As much as early season victories over New Zealand, Canada and France have given the USA Eagles a real boost, it is a deeper, more profound change that is getting star playmaker Sariah Ibarra really excited.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNew generations are starting to flow into the team which shows a new depth that USA rugby has,\u201d Ibarra said ahead of the third leg of the HSBC SVNS Series, starting on 31 January in Singapore. \u201cIt\u2019s the first wave of fresh young girls who know the game of rugby inside out and are not just pure athletes. They are rugby athletes.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
This is a major step forwards for a nation that is still somewhat of a toddler in rugby terms.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The bronze medal the women\u2019s sevens side won at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, combined with Rugby World Cup 2025, and the on and off-pitch exploits of Ilona Maher et al have created a longed-for virtuous circle of interest, growth and development.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For Ibarra, a rugby fanatic since she discovered the game aged eight, it is heaven.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we get on the field it really shows, USA doesn\u2019t just have power and athletes, now we have playmakers, people with different skills,\u201d she said. \u201cI would say we are a cool group and we\u2019re developing into something really great.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u2018Diverse skills\u2019<\/p>\n
Boasting a young squad \u2014 Ibarra at 20 and in just her second year on the SVNS tour considers herself a veteran \u2014 the USA Eagles are playing differently this season, under head coach Emilie Bydwell.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a system that we\u2019ve implemented where everyone\u2019s strengths are valued and skillsets are valued,\u201d Ibarra explained. \u201cWe have a very diverse group and we all have very diverse skills.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re just a more, not versatile, but more adaptable team. We can now adapt to play different styles of rugby; we\u2019re not stuck to one structure. We can adjust and play on top and we can play with pace and we can play with stepping and skill and play-making, instead of just, \u2018OK we have bash and crash every single game\u2019.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u2018Tournament in the States is huge\u2019<\/p>\n
Ibarra, who made her debut at 19 for both the USA sevens and XVs, cannot wait to show it all off to her compatriots later this season.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was nice when [the SVNS tour stop in the USA] was in LA because it was in my own backyard,\u201d the California native laughed. \u201cBut we have a lot of girls from the East coast area, so having a tournament in New York is really nice. It\u2019s going to help our sport in that area and just having a tournament in the States is huge for us.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ibarra and teammates kick-started their season with that magical pool-stage 21-17 victory over defending SVNS series and Grand Final winners New Zealand in Dubai. It was a first win over the world\u2019s number one side for six years and something the USA had \u201cbeen working at\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Only a damaging opening defeat to Fiji stopped the USA Eagles from climbing higher than fifth place in the tournament.\u00a0<\/p>\n
They went one better in Cape Town, and Ibarra is expecting the trend to continue.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m really excited,\u201d Ibarra said. \u201cWe\u2019re building. Singapore and Australia (in Perth) is going to be a build, and then by the time we get to Canada (Vancouver) and New York, I think we’re going to be really wowing some of our fans.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u201842-year-old in 20-year-old\u2019s body\u2019<\/p>\n
It was nearly all so different for Ibarra. After heading to New Zealand for the final throes of high school, she played for the Black Ferns\u2019 U18 sevens side, alongside the likes of Braxton Sorensen-McGee. At one stage, it looked like the duo might be teammates for many years to come.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a really tough decision,\u201d Ibarra said of her call to choose the chance to represent the USA over New Zealand. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut as an American I really wanted to make rugby great and I wanted people to know that you don’t have to leave the country, your own country, to go find good rugby. The USA has great rugby.\u201d<\/p>\n
Picked in the matchday 23 for the USA\u2019s opening day match against hosts England at Women\u2019s Rugby World Cup 2025, Ibarra has never regretted her choice. She now revels in the chance to hand on the many experiences she has garnered, in a short time, to as many young Americans as she can.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u201cA lot of the girls, they say, I\u2019m a 42-year-old trapped in a 20-year-old\u2019s body,\u201d Ibarra laughed. \u201cI guess I have got a lot of experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cPlaying at the Women\u2019s Rugby World Cup really opened my eyes to the fact that not a lot of people get these opportunities, and you really need to enjoy and take in all the moments.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Despite all the great stuff in-between, Ibarra is well aware that the \u201cgreatest moment\u201d will come in her home city in two-and-a-half years.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s always in the back of my mind, like every single time I come to work and come on the field,\u201d Ibarra said of her team\u2019s plan to peak at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a home tournament for me, straight in my back yard and I just come to training every morning (thinking) alright, today\u2019s the day to get closer to winning a gold medal.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As much as early season victories over New Zealand, Canada and France have given the USA Eagles a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":443533,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[567],"tags":[64,63,760,85,83],"class_list":{"0":"post-443532","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-rugby","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-rugby","11":"tag-sports","12":"tag-text"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/443532","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=443532"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/443532\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/443533"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=443532"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=443532"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=443532"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}