How will Americans perform in their first Rugby Game?

[@WorldRugby]

How do you think our athletes got on during their crossover experience? Let us know below!

[@mojee9509]

amazing !

[@jeffjefferson3364]

It was OK for what it was but I think you could do a better job, and in a more genuine way with real pathways to the pro game. Maybe something like "the ultimate fighter", but rugby. Its a TV show you get talent and athletes get a pathway into an actual pro team. Follow 50 to 100 players offered the chance over a season training playing put into 12 TV episodes culminating in a spot in a preseason game for a MLR team, either a trainee player on each team or maybe just 2 players one on each opposing team with one getting a contract for a full season?

[@jeffjefferson3364]

"The 400" 16 teams of 25, 6 weeks training, 2 pre tournament matches each. Then a knockout tournament starting with 16 teams losers out but the winners can recruit 2 players from the losing teams after each game leaving 2 teams then with a 33 man squad going into the final game. Winner plays champion MLR teams academy side. MVP for the TV show team gets full paid contract with champion MLR team and a spot on the academy roster.

[@ilaitiakorobasagamocevakac4547]

If you guys do it on the TV, to be a TV show, I think it will more marketable, and lots of people will watch it and get more viewer's Thank you guys for the hard work. Looking forward to watch the next episode, or next show.

[@kutendamakwamaya977]

Bring them to MLR, Get them Playing for the Eagles, it will make them great.

[@razeenfrieslaar488]

As a South African really loved this series, as a former hooker I chuckled a bit when the prop already realised that the forwards end up doing the dirty work and the backs get all the glory haha. Welcome to the Rugby family boys and enjoy every minute of it!

[@1isdom]

Yep Piggy’s do the work and backs comb their hair and break your heart😉

[@reefrunnerart]

I was a flanker and a lock, and my brother was a centre...he was always the shining star XD

[@Frozone87ZA]

Having played both as a loosie and every position in the backline at club level I have to say it is more fun being part of the 8 :)

[@sports2hedz542]

you gotta admit. their progress after only a few weeks is outstanding.

[@averageman9424]

@@Frozone87ZA same. Was always wing but as I grew got moved to flanker. Once I was in that 8 there was no taking me out of the pack.

[@malcolmknox5519]

So amazing. Recruitment of players to rugby in North America is a giant passion of mine. 10 years of it in Canada. There is nothing like finding someone, a few weeks of basic skills and slipping them into a game, then seeing their face light up when they score, complete a tackle, beat a few defenders. Love this.

[@knightswarm1]

As school boy rugby player and the grandson of a Springbok, i loved watching this... very nice to see those skills transferred to the rugby field. I strongly believe the American's can be a force on the international rugby field, if they take the sport seriously. Very enjoyable to watch.

[@mojee9509]

im from Fiji living in the UK and its so sick seeing these guys perform and enjoy the game as much as we do

[@raquelgraham2575]

As a New Zealander and a hardcore rugby follower, I thoroughly enjoyed watching this. Props to you all coming from different codes especially at your ages, we start them from nappies. Kia kaha 🇳🇿

[@craigmcghee4]

This was brilliant this is why rugby is the greatest sport in the world

[@premiersportswtb]

Agreed Americans are the next generation of rugby

[@monsterlgm4428]

@@premiersportswtb nah ur high.

[@melanchorly7618]

@@premiersportswtb People have been saying that since the early 90s. I think the next big teams are gonna be European and African. Spain, Portugal, Germany, Belgium, Kenya.

[@IsanG08]

@@melanchorly7618 Yeah that's facts and also yea I think those countries are really gonna shine and I would throw Japan in there as well they are getting better and better

[@premiersportswtb]

@@melanchorly7618 Oh well I was not alive in the 90's so that's understandable

[@standard12th66]

I'm actually sad it's over. I would a series 2.

[@thehappypeople7495]

Yeah and in another country if possible

[@m4t3matix73]

This was fantastic. I feel like everyone in the Rugby community is so happy for this sport to grow as it is just so wholesome. Please do a second season in Germany. We need more Rugby aswell 🇩🇪🏉

[@samisonitupou9180]

I agree, Germany has some passionate rugby fans. All the best to you guys 🙏

[@nakedref8997]

Absolutely agree with this one. Just missed out on the World Cup a few years back, it’d be great to see the untapped potential of another large nation like Germany. These are the countries we NEED to see our sport become truly global.

[@elintocable0072]

Your contrie need rugby not american football.

[@kneokneo5792]

After finishing the series, their response to the first game and how much they enjoyed it. Just authentic. That’s why I love the game.

