Nate Ebner called up for American Eagles at Hong Kong Sevens

American football player Nate Ebner has fulfilled his wish of forcing his way into the United States sevens squad when he was named as a late replacement for the injured Carlin Isles.

Ebner, who won a Super Bowl ring in 2015 as a safety for New England Patriots, played in this week’s GFI HKFC 10s in an attempt to showcase his rugby skills and earn a place in the American team for this year’s Olympic Games.

And USA Rugby took notice after Isles pulled out of the squad because of a “nagging” but unspecified injury.

When asked this week if he thought he could make the USA squad, Ebner said: “Yeh, of course, or I wouldn’t be here.”

But his dream came true earlier than expected and he gets the chance to perform in front of 40,000 people at the biggest sevens tournament in the world.

“It’s really good competition, really good players out here and it’s exciting to watch, let alone play in,” he said.