2017 Rugby League World Cup qualification – Americas
The 2017 Rugby League World Cup Americas qualification was a rugby league tournament that was held in December 2015 to decide the American qualifier for the 2017 Rugby League World Cup. It consisted of a round-robin tournament involving three teams; Canada, Jamaica and the United States at two venues in Florida in the United States.
The United States won the tournament and qualified for the World Cup.
Overview
On 3 October 2014, the 2017 Rugby League World Cup qualifying competition was announced. Seven of the eight teams who made the knockout-stages of the 2013 Rugby League World Cup were announced as automatic qualifiers.[1]
USA, who were quarter-finalists in 2013, were denied automatic qualification due to an internal governance dispute which saw the nation's Rugby League International Federation membership temporarily suspended. Once the issue was resolved, USA was allowed to enter the qualification process.[2] In August 2015, the qualifiers were announced to be held in Florida in December 2015.[3]
Squads
Canada
The Canada squad as of 26 November 2015 was as follows:[4]
- Coach:
Aaron Zimmerle
| Club Team | Players |
|---|---|
 Bradford Dudley Hill |  Chad Bain |
| Brantford Broncos |  Billy Gemmell, Christian Miller, Steve Piatek |
| Capilano Cougars | Alex Boyd |
 Easts Tigers |  Tom Dempsey |
| Jamberoo Superoos |  Steve Bouchard |
| London Skolars |  Louis Robinson |
| Souths Logan Magpies |  Rhys Jacks |
| Sunshine Coast Falcons |  Ryley Jacks |
| Surrey Beavers | Jamie Kelly |
| Toronto Centurions | Jonathan Cregg, Robin Legault, Matt Wyles |
| Toronto City Saints | Eddie Bilborough, Antoine Blanc, Enoch Wamalwa |
| Valley Warriors | Daniel Blasco-Morris, Rick Schouten, Adam Timler |
Jamaica
The Jamaica squad as of 25 November 2015 was as follows:[5]
- Coach:
Romeo Monteith
| Club Team | Players |
|---|---|
| Batley Bulldogs |  Alex Brown, Wayne Reittie |
| Bradford Bulls | Omari Caro |
| Dewsbury Rams |  Joel Farrell |
| Duhaney Park Red Sharks |  Jermaine Pinnock, Renaldo Wade |
| GC Foster College | Ryan Grant |
| Keighley Cougars |  Hamish Barnes, Ross Peltier |
| Hunslet Hawks |  Daniel Thomas, Mo Agoro, Richie Barnett |
| Mico University College | Antonio Baker |
 Racing Club Lescure-Arthès XIII |  Lamont Bryan |
| Newcastle Thunder |  Joe Brown |
| Sheffield Eagles |  Corey Hanson |
| University Of Technology | Nathan Campbell, Marvin Thompson |
| Vauxhall Rugby Club | Tyronie Rowe |
| Unattached | Brian Hutchinson |
USA
The USA squad as of 25 November 2015 was as follows:[6]
On 2 December the US team suffered a setback after a star player, Tui Samoa, pulled out of the squad due to injury. He was replaced by Corey Makelim.[7]
- Coach: Brian McDermott
| Club Team | Players |
|---|---|
 Atlanta Rhinos |  Nick Newlin |
| Central Florida Warriors | Taylor Alley |
| Connecticut Wildcats |  Matt Walsh |
| Chicago Stockyarders | Taylor Howden |
| Delaware Black Foxes | Kevin Wiggins |
| Jacksonville Axemen |  Jon Purnell |
| London Broncos |  Mark Offerdahl |
| Mitchelton Panthers | Kristian Freed, Luke Barron |
| New York Knights |  Abe Cohen |
| Norths Devils |  Sam Carson |
| Northern Virginia Eagles |  Ryan Burroughs |
| Philadelphia Fight |  Casey Clark, Rich Henson, Andrew Kneisly, Roman Lowery, Mike Timpano |
| Wentworthville Magpies |  Danny Howard, Steve Howard, Corey Makelim |
Standings
| Key to colours in table | |
|---|---|
| Qualified for the 2017 Rugby League World Cup | |
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 54 | 38 | +16 | 4 |
| Jamaica | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 32 | 38 | –6 | 1 |
| Canada | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 42 | 52 | –10 | 1 |
Fixtures
United States vs Jamaica
4 December 2015 |
| United States |
20 – 14 | Jamaica |
|---|---|---|
| Try: Offerdahl 10' Howden 12' D. Howard 43' Makelim 54' Goal: Freed (2/4) |
Report | Try: Peltier (2) 30', 78' Farrell 49' Goal: Farrell (1/3) |
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Canada vs Jamaica
8 December 2015 |
| Canada |
18 – 18 | Jamaica |
|---|---|---|
| Try: Ryley Jacks 63' Legault (2) 76', 79' Goal: Piatek (3/3) |
Report | Try: Bryan 21' A. Brown 26' Reittie 57' Goal: Farrell (3/5) |
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United States vs Canada
This match was also the third and final game of the 2015 Colonial Cup series.
12 December 2015 |
| United States |
34 – 24 | Canada |
|---|---|---|
| Try: Alley (2) 2', 53' Howden (2) '9, '44 D. Howard (3) 36', 58', 79' Burroughs 63' Goal: Howden (1/4) |
Report | Try: Kelly 18' Ryley Jacks (3) 32', 40', 66' Goal: Piatek (4/4) |
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References
- ↑ QUALIFICATION DETAILS FOR 2017 RUGBY LEAGUE WORLD CUP ANNOUNCED, rlef.eu.com, 3 August 2014
- ↑ Scotland qualify for 2017 World Cup after RLIF announce seven automatic places for quarter-finalists from 2013 World Cup dailymail.co.uk, 3 August 2014
- ↑ Rugby League World Cup Qualifiers Awarded to Jacksonville & Deland, FL, usarl.com, 13 August 2015
- ↑ WOLVERINES NAME SQUAD FOR RUGBY LEAGUE WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS, rlef.com, 27 November 2015
- ↑ CORE OF REGGAE WARRIORS FROM UK COMPETITION rlef.com, 25 November 2015
- ↑ USA HAWKS ANNOUNCE 20-MAN SQUAD FOR WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS.
- ↑ Setback for USA Hawks with RLWC Qualifiers set to start.