[@metchoumetch3176]

Deep respect from France. I'm glad to see this guys dicovering rugby. Welcome! Well done Alex, good job all of you.

[@Es-co5ef]

If Rugby gets more attention in the States. I would be worried man! So much potential. They would be a force not to mess with

[@Sportsfan1042]

I doubt it NZ,SA etc would still dominate

[@mckayhatch6723]

Great series. I'm happy to hear they are still playing. Here's hoping for a season 2 and more after that too.

[@KeironStarr]

Steven overcoming his nerves by putting in a big shot... you love to see it 🙌🏾

[@liambirch6333]

Was decent technic too

[@sports2hedz542]

was a massive hit! ... @Liam Birch not just decent, it was perfect. way to go steven!

[@liambirch6333]

@@sports2hedz542 i wouldn't go that far, old boy looked about 12 stone, but it was very good for a beginner I'm giving him credit

[@anon17472]

Well done lads, really enjoyed this. Do this 1000 times across the USA and they'll be a force internationally.

[@levangvinjilia8579]

This videos of cross the line made me understand how underrated this sport is

[@SavageUnchained]

I love Rugby, especially when players realise that all of them are part of the O line and D line, all of them are running backs, wide receivers, QBs, punters and hikers. Rugby gives everyone a chance to showcase those skills. Nothing like watching a 300 lb defensive tackle ball in hand run up the field breaking tackles like a reciever. America has the talent pool to potentially be the best if it took off nationally.

[@wernertukker5420]

Absolutely agree with you. The untapped potential in that country is scary

[@vannjunkin8041]

Agreed. Prime for it.

[@catherinelynnfraser2001]

I loved this series and learning about these guys and watching the grow has been a pleasure. I hope they continue to learn and play and that we get a second series. Thanks for sharing this journey!

[@braddaynes6885]

Absolutely Awesome! Alex, you're still a respected legend here in South Africa and this was one of the best rugby documentaries I've ever seen. Well done to everyone involved and to the players, Welcome to the brotherhood!

[@luketurner2180]

so good to see some of the boys carried on playing. Really great series and massive hats off to all involved. They're a talented bunch of lads

[@shanemad1640]

Loved it guys . Loved the humbleness of the players . So excited for you guys . They say that , It's the game that's played in heaven . Looking forward to watching more such clips . Love from Fiji .

[@surge3644]

This was extremely entertaining to watch. We need a season 2! Love that they did so well at the end, they progressed real fast in a short time.

[@ieatbananaskins7926]

Jayson always looked like Alex’s favorite - seeing that he’s in the Giltini’s academy makes sense

[@austinmahnke]

Absolutely amazing series. This gives me hope as and aspiring college rugby player in the US. I'm really happy to see the sport growing.

[@Sportsfan1042]

The SA v NZ test last weekend was number 1 on trending which shows you how big rugby is getting the EPL game featuring Manchester United only come in at 5

[@moou5860]

I love how Rugby is as much about respect and brotherhood as it is about the actual sport. Its pretty cool watching these guys fall in love with Rugby and hearing them compare it to their original sports.

[@roguesorcerer1145]

Camaraderie and brotherhood. Respect for each other. Honour above all. That’s the essence of rugby for me. What a game.

[@chief-jayfiji7834]

Huge respect to all the lads that took part in this documentary 💯👊🏾🙏🏾🇬🇧🇫🇯

[@Emma.Lily69]

This was such a fun series to watch! I'd love to see more "seasons" of this. Maybe even one with women

[@LDavis]

I was also thinking it would be awesome to see some women athletes getting introduced to rugby as well

[@Kawasakifreak1]

Loved this - thank you & well done to all the players on winning their first Rugby game !

[@Hans._A._Pils]

Great stuff. Enjoyed to see stuff like this in Germany as a small Rugby nation

[@Robostark]

Shout out to all these guys. Their attitudes and mentality is what makes Rugby the joy it is. Great to see these guys take skills in from other sports and smash it.

[@gammaray3694]

Just finished this and realized this is the last episode of a series of videos. Pumped to watch more.

[@goliath290]

Howard playing in a tracksuit like an absolute menace

[@MrPayala2]

Realmente disfrute la serie, espero que se haga una segunda parte. Creo que en USA hay mucho potencial para el Rugby.

[@brownoliveira6316]

No,no da dinero.

[@andycollings1382]

Great series. Would love to see more... and make them longer and more in depth!!

[@danb3436]

I'm not a huge rugby fan but I would watch a full length show of this 😁

[@Mohagnito94]

Good series. Watching from Kenya 🇰🇪

[@kwanman5146]

The sport needs expanding across the world. initiatives like this are a god send. Please follow up these guys and hopefully one or two will take it up permanently.

