustream.

For full rosters and schedule of Nations Cup 2009, go here.
8/10: USA vs England Match Report
8/10: France vs South Africa Match Report
8/13: Canada vs South Africa Match Report
8/13: England vs France Match Report
8/16: Canada vs France Match Report
8/16: USA vs South Africa Match Report
8/19: England vs South Africa Match Report
8/19: Canada vs USA Match Report
8/22: USA vs France Match Report
8/22: England vs Canada Match Report

**Submit Your Letter of Encouragement to the USA Eagles!

from USA Rugby:
BOULDER, Colo. – USA Women’s National Team Head Coach Kathy Flores has named her lineup for the Eagles’ second Nations Cup match versus South Africa on Sunday, Aug. 16 in Oakville, Ontario. 


The match at Appleby College kicks off at 2 p.m. local time (Eastern Time) and will be streamed live on UStream.

The Eagles head into the match hungry for points in the leaderboard standings, with five days of training between their first Nations Cup flight versus England. Despite attacking defense from the USA, the second half of the match eventually saw England surge ahead to a 36-7 final.
After starting off with a 17-17 draw versus France, South Africa fell to Canada 35-17 in its second Nations Cup venture against Canada on Thursday; however, Flores knows the South African team’s speed will pose a threat to the Eagles.

“The South African team is very fast in the open field and are quick to transition from defense to offense if they turn the ball over,” Flores said. “Our challenge will be to control the our breakdowns and retain possession and forward attack.”

Since facing England on Aug. 10, Flores has made several changes to her starting lineup for the USA’s match versus South Africa on Sunday.

Leading the pack, Farrah Douglas comes off the bench to start at loosehead, while Jamie Burke slides over to tighthead and the two will prop for Kittery Wagner, who gets her start at hooker.
In the second row, Stacey Bridges retains her place at lock and is joined by Sharon Blaney. After filing a replacement role versus England, Phaidra Knight will start at blindside flanker, while Beckett Royce makes the move to openside and Blair Groefsema holds strong at No. 8.
The backline sees a full change of face and is lead by Kim Magrini at scrumhalf. Mel Kanuk steps in at flyhalf, with Victoria Folayan and Ashley Kmiecik adding fresh legs on the wings. Emilie Bydwell and Lynelle Kugler will see time in the center, while Christy Ringgenberg takes her start at fullback.

For more information on the 2009 Women’s Nations Cup, please visit . You can also watch all the Nations Cup games live on http://www.ustream.tv/channel/live-rugby.
For more information on the USA Women’s Team, including daily blogs from the Nations Cup, visit www.usarugby.org/goto/women_eagles.

USA ROSTER VS SOUTH AFRICA
1 FARRAH DOUGLAS
2 KITTERY WAGNER
3 JAMIE BURKE
4 STACEY BRIDGES
5 SHARON BLANEY
6 PHAIDRA KNIGHT
7 BECKETT ROYCE
8 BLAIR GROEFSEMA
9 KIM MAGRINI
10 MEL KANUK
11 VICTORIA FOLAYAN
12 EMILIE BYDWELL
13 LYNELLE KUGLER
14 ASHLEY KMIECIK
15 CHRISTY RINGGENBERG

Replacements
16 LARA VIVOLO
17 MARI WALLACE
18 JENNY MENKE
19 KRISTIN ZDANCZEWICZ
20 CLAUDIA BRAYMER
21 STEPHANIE BRUCE
22 ASHLEY ENGLISH

from Rugby Canada:
Of the four teams competing in the third day of games at the 2009 Nations Cup, Canada is the only team with a win to their name. After France and South Africa drew the first match of the tournament, they, along with the USA, are still searching for a win.

South Africa and USA will kick of
f first at 2pm on Sunday at Oakville’s Appleby College. The two sides play vastly contrasting styles. The Americans rely on their physicality and commitment to contact across the field. The South Africans rely on their sevens athletes, with an especially potent 9-10 combination, and with kicks and offloads, play a very expansive flowing game.

The American 15s program has not had a significant win over an international side in a few years, but a win tomorrow over a rugby-reputable nation like South Africa would provide a huge boost heading into the 2010 World Cup. USA is a respected opponent for playing a very clinical, very physical game.

Unbeaten England has the day off but will be watching closely as they face South Africa on Wednesday.

Canada owes their IRB fourth place ranking to third ranked France; Canada has unsuccessfully faced France in the third place game of the last two World Cups. To say tomorrow’s match is heavily weighted would be an immense understatement.

The last time Canada beat France was in a pool game of the 1998 World Cup: 9-6 on kicks, including a 50m penalty from hooker Moira Shiels. Tomorrow’s result will be a bit of a lottery as both squads are using entirely different lineups from their previous Nations Cup games.
Canadian Assistant Coach Kris de Scossa is expecting a tough challenge from their trans-Atlantic rivals.

“France is consistently competitive in every area of the game and we are looking forward to it. We need these challenges for our development and expect to learn a lot from the game. It will be interesting to measure our preparation method of North American camps against their preparation of having Six Nations experience.”

Several new caps are making their debut this tournament for Canada, including Ontario prop Tabitha Stavrou. De Scossa speaks very highly of her and says she has slid into the Canadian side seamlessly.

“John [Long] and I are really excited about Tabitha. She is measuring up to be a top player at the international level, and her discovery is a testament to the explosion in participation of women’s rugby in Canada.”

Canada and France kick off tomorrow at 4pm. All Nations Cup games are held at Appleby College in Oakville, Ontario until the final day of games, Saturday August 22, when the matches will shift to Fletcher’s Field in Markham.

Canadian Roster for Canada vs. France:


1. LESLIE CRIPPS, LONDON SARACENS
2. KIM DONALDSON, BURNABY LAKE
3. TABITHA STAVROU, IRISH CANADIANS
4. MEGAN GIBBS, IRISH CANADIANS
5. DANIELLE ROWLANDS, CALGARY IRISH
6. JENNIFER KISH, EDMONTON ROCKERS
7. HEATHER JAQUES, CAPILANO RFC
8. BARBARA MERVIN, VELOX VALKYRIES
9. JULIA SUGAWARA, BURNABY LAKE
10. ANNA SCHNELL, BURNABY LAKE
11. TARA ECKERT, CALGARY IRISH
12. SARAH ULMER, LONDON SARACENS
13. BROOKE HILDITCH, YEOMEN’S WOMEN RC
14. JULIANNE ZUSSMAN, TMR
15. CHERYL PHILLIPS, TORONTO SCOTTISH

Replacements
16. MARLENE DONALDSON, VELOX VALKYRIES
17. ASHLEY MACDONALD
18. PAIGE BURDETT, CALGARY IRISH
19. GILLIAN FLORENCE, STE ANNE DE BELLEVUE RFC
20. KELLY RUSSELL, TORONTO NOMADS
21. LAURA STOUGHTON, CALGARY IRISH
22. MARIA GALLO, BURNABY LAKE