THE US EAGLES will break from their World Cup preparations on Sunday morning to take part in a special memorial mass on the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
The American camp confirmed to RugbyWorldCup.com that a service has been organised at 10am in St Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in New Plymouth, eight hours before Eddie O’Sullivan’s men open their campaign against Ireland in Yarrow Stadium.
Over 800 people are expected to attend the service, which has been jointly organised between the US Embassy in New Zealand and St Andrew’s.
Looking ahead to Sunday, O’Sullivan said that it was imperative that his team take part in a day of huge national significance and remember the victims of the atrocities.
However, he downplayed the suggestion that the anniversary would give his team an added edge on the pitch, saying instead that his job would be to rein in the emotions.
“Motivation isn’t going to be an issue for these lads, they’re always easy to fire up,” O’Sullivan said. “It’s going to be emotional, I think.
For me, part of my job is to contain the emotion. If they get too emotional, they’ll make mistakes, and if they make mistakes they’ll pay a big price.