[@DoctorKimber]

The future of Rugby seems brighter than ever - absolutely fantastic!

[@valinapanui7186]

honestly USA has the potential to have the greatest rugby team on earth even better than our ABs if they really stick to it there's a lot of speedsters and powerhouses there that can pull it off

[@danielburges8176]

This was an amazing episode - feeling a bit emotional with how they did!

[@jrlozano973]

A MA ZING ! Just like that, great and entertaining little documentary. Love watching this every new episode, hopefully helping people to understand the good things about rugby and spread the love for the sport everywhere. Hope to see more of this soon!

[@robertjosephfishing3960]

Loved it. Kudos to Alex and to all the guys for being willing to try something new.

[@patrickcraig7441]

I loved this series, watched every single episode! I hope They start to play Rugby in America more!!!

[@sports2hedz542]

it was definitely emotional! they didna great job players and producers

[@kian9982]

Please make this a regular series where you can it could really help not only the sport grow but learn of those in the states who are maybe coming through the ranks in rugby who some may not know of exc

[@perodenero]

Really enjoyed this series, big up from South Africa!

[@monunyabidness5949]

Oceanside was always a difficult team to play in DII So Cal rugby. Very skilled, very athletic, well drilled. They made few mistakes. Great series Alex. Thanks mate.

[@sbrother176]

So proud of these guys. Hopefully things turn out well for them in rugby given their individual goals and responsibilities in their everyday schedules in life. Hope they get contracts in MLR

[@298TKO]

America has a wealth of potential athletes that could thrive on the world stage. If they can implement rugby at a school level they could become a power house in rugby. ✌️ from NZ

[@joupoes254]

Loving this series. Rugby is the greatest sport on the planet for sure.

[@jameshickling2641]

Great series! loved it! was really fun

[@Robin-nq5wy]

9:22 someone new to rugby already knows the competition between the backs and fowards😂you love to see it!!

[@rugby_jtizzle]

This was awesome! Loved every episode and tbh could totally watch more! Welcome to the rugby fam boys, keep up the good work 🙌🏽 My vote is to keep up with these guys and see where they go, and keep recruiting and building on this. Also a series with women would be real fun too 💯

[@francoisdelpeuch8527]

Excellent job, beautiful spirit. Bravo guys, from an old french rugbyman.

[@ribbekasrambo1527]

We all did at one point experienced this feeling , miss it that's why i love watching rugby grow as a sport.

[@lewip1991]

Great series, loved it! Makes me nostalgic about my first men’s game ,getting folded in half in the front row by a 22 stone freak.

[@Jnevergoesout]

Congratulations for all the work and the footage. Amazing history 🙌🏻🙌🏻

[@ferndalerfc7416]

Enjoyed the series, impressed with all of them, keep up the hard work lads 👏🏻 respect from Ferndale RFC, Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

[@antideluvian9530]

Great mini series! Just goes to show the potential the USA has on the world stage in rugby..if only it had more exposure and more willing participants over there,ide dare say they would be up there with some of the best in the world! Great work world rugby!! 👏

[@Sportsfan1042]

I doubt it NZ,SA etc would still dominate the US can't even beat NZ in softball or the Americas cup lol

[@RedLorryYellowLorry_]

GREAT GREAT Series, this episode was wholesome. Some of them have clearly caught that Rugby bug and you can see even after one game they understand that Rugby means more than the game on the field. Loved the journey and progress.

[@rafaelmunguia2012]

Let's go Eagle rock. Proud to have gotten to play and practice with this club in the past.

[@jonplayle6954]

Goodluck to you guy's in your 1st game and may you have many more games of rugby to enjoy

[@sujankavinda8977]

Loved these episodes. waiting for more

[@PatNetherlander]

What a great series! And I’d love to see it the other way around; rugby players team up to play American Football against a top-tier team! Bring it on!

[@Sageta89]

Wait... No preview for next week? Noooooo loved this series!

[@paulb43]

Absolutely loved this series, shows the true values of our sport

[@lewiskeogh1242]

Brilliant series and would love to see more

[@josemotta2517]

Amazing serie, incredible job guys!!!

[@scottsutherland9004]

I enjoyed this series, definitely an untapped market and when the US wakes up to rugby, look out world. My only criticism is how artificial it feels. The two US Eagles who came to speak didn't do much more than just recite broadly meaningless messages. I like Alex but I think he's also guilty of that. I feel there's a more natural way for this to be presented. Again, I enjoyed the series and it's honestly just meant as constructive criticism.

