The USA Women’s Eagles will return to home soil in October with momentum.
A 26–24 victory over Wales in Cardiff gave the Eagles a third consecutive Test victory, with Freda Tafuna scoring a hat-trick at Cardiff Arms Park.
But that was only part of a busy week. Fiji completed an unbeaten WXV Global Series Challenger campaign in Hong Kong, England needed a dramatic late interception to beat New Zealand, the Wallabies survived an extraordinary finish against South Africa, and Navy produced major victories in both the women’s and men’s college game.
Across USA club rugby, another packed Saturday produced everything from one-point finishes to a 112-point victory.
Here is what happened across rugby from September 21–27.
USA Women Make It Three Straight
The USA Women’s Eagles defeated Wales 26–24 in Cardiff on Saturday, extending their winning streak to three Tests.
Freda Tafuna was again at the center of it. The USA number eight scored twice in the opening stages and completed her hat-trick in the second half after Wales had fought back to take a 24–21 halftime lead.
Tafuna’s third try put the Eagles back in front, and the USA protected that two-point advantage through the remainder of the match.
The result followed the dramatic 40–36 comeback against Ireland six days earlier and the 26–19 victory over South Africa in Pretoria in July.
It also means the Eagles completed their two-game European trip with victories over Ireland and Wales before returning to the United States for their October home Tests.
FULL RFC COVERAGE: Freda Tafuna Hat-Trick Lifts USA Past Wales as Eagles Win Third Straight
The next challenge comes at home, with Italy and world champions England awaiting in October.
BY THE NUMBERS
Fiji Completes a Perfect Challenger Campaign
Fiji are the inaugural WXV Global Series Challenger champions after completing a three-from-three campaign with a 20–17 victory over the Netherlands in Hong Kong.
Fiji raced into a 12–0 lead before the Netherlands fought back to move 17–12 ahead. Selai Naliva levelled the match before Varanisese Qoro kicked the decisive late penalty to secure the title.
The tournament’s final day was heavily disrupted by high temperatures, with World Rugby’s heat protocols delaying the opening matches. Samoa finished its campaign with a 34–17 victory over Hong Kong China, while the scheduled Spain–Brazil match was cancelled after the earlier heat-related delays left insufficient time to play the final fixture.
Navy Shakes Up the NIRA Race
The NIRA season became considerably more interesting on Friday when Navy handed Lindenwood its first NIRA defeat of the season with an 18–15 victory in Annapolis.
Natalie Peugeot accounted for 13 of Navy’s 18 points with two tries and a penalty, while Navy’s defense survived a goal-line attack in stoppage time to secure the victory.
Harvard then defeated Dartmouth 31–7 to improve to 3–0, clinch its second consecutive Ivy Championship and extend its winning streak to 16 matches dating back to 2024.
One of the weekend’s biggest comebacks came at LIU. Army built a 31–5 first-half lead before the Sharks began their recovery, cutting the deficit to 31–12 by halftime.
Army later extended its advantage to 36–19, but those were the Black Knights’ final points. LIU scored the final 19 points to complete a remarkable 38–36 comeback.
Lindenwood responded to its defeat against Navy by beating Brown 64–0 on Sunday. Princeton defeated Frostburg State 94–0, Sacred Heart beat Queens 69–7 and La Salle continued its strong response to an opening defeat against Princeton with a 76–0 victory over Temple.
FULL RFC COVERAGE: Harvard Stays Unbeaten as NIRA Results Turn the Race Upside Down
Harvard remains the clearest constant. Behind the Crimson, the early-season picture has become considerably less predictable.
Navy Wins the Army–Navy Star Match
Navy’s men’s program added another significant result with a 26–14 victory over Army in Annapolis.
Army struck first through Howie Heller, but Navy responded with tries from Avion Ganse and Andrew Baublitz to take a 14–7 halftime lead.
Trevor Gayron extended Navy’s advantage to 19–7 before Luke Leech’s try and Nick Trout’s conversion brought Army back to 19–14.
The game remained in contention until the final minute, when Ganse scored his second try and Kade Williams converted to complete the 26–14 victory.
