Rugby players reading this week’s NFL headlines.
Hey there, Rugby Rioter!
The NFL has been losing its mind over how Travis Hunter will possibly handle playing both offense and defense. We couldn’t resist having a little fun.
No shade, football fans. Rugby players are just built different.
Meanwhile, three American rugby squads took the field over the Fourth of July weekend — and all came out victorious. 💪
USA Mens team — 36-17 win over Belgium
U18s in Argentina — 71-40 win over Rosario Rugby
U23s in South Africa — 57-26 win over the Boland Cavaliers (Yesterday)
Next up: the U19s at the Rugby Americas North tournament. (Begins today)
The competition only gets tougher from here — especially with the Men’s Eagles set to face Spain and England over the next two weekends — but so far, so good.
This week, we’ve got a bunch of photos from the U18s Argentina tour.
Packed with rugby. Let’s go 👇
👊Quick hits
🇺🇸U18s earn first victory in Argentina
Final Score: USA 71 — 40 Rosario Rugby
📺 Replay available here.
On Sunday, the U18 men’s team started slow but soon found their groove, piling up points against Rosario Rugby in Argentina.
After conceding two early tries to the fast and shifty Rosario side, the Americans settled in, strung together some sharp scores, and pulled away for a 71-40 win.
As chemistry builds, this group could be a real handful by the end of the trip.
Neel Menon and Rhys James bossed it at scrumhalf, making sharp decisions and peppering in some sweet box kicks.
The forwards found their rhythm, cracking the gain line with big carries and nifty tip passes.
The counterattack on kicks was sharp.
Out wide, Ethan Heim, Trace Snellman, Jasiah Lolesio-Pua, and Reese Reiter turned on the jets all day.
Tristan Mocke and Dylan Trower were locked in with their kick conversions.
The USA lads were caught napping a couple times when the Rosario boys spun the ball wide—but otherwise, the defense was great.
During the three 30-minute periods, things stayed tight through the first 60. But as the game wore on, Team USA locked in defensively and started creating more attacking chances. In the final period, they pulled away decisively for the win.
🎥Here are all the USA tries, in order:
(Apologies if we mixed up any try scorers — the boys were subbing in and out, wearing different numbers, and the match was announced in Spanish. We did our best!)
Jason Zehmke was on site for the game to watch his son Luke play. Here’s his take on the match:
“Fantastic atmosphere. We were obviously outnumbered as fans but the crowd was very supportive of our boys, cheering each try and play.
On the field the boys took a few moments to get connected which definitely comes with playing together for the first time, but once they found their feet, you could see the physicality, speed and communication pick up. And confidence of course.
Personally, the two things that stood out for me were the brotherhood on the field and the pure passion - boys taking the game to the Argentinians - love that.
Coach Dom and the coaching team have done an amazing job getting this squad firing like they did yesterday. Great things to come.”
👉Next up: The U18s will face the Buenos Aires Academy today, July 9th.
If we can find a game link, we’ll share it on our instagram. (It’s not looking promising though)
🇺🇸 U19s get rolling in Mexico
🗓️July 9, 10, and 12
📺 Watch the matches on RugbyPass
The USA U19 Mens team begins their match schedule today in Queretaro, Mexico at the Rugby Americas North XVs tournament (RAN).
The format:
Pool Play: Four 40 min matches across Wednesday and Thursday.
Final: Saturday — 70 minute match to decide this year’s champion.
The USA U19s are the top seed this year and they open against Trinidad & Tobago.
Here’s the schedule:
Wednesday
9:00 AM - Bermuda vs México
10:00 AM - United States vs Trinidad & Tobago
-break-
12:00 PM - Bermuda vs Cayman Islands
1:00 PM - United States vs Jamaica
-break-
3:00 PM - Trinidad & Tobago vs Cayman Islands
4:00 PM - México vs Jamaica
Thursday
9:00 AM - United States vs México
10:00 AM - Bermuda vs Trinidad & Tobago
-break-
12:00 PM - United States vs Cayman Islands
1:00 PM - Bermuda vs Jamaica
-break-
3:00 PM - México vs Cayman Islands
4:00 PM - Trinidad & Tobago vs Jamaica
Friday: Rest day
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5th Place Final
12:00 PM - Bronze Final
2:00 PM.- Cup Final
Some familiar 2025 high school names on the U19s roster:
Mark French — St. Ignatius | Scrumhalf
Quinn Miller — South Meck and Charlotte Cardinals | Forward
Jameson Beatty — South Meck and Charlotte Tigers | Flyhalf/Center
Let’s go boys! 💥🇺🇸
📸Photo time — U18s in Argentina
USA U18s Coaching staff
📸 Credit: @varsity.se & @gonmiunelo
Training!
📸 Credit:@varsity.se & @gonmiunelo
Mateo Bresenden (SD Mustangs) making Hulk faces vs Rosario Rugby
📸Credit: Vasen Menon
Macrae Parker (Herriman) hoots and hollers after scoring a great try.
📸 Credit: Vasen Menon
Neel Menon (Woodlands) flies in for a try vs Rosario Rugby.
📸 Credit: Vasen Menon
Kaiden Grant (Belmont Shore) — coolest hair on the pitch.
📸 Credit: Vasen Menon
Trace Snellman (Woodlands) scores right after burning this guy.
📸 Credit: Vasen Menon
Ethan Heim (Gonzaga) offloads in contact—which led directly to...👇
📸 Credit: Vasen Menon
…this try by Macrae Parker (Herriman), his second of the day.
📸 Credit: Vasen Menon
Trophy time. Well done boys!
📸 Credit: Vasen Menon
That’s a wrap, gang!
Next time we’ll have more dope rugby stuff to share with you; scores, highlights, stories… all the goods.
If you like this stuff, share it with your friends!
Be well, ruck with gusto, and may your compression shorts always stay in place.
-The Rugby Riot Team