[@jeffjefferson3364]

I agree wholeheartedly. It's too disingenuous. This didn't happen the way they are presenting it to be. While with a little effort World Rugby could make a genuine show about taking rough but talented athletes and turning them into pro rugby players.

[@sports2hedz542]

relax. it's a low budget show. it's not meant to be a blockbuster reality series. constructive criticism ok. but working within the penny pinching budget they probably had, this is a wonderful result.

[@fideltuda4678]

You are pretending as if Americans don't play rugby at world stage they do, they just suck at it.

[@sports2hedz542]

did anyone else think todd clever seemed really anxious? (USA Eagle that met them at the bar)...no idea how he could be an effective captain in my opinion. felt like he never talked to a group before.obviously an unbelievable player tho

[@scottsutherland9004]

@@fideltuda4678 Not at all. It's just still very much a minority sport behind soke fairly major competition. If they manage to get a similar population percentage playing as any of the 6 Nations then I honestly believe we'll have a new major rugby nation.

[@twigeffingg3423]

As a South African a d having played at school I loved seeing these guys see God and bad of their positions!!🤣🥳 I think they saw the best thing of all, that the game makes you friendships even if they are your opponents, it's all about the love for the game!!🏉🏉

[@nicolaashattingh6315]

as a South african and ex player ....Awesome Boys enjoy the game of hooligans played by gentleman..love to see more development in North America ..greetings from South of the border

[@denzilkrotz1449]

These guys were great wow for their 1st game I would give them a 8 or 9 out of 10 from Cape Town, South Africa 🙏🏻🇿🇦🤝❤️🏉🏆💯

[@chocolate101f9]

Great stuff mate! That’s so awesome

[@honahwikeepa2115]

The more you play the more natural it becomes. NZ wisdom. Cool video 😎💪🏾🙏🏾🇳🇿

[@supervundu]

Thanks to this series, I hope there has been a spike in viewership stats in the US. Rugby will only continue to grow with this sort of exposure, and hopefully we will see more initiatives backed by World Rugby, not only in the States, but also Canada, Russia, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Chile, Uruguay, Namibia, Kenya and potentially even China. It’s not only important for those nations to see opportunities, but also for the global rugby public to watch the game advance. Hopefully but the 2031 World Cup, it will be really difficult to get out of the group stages, with any of the teams capable of an upset.

[@pman07]

this was amazing to watch, good stuff

[@domagojbeno388]

Amazing!! Love it!! LADS GLAD YOU ALL TRIED IT. It is a Game that saved me as a Human. MUCH LOVE GOD BLESS.

[@jamesnield]

Brilliant!!! Love to see people enjoying what I think is the best game in the world!!!

[@gears.oflife]

Great series keep then coming

[@antsmusic123]

Welcome brothers. Awesome lov from NZ

[@akuiiratawhi8924]

Well done team from Australia

[@Pyrovile42]

Really fun series! Makes me miss playing rugby

[@LDavis]

Great series!!

[@99foki]

This was inspirational 🙏🏽🙌🏽

[@jimmykouba4494]

This is great. Now let's get rugby the exposure it needs to show the world America can do it. I love and am a fan of rugby. Can't wait to see a match in person. Sadly I don't know when and where matches are held? One reason it doesn't get the attention from the media of all forms.

[@hankgoldenshaft]

Well done guys. Rugby is a lot of fun to play for sure

[@laikalou9078]

Great series. You could do a bigger one and make it into a TV Series. Get more players from all kinds of sports and follow them up. Maybe make longer episodes including their personal life and maybe how their perspectives change when crossing over. This is the kind of stuff that sells.✌️🤙👌

[@francis-36]

I enjoy this serie a lot. Rugby is what america needs !

[@jasonmark6942]

Welcome to the rugby family it's more than just a game it's a world family game keep doing what your doing your guys are doing great

[@Lucaf_2008]

Really enjoyed this 👏

[@mataiocruz90]

Great series 👏

[@alexandreenee1653]

That was good fun. Actually impressed by their implication, especially defensively.

[@barryoffeastenders]

Would love to have seen more of the actual match. Only about a minute of actual footage. Great series though

[@pat4711]

As someone who went through the QLD Reds system id love to come play with these guys.

[@that682kid.C]

I know theirs alot of talent in america with good coaches an training they can go far in this sport love from nz boys

[@KenUbeleveit1]

Do any of the guys have social-Media where we can maybe follow them and see how they're doing with rugby and life in general??

[@LPLimitless]

Awesome series! Man, I Love this Game!

[@yngzay2480]

When are we gonna get this as a Netflix series

[@ashishd380]

Awesome happy for them i hope to see there development for the future

[@kaydeinia1508]

Jayson gonna be on the big stage soon!!