The Reported USA, Jamaica and South Africa Squads for the 2011 Atlantic Qualifier
The record lists 30 reported USA names, 30 Jamaica names and 23 displayed South Africa names, plus coaches, variants and selection-status caveats.
The surviving 22 September 2011 announcement records 30 names for the USA, 30 for Jamaica and 23 for South Africa ahead of the October Atlantic qualifier for the 2013 Rugby League World Cup.1 Although the article describes all three selections as “30-man squads,” only 23 South African names are displayed. These lists are therefore best treated as the reported 22 September announced squads, not as three complete, officially verified rosters. Later pre-match selections and match-day teams are separate records.
The squad record at a glance
| Team | Names displayed | Record status |
|---|---|---|
| USA | 30 | Reported announcement published 22 September 2011 |
| Jamaica | 30 | Reported announcement published 22 September 2011 |
| South Africa | 23 | Reported announcement published 22 September 2011; incomplete against the article’s 30-man description |
The selections were announced for a three-team qualifying tournament in October 2011. The USA, Jamaica and South Africa were competing for the Atlantic place at the 2013 Rugby League World Cup.1
The central limitation concerns South Africa. The archived third-party article calls the selections 30-man squads but displays only 23 South African players. There is no supported basis for identifying or supplying seven additional names.
Three kinds of record must therefore be kept distinct:
- Announced squad: a wider group reported before the tournament.
- Pre-match selection: a narrower group placed in contention for a particular fixture.
- Match-day team: the 17 players recorded as selected for that game.
A name in the September announcement does not, by itself, establish that the player travelled, remained available or appeared during the qualifier.
USA announced squad
The archived announcement displays the following 30-player United States selection, preserving the name forms used on that page.1
| 1–10 | 11–20 | 21–30 |
|---|---|---|
| Michael Garvey | Keiki Misipeka | Justin Ripley |
| Andrew Kneisly | Jayson Rego | Sean Taylor |
| Louis Tulio | Joshua Rice | Mark Cantoni |
| David Marando | Apple Pope | Leslie Alovili |
| Ryan McGoldrick | Nate Smith | Joseph Paulo |
| Curtis Cunz | Kelly McGill | Junior Paulo |
| Charles Rizzo | Sione Taufa | Stephen Howard |
| Salesi Tongamoa | Fitz James Adams | Daniel Howard |
| Mark Offerdahl | Charles Cortalano | David Myles |
| Mitchell Stevens | Ian Elliott | Matt Peterson |
Matthew Elliott was named as head coach, assisted by Marcus Vassilakopoulos and Shane Millard. Apple Pope retained the captaincy in the announcement.1
This wider selection should not be read as a list of confirmed tournament appearances. The opening match against South Africa provides firmer evidence for one fixture: its recorded USA team includes Apple Pope, Joseph Paulo, Junior Paulo, Mark Offerdahl and Curtis Cunz among the 17 selected players. It also identifies Pope as captain and Elliott as coach.2
That match record uses Matt Petersen, rather than the announcement form Matt Peterson. Such differences are preserved in the variant ledger below instead of being silently standardized.
Jamaica announced squad
The reported Jamaica selection contains the following 30 names, again using the spellings found in the September announcement.1
| 1–10 | 11–20 | 21–30 |
|---|---|---|
| Wayne Allen | Paul White | Wesley Haughton |
| Daley Lee Williams | Lamont Bryan | Corey Hanson |
| Ashley Johnson | Omari Caro | Reece Williams |
| Romaen Campbell | Ross Peltier | Sam Williamson |
| Roy Calvert | Richie Barnett | Karl Pryce |
| Damon Gayle | Waine Pryce | Carlye Burgher |
| Ryan Grant | Jymel Coleman | Jahdeek Clarke |
| Marvin Thompson | Jamaine Wray | Sandino Hastings |
| Joseph Brown | Danny Bravo | Tyronie Rowe |
| Jode Sheriffe | Jamal Chisholm | Claude Yen |
Dean Thomas was named as head coach. At the level supported by the announcement, Jamaica’s wider selection combined domestic players with players attached to British clubs.1
This 30-name group must not be confused with the 20-player Jamaica selection published before the match against South Africa. That later list was a narrower pre-match selection rather than a corrected version of the September announcement.3 Nor does inclusion in either list establish which players appeared against South Africa or the USA.
The surviving records used here do not securely identify a Jamaica captain for the tournament, so none is assigned.
South Africa’s displayed 23-player list
The South African section of the archived announcement displays the following 23 names.1
| 1–8 | 9–16 | 17–23 |
|---|---|---|
| Henry du Toit | Rudi Prinsloo | Sivive Mpondo |
| Stevie Meyer | Pieter Lee | JP Nel |
| Gerrie Slabber | Johan Fritz | Marcelle Slabbert |
| Christoff Swanepoel | Hans du Plessis | Jonothan Soares |
| Francois Greyvensteyn | Gerhard de Wet | Pieter van der Nest |
| Christo Joubert | Riaan Engelbrecht | Franco Vermeulen |
| Andre Loader | Deon Kraemer | Rupert Wells |
| Andre Olwagen | Christo Louw |
Record note: The archived article describes the selections as 30-man squads, but only 23 South African names survive in its displayed list.
