“It feels amazing” – Joe Mano on his remarkable rise to test rugby
“It feels amazing” – Joe Mano on his remarkable rise to test rugby | World Rugby
We caught up with the USA winger following his historic start to life as a Men’s Eagle.

Earlier this month, Joe Mano became the first Men’s Eagle in the professional era to score a hat-trick in his test debut, cementing his place in USA rugby legend.
Mano followed in the footsteps of Gary Hein in 1987 and Dick Hyland in 1924 by scoring three tries in his debut for his nation. He also assisted in leading the USA over Brazil and into the La Vila International Rugby Cup 2023 final.
Mano opened his test account at Villajoyosa in less than two minutes, and he received his third before half-time. Despite his impressive debut in international rugby, the Utah Warriors winger promptly shifted the spotlight from himself to his teammates.
Mano described his test debut to World Rugby, saying, “It feels amazing.”
“I’m so grateful to God for getting me this far. You know, representing my nation is a dream come true, and this was a really special chance that not everyone gets to take advantage of.
“You know what, those three tries were all team tries.” The speed guys were setting me up for those tries on the edges, and those big males were controlling the middle.
“You know, it was very special because it’s anything and everything that a player would ever want on your debut.”
Family motivation
Mano’s performance in southern Spain was the most recent leg in a convoluted trip that began with his family’s home in American Samoa, continued through Alaska, Utah, and ended with his inclusion in the Men’s Eagles roster.
The winger’s extended family has played rugby for Samoa, but Mano has always had a strong desire to establish himself in the sport.
Mano was born in Hawaii, where his mother had traveled while pregnant to obtain treatment for his eldest brother’s cancer, despite the fact that his family is from American Samoa.
His brother, Joe, died shortly after the family returned to Pago Pago and so the younger sibling was named in his honour.
“They named me after him,” Mano said. “I’m
Mano, who had participated in village team sports in American Samoa, traveled to Alaska in 2013 to pursue his goal of doing so, as his brother was serving in the military there.
Mano played for the Alaska Green Dragons and worked in a warehouse. Five years later, he relocated to Utah and his partner encouraged him to try out for the Warriors, even though he thought it would be a long way off to represent the USA.
Mano had to prove himself even then, as he was cut before being added to the Warriors development squad in 2020 and the starting lineup for the 2021 Major League Rugby (MLR) season a year later.
“She (his wife) kept telling me that she feels I can do it,” Mano, 28, explained. “COVID hit and in 2021, I gave it a try one more time, and then I got signed.”
Working hard
It would prove to be a big year off the pitch for Mano as he got married and welcomed his first child, a son called Joe, to the world.
“Your mindset is everything,” he said. “I’ve had a few setbacks and where my mind was doubting me.
“Fast forward to 2021, I had my son and got married to my beautiful wife and I have a beautiful family now and it woke me up. You know, I not only work on myself physically, but also mentally and spiritually.”
That new outlook helped Mano cope with the ACL injury he suffered during his first season in MLR and has enabled him to return to the pitch stronger than ever.
“That woke me up to just push myself and to keep going and working hard. Because I was thinking about stopping playing rugby because of that injury and my son was my motivation after that.”
With his family and the lure of a first test cap at the forefront of his mind, Mano redoubled his efforts on his return to fitness and the new approach has clearly paid off.
Mano has scored 21 tries in as many matches since making his comeback last season and was rewarded for his fine form with a place in Scott Lawrence’s USA squad for the trip to Spain.
In just two test appearances, Mano has already scored in the final match against Spain.
Mano is keen to make sure that his time in test rugby is far from over, building on his success in Villajoyosa.
“I saw [his call-up] as motivation to keep pushing myself to achieve my goals in rugby. And this team has only helped to mold me, and I’ll keep working hard,” Mano declared.
By all means, this is not where I’m stopping. I’m going to keep working hard because I’m driven to accomplish more.
Mano is determined to make the most of this chance, having worked really hard to get it.