|
Written by RUGBYMag.com News Release
Monday, 22 August 2011 12:06 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
USA Names World Cup Squad |
|
National Teams -
USA Men
|
|
BOULDER, Colo. -– Eagles Head Coach, Eddie O’Sullivan, has selected his squad of 30 players that will represent the United States at the 2011 Rugby World Cup (RWC) in New Zealand next month.
The Eagles will compete in Pool C at the RWC, taking on Australia, Ireland, Italy and Russia in pool play. NBC Universal has released their broadcast schedule of the tournament, which begins with the opening ceremony on September 9 and concludes with the RWC final on October 23.
"I think there is a sense of relief that we are now in a position to name the final squad of 30 for the RWC. It has been a thorough process and I belief that we have the best 30 players available to us heading into the RWC.
As expected we have had to make some very tough decisions to get to the final squad, but that is just reflection on the talent available to us,” said O’Sullivan.
Todd Clever will captain the squad, with 16 forwards and 14 backs making up the team. Mike Petri – who led the Eagles against Japan on Sunday night in Tokyo – has been named the vice-captain.
Selected in the front row are Mike MacDonald, Mate Moeakiola, Eric Fry and Shawn Pittman. Three hookers have been selected in Chris Biller, Phil Thiel and Brian McClenahan.
The lock specialists are John van der Giessen, Hayden Smith and Scott LaValla. The loose-forwards include: Inaki Basauri, Pat Danahy, JJ Gagiano, Nic Johnson, Louis Stanfill, along with Clever.
In the backline, Tim Usasz is at scrumhalf with Petri. Partnering them at flyhalf are Nese Malifa and Roland Suniula. The centers will be Paul Emerick, Tai Enosa, Junior Sifa and Andrew Suniula.
Out wide the wings are Colin Hawley, Taku Ngwenya, James Paterson and Kevin Swiryn. Chris Wyles and Blaine Scully complete the squad as fullbacks.
“All eyes are now turned to RWC and our departure from the USA on September 1,” commented the Head Coach.
The squad will assemble in Santa Barbara on August 28 for their final preparations before flying to New Zealand on September 1.
USA EAGLES 2011 RWC SQUAD
Forwards:
Inaki Basauri (Perigueux), Chris Biller (San Francisco Golden Gate), Todd Clever (Suntory Sungoliath), Pat Danahy (Life University), Eric Fry (Las Vegas Blackjacks), JJ Gagiano (Univ. of Cape Town), Nic Johnson (Unattached), Scott LaValla (Stade Francais), Mike MacDonald (Leeds Carnegie), Brian McClenahan (Olympic Club), Mate Moeakiola (Bobigny 93), Shawn Pittman (London Welsh), Hayden Smith (Saracens), Louis Stanfill (Unattached), Phil Thiel (Life University), John van der Giessen (Unattached)
Backs:
Paul Emerick (Life University), Tai Enosa (Belmont Shore), Colin Hawley (Olympic Club), Nese Malifa (Glendale), Taku Ngwenya (Biarritz), James Paterson (Otago), Mike Petri (New York Athletic Club), Blaine Scully (Unattached), Junior Sifa (Nottingham RFC), Andrew Suniula (Chicago Griffins), Roland Suniula (Boston Rugby), Kevin Swiryn (Agen), Tim Usasz (Nottingham RFC), Chris Wyles (Saracens)
USA EAGLES RWC 2011 STAFF
Eddie O’Sullivan (Head Coach), Dave Hodges (Forwards Coach & Technical Analyst), Matt Sherman (Backs Coach), Mike Tolkin (Defensive Coach), Dan Payne (Skills Coach), Chris O’Brien (Kicking Coach), David Williams (Strength & Conditioning), Jarrad Griffiths (Assistant Technical Analyst), Tristan Lewis (Team Manager), Kevin Battle (Assistant Manager), Dallen Stanford (Team Media Manager), Michael Keating (Physiotherapist), Alex Garibay (Physiotherapist), Sarah Sall (Masseuse), David Schneider (Doctor, 3-16 Sept), Pat McNair (Doctor, 17 Sept onwards)
RWC 2011 SCHEDULE | NEW ZEALAND
September 11, 2011: USA vs. Ireland (New Plymouth)
September 15, 2011: USA vs. Russia (New Plymouth)
September 23, 2011: USA vs. Australia (Wellington)
September 27, 2011: USA vs. Italy (Nelson)
|
|
|
|
Written by Alex Goff
Sunday, 21 August 2011 19:21 |
|
|
|
|
|
GoffonRugby: RWC Roster Forecast |
|
RUGBYmag Premier -
Columns and Opinions
|
| Clever, if remotely healthy, will be on the plane to NZ. Numina photo
| 
| Basauri will also be in NZ pending medical clearance. Ian Muir photo
| 
| 12 months ago Scully was a longshot. Now he's a lock. Muir photo
| 
| Enosa will make the team, but where will he play? Numina photo
| 
| Malifa may not be a concrete starter, but he's on the team. Numina
|
The 30-man World Cup roster is set to be released Monday, and though many of the personnel decisions seem to have already been made, there are still some potential changes in the wind that could use monitoring.