These names should not be represented as South Africa’s complete official qualifier roster. The reason for the seven-name shortfall is unresolved, and no missing players can responsibly be inferred.
The announcement describes South Africa’s selection as entirely drawn from its domestic competition, with Tuks Bulls supplying the largest group.1 Steven van Zyl coached South Africa in the opening qualifier against the USA, while Andre Loader captained the match-day team.2
Announced squad, pre-match selection or match-day team?
The surviving records document different stages of selection. They should be read on their own terms rather than combined into a single reconstructed roster.
| Date or stage | Team | Record type | What it proves |
|---|---|---|---|
| 22 September | USA, Jamaica, South Africa | Announced wider squads | Names reported in advance; not proof of travel or appearance |
| 15 October | USA and South Africa | Confirmed 17-player match teams | Players selected for the opening qualifier |
| 18 October | Jamaica and South Africa | 20-player pre-match selections | Narrower groups considered for the next match |
| 19 October | Jamaica and South Africa | Confirmed 17-player match teams | Players selected for Jamaica’s win over South Africa |
The 18 October report named 20 players apiece for Jamaica and South Africa. These were narrower selections for the following day’s game, not replacements for or corrections to the September announcement. The report also said Christof Swanepoel had suffered a mild concussion and that Gerhard de Wet had come into consideration.3
The 15 October match record confirms 17 players for each side in the USA’s 40–4 victory over South Africa.2 It proves selection for that fixture, but it does not establish either country’s complete tournament roster.
Likewise, the 19 October record confirms the 17 players selected by Jamaica and South Africa in Jamaica’s 20–6 win.4 Christoff Swanepoel appeared against the USA; after the subsequent concussion report, Gerhard de Wet appeared against Jamaica. That sequence is supported for those two fixtures, but it should not be extended into assumptions about the countries’ full tournament squads.
A complete tournament-wide appearance matrix would require both full lineups for every fixture. The published records cited here do not establish both complete teams for the decisive USA–Jamaica match on 23 October, so no such matrix is attempted.
Player-name variants in the surviving records
The announcement and later match records do not always use the same name forms. The ledger below preserves the relevant variants and identifies their contexts rather than choosing an unsupported authoritative spelling.124
| Announcement or record form | Other recorded form | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Matt Peterson | Matt Petersen | Announcement and USA opening-match team |
| Romaen Campbell | Romaine Campbell | Announcement and later Jamaica records |
| Danny Bravo | Daniel Bravo | Announcement and later Jamaica records |
| Tyronie Rowe | Tyrone Rowe | Announcement and later Jamaica records |
| Jymel Coleman | Jy-Mel Coleman | Announcement and Jamaica–South Africa record |
| Joseph Brown | Joe Brown | Announcement and Jamaica match records |
| Jonothan Soares | Jonathan Soares | Announcement and South Africa match records |
| Wayne Reittie | Wayne Rettie | Different later Jamaica records |
Wayne Allen requires separate treatment. He appears in the September Jamaica announcement, whereas Wayne Reittie or Wayne Rettie appears in later records. The evidence does not establish whether this reflects different players, mistaken identification or a faulty link, so Wayne Allen should not be merged with either later form.
For historical roster work, the clearest method is to preserve the exact form used by the record being reproduced and place alternatives in a note or variant ledger. Without an official roster or team sheet resolving these discrepancies, none of the competing spellings should be declared authoritative.
Qualifier dates, venue, results and final standings
Contemporary previews often described the qualifier as taking place in Philadelphia.
The three-team round robin ran from 15 to 23 October 2011:
| Date | Match | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 15 October 2011 | USA vs South Africa | USA 40–4 South Africa |
| 19 October 2011 | Jamaica vs South Africa | Jamaica 20–6 South Africa |
| 23 October 2011 | USA vs Jamaica | USA 40–4 Jamaica |
The first two scores are recorded in the corresponding specialist match records, while a contemporary report confirms the USA’s 40–4 victory over Jamaica in the deciding fixture.245
The final standings were:
- USA — two wins, four points
- Jamaica — one win, two points
- South Africa — no wins, no points6
By winning both matches 40–4, the USA took the Atlantic place and qualified for its first Rugby League World Cup.5
The roster record remains narrower than the result record. The September announcement preserves 30 USA names, 30 Jamaica names and 23 displayed South Africa names, while the October records confirm only particular pre-match selections and match-day teams. The tables should therefore be treated as a sourced reconstruction—not as three complete official rosters—especially where South Africa’s missing names and several player spellings remain unresolved.