It was Navy’s fourth consecutive Army–Navy Star Match victory. The Midshipmen are now 8–0 overall against Army since Navy elevated men’s rugby to varsity status, including a 4–0 record in Star Matches.
Elsewhere in D1A, BYU defeated Air Force 57–17, Penn State won 29–12 at Southern Virginia, Mary Washington edged Mount St. Mary’s 31–26, Indiana beat Illinois 71–10 and Colorado defeated Utah Valley 63–19.
England Survives a New Zealand Scare
England’s unbeaten run survived another major test at Allianz Stadium as the Red Roses defeated New Zealand 26–19.
With the scores level late, Zoe Harrison had an opportunity to put England ahead with a penalty, but her kick fell short. Moments later, she intercepted a loose New Zealand pass and raced away for the decisive try.
The victory extended England’s unbeaten run to 41 matches.
Elsewhere in the women’s WXV Global Series, South Africa’s women beat Italy, the Wallaroos defeated Scotland 30–10, France beat Canada 21–5 and Ireland defeated Japan 31–24.
Italy lost to South Africa, while England needed a late interception to beat New Zealand — the final results for the two teams the Eagles will face during their October home series.
Wallabies Survive Extraordinary Finish in Perth
The Wallabies defeated the Springboks 42–38 in Perth after one of the most chaotic finishes of the international weekend.
Australia had built a 42–17 advantage before yellow cards to Harry Wilson, Ryan Lonergan, Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii and Hunter Paisami left the Wallabies with as few as 11 players on the field.
South Africa surged back into the contest, cutting the deficit to four points, but Australia held on.
Lonergan finished with 17 points and Len Ikitau scored twice for the Wallabies. Even the officiating communications became part of the drama, with a technical failure resulting in TMO decisions being relayed by mobile phone.
USA Club Rugby Delivers Another Huge Weekend
Hundreds of club players took the field across the United States on Saturday, with results ranging from remarkably close to remarkably one-sided.
On the women’s side, Palmer College produced the biggest score among RFC’s tracked results with a 112–0 victory over the CRC Sirens.
There were tight finishes elsewhere. North Buffalo Ninjas edged Uticuse Women’s Rugby 27–26, Buffalo defeated the Rochester Renegades 24–22 and County Will Morrigans beat the Fox Valley Vixens 30–28.
Chicago Lions continued their unbeaten start in Midwest Women’s D1 with a 40–24 victory over the Twin Cities Amazons, while Pittsburgh Forge kept its perfect start intact with a 48–7 victory over Detroit.
FULL RFC COVERAGE: USA Club Rugby Women’s Results: Palmer Scores 112 as Close Finishes Highlight Weekend
The men’s game produced its own collection of close finishes, with six games in RFC’s September 26 review decided by three points or fewer.
Tobacco Road beat Charlotte Olde Originals 28–27, Media edged the Philadelphia Gryphons 20–19 and Baltimore Chesapeake won 35–34 at Washington. Fayetteville Dragons and Onslow Misfits combined for 92 points in a 47–45 thriller.
At the other end of the scale, Jersey Shore beat Phoenixville White Horse 88–5, Palmer College defeated Lake County 83–3, CRC Silverbacks beat Peoria Pigs 80–24 and Chicago Blaze defeated Metropolis 71–5.
In the American Rugby Premiership, Life University recorded a 40–19 road victory over Mystic River.
FULL RFC COVERAGE: USA Club Rugby Men’s Results: Huge Scores and Close Finishes
What We Learned
For the USA Women, the important part isn’t simply that they have won three consecutive Tests. The Eagles came from behind to beat Ireland and then found another way through a tight finish against Wales.
Those results suggest a team becoming increasingly comfortable in close matches — something that will be tested again when the international schedule resumes in October.
College rugby is becoming equally intriguing. Harvard remains unbeaten in NIRA, but Navy’s victory over Lindenwood and LIU’s comeback from 26 points down against Army have changed the shape of the early-season picture. Navy’s men, meanwhile, remain unbeaten against Army since becoming a varsity program.
Across USA club rugby, the fall season is now fully underway.
October could be even bigger.
