Another rematch final, this time from two years ago in Wroclaw at JJUC, with the USA as hot favorites
July 31, 2024 by Benjamin Rees in Recap with 0 comments
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Just as it had in Wrocław two years ago for JJUC, the Open final pitted the USA against France, with the US nigh on flawless in a semi-final win over Italy where the O line turned over just once all game. The French had produced a powerhouse performance of their own in their semi against Canada, but came in as definite underdogs, especially when factoring the pool game between the finalists in which the USA were fairly comfortable 15-9 winners.
When faced with such a formidable opponent, it is always of paramount importance to get off to a fast start so you can relieve some early nerves while also applying some pressure the other way. That might well have felt like a tall order when the first pull pinned France deep in their own endzone, but with American defenders tighter than lycra they were still able to grind downfield into the redzone, with Enzo Stanguennec throwing a leading pass into the endzone where Erwan Pare, making an en passant cut from the backfield, produced a perfect dive to get France off to an ideal start with a clean hold for the 1-0 lead.
The American O line took the field for the first time, staring down a French defense that sagged into throwing lanes, disrupting any scripted plays from the pull, with Cedar Hines being shadowed to try and minimize any influence he may have. The US looked prepared, as they moved the disc at tempo through the handling core before transitioning into their short-field setup, and Brayden Morrison threaded an inside flick into Hines’ path to level the score at 1-1.
Whenever they got into trouble in the semi-final win over Canada, France were able to bang their way out of trouble by airing out deep shots and trusting players like Stanguennec and Quentin Peschard to bring them down, a strategy that, while a little uncultured, generally seemed to do the job. When their offense stagnated on the next point they tried that tactic again, but Pare’s hucks twice resulted in contested foul calls, and he floated an under on his third go-round to commit the game’s first turnover. The USA D line set up with a dominator, and the French were able to keep a lid on things for long enough to earn the disc back on an overthrown swing. The defensive pressure from the US was unrelenting, and an inside throw was emphatically blocked by the horizontal figure of Micah Wagner. This time they would make it count, as Micah Davis launched an audacious blade deep to Cameron Levine, who was streaking down the sideline, to reel in for the opening break of the game and put the Americans up 2-1.
After a period of trading, with France continuing to look for the big bombs deep and the USA leaning heavily on Hines’ first step explosiveness in the redzone, the Americans would break again. Olivier Gibert, who was instrumental for the French this tournament, miscued a deep forehand, and the US set up Elliot Hawkins for a breakside backhand huck to show their opponents how it’s done, with Nate De Morgan, who was originally left out of the squad, laying out spectacularly to put the US in control at 5-3.
After a France hold, the USA began to put their foot on the gas. A methodical hold of their own preceded two breaks, with the first coming after a zone bogged their opponents down and coaxed an error out of Gibert on an inside look, before another miscue at midfield allowed the US the opportunity to seal the half leading 8-4, firmly in pole position to capture another gold medal.
The USA would receive to begin the second half, and given that their O line was perfect before the interval the smart money was on another clean hold to put themselves further in front. France nailed the pull, giving it lots of hang-time before the USA received it in their own endzone, allowing their defenders to set up in position early. Unfazed by this, the USA offense calmly marched the disc past the attacking brick mark, and when Morrison saw an unmarked Hines the outcome seemed inevitable. Jules Lemare evidently had other ideas, conjuring up a layout hand block to stuff the throw and turn the US O line for the first time. France had clearly known the magnitude of the moment and had crossed some of their key players for just such a scenario, and the faith was repaid as Stanguennec connected with Peschard to garner their first break and close the gap to 8-5.
Having achieved the dream second half start, France continued to push for further breaks, generating an opportunity on the next point when Jonah Yang let a disc slip through his grip, but Hines earned it back with a flying block on the sideline, and he caught the bookends at the back of the endzone to settle the US into the second half.
A pattern began to emerge, whereby France’s offense would surrender the disc but then, as it had all tournament, play superb defense to recover possession before scoring, while the USA were able to convert their O points much more smoothly to preserve the tidy advantage they had opened with their first half efforts.
It was a pattern that would last until the end of the game. The USA O line turned it over just one further time, for a total of three all game, looking unmatched as France desperately searched for the breaks they needed to flip the script, but it was not to be for them. With the score at 14-11 and the US just outside the endzone, Hines looked for Axel Olsen to seal the game, and although he tripped under contact with Peschard on a floating throw, Brayden Morrison was alert in providing backup as white shirts flooded the field with the Americans winning by a final score of 15-11.
Cedar Hines was a force of nature with a five goal, one assist, one block, and one turnover performance, and Axel Olsen continued to impress as he registered one goal, four assists, and just a single turn himself. The French deep targets caught the eye, especially considering the opposition, with Enzo Stanguennec finishing with three goals and two assists, while Quentin Peschard had a ludicrous six-goal and two-block statline.
The USA had looked the class of the tournament all week, with the victories over France the closest they were pushed over the tournament. Making back-to-back finals in this division shows the strength of the French youth program, but the depth of talent in this US squad was inarguable and that was borne out on the grass over the course of yet another victorious campaign.
