CHRIS HEWETT

ANYONE puzzled by a strange squeaking sound drifting in on a soft breeze from Dubai should know the following: the US Eagles are about to embark on a win-or-bust repechage tournament in pursuit of the one remaining spot at next year’s World Cup. And it’s not just American posteriors that have fallen prey to the Alex Ferguson Syndrome.
Rugby’s movers and shakers badly need them to make it through. Why? Because a massive part of the sport’s financial strategy is contingent on “cracking the American market”, to the extent that the 20...