World Cup Squad Weather Forecast
Inaki Basauri Partly Sunny. Hasn’t been in the 22 of late but O’Sullivan knows what he gets from this flanker.
Chris Biller Sunny. Despite having not played his best rugby, he’s considered the #2 #2.
Ryan Chapman Steadily clearing. After not being in the squad he was plucked last week and earned his first cap on Sunday. Put in enough work and did enough useful things to make you wonder. In terms of supporting the development of home-grown American talent, he’d be a good player to take to New Zealand.
Todd Clever Sunny and hot. Injured, but unless it’s terminal, will be on squad.
Pat Danahy Clearing. Had a very nice performance against Japan in a full 80 minutes.
Cameron Dolan. Rain. Injured. No longer a candidate.
Eric Fry Mostly sunny. Struggled at times in scrum against Japan, but a good player in the loose. With Will Johnson left home, O’Sullivan has essentially made his front row decisions.
JJ Gagiano Getting cloudier. Wasn’t stupendous against Japan and kind of needed to be.
Nic Johnson Sunny. Was outstanding in the ten minutes or so he played for the USA against Japan. Injured, but it didn’t seem serious. Has been playing really well.
Will Johnson Rain. Left home from Japan trip, which is too bad because he is very good.
Scott LaValla Sunny. Probably the best forward for the Eagles against Japan. EOS has to find a spot for him.
Mike MacDonald Warm front moving in. Scrummaging solid. Probably in is best form in some years.
Brian McClenahan Rain. Looks like two hookers for Eagles.
Mate Moeakiola Partly sunny. MacDonald may have taken his starting position, but Mate is on pace for a second World Cup.
Shawn Pittman Sunny. Overall still the best tighthead the USA has.
Hayden Smith Bright and sunny, with one cloud on horizon. How badly hurt is he? Looked banged up but probably could have played if he were needed. He is needed.
Louis Stanfill Sunny. Brings lots of grit and determination to the team. Will battle with LaValla for playing time, most likely.
Phil Thiel Sunny. Set piece had speed bumps against Japan, but not all his fault. Elsewhere was outstanding.
John van der Giessen Sunny. A lock forward who can jump, tackle, and fight without stopping? Yeah, we need one of those.
Backs:
Paul Emerick Bright and sunny with a cool refreshing breeze when you need one. Cannot imagine any scenario where he doesn’t anchor the USA backline.
Tai Enosa Cloudy. Exciting runner, who still needs to work his way itno team defense. Like him as a wing, but center?
Troy Hall Rain. Left home and not being considered.
Colin Hawley Drizzle. Could be the odd man out in a crowded group of outside backs.
Nese Malifa Mostly sunny. Some drops, not all his fault, against Japan, but did a lot of things right. Didn’t miss any penalties because USA never had any worth kicking.
Taku Ngwenya Sunny. Playing well.
Mike Palefau Rain. Ended up not joining team.
James Paterson Alternating clouds and sun. Didn’t make you sit up and say “oh, that guy is a Super 15 player.” But was effective and showed he can tackle without writhing around in pain.
Mike Petri Sunny. What impressed us, and, we hope, the coaches, was he started poorly against Japan, and then shook that off and regained his form.
Blaine Scully Sunny. Given the question-marks throughout the backline, Scully has been a steady influence and a big man in cover defense at fullback.
Robbie Shaw Cloudy and windy. Who knows? Hasn’t been given but one chance to play, and in that game did everything he was asked to do. Unless O’Sullivan decided to take three scrumhalves, he is on the outside looking in.
Junior Sifa Cloudy. Hasn’t played in some time.
Andrew Suniula Mostly sunny. Still has an opportunity to grab inside center position. Needs to avoid peaks-and-valleys type games.
Roland Suniula Warming trend. Could he be the starting flyhalf? It’s entirely possible. His ability to play many positions puts him on the plane to NZ.
Kevin Swiryn Warm front coming in. Great timing with a big game against Japan. Defense improved.
Zack Test Rain. Not taken to Japan.
Tim Usasz Mostly sunny. Still battling with Petri for starting spot. Should be on the plane.
Chris Wyles Sunny but with variable winds and outside chance of thunderstorm. If he’s healthy, he goes to New Zealand. If he’s really hurt, he doesn’t. If he’s sort of hurt, he likely is still on the squad. But Chris Wyles hasn’t played for the Ealges since November, and one wonders where he fits in. Right now, with Emerick’s outstanding performance at inside center, the #13 is there for the taking. But he has to be healthy.
So that gives me a squad of:
Biller, Clever, Danahy, Fry, N. Johnson, LaValla, MacDonald, Moeakiola, Pittman, Smith, Stanfill, Thiel and van der Giessen for sure, and Basauri, Gagiano and Chapman likely. Will Johnson an outside chance.
And in the backs:
Emerick, Malifa, Ngwenya, Paterson, Petri, Scully, A. Suniula, R. Suniula, Swiryn, Usasz and Wyles for sure, with Enosa, Hawley, Shaw, and Sifa battling it out for three spots.
|
|
|
|
|
Written by Alex Goff
Monday, 22 August 2011 00:34 |
|
|
|
|
|
Eagle Eye: Back to Basics - Please! |
|
Columns -
Eagle Eye
|
|
In 2004, the USA almost beat France, losing 39-31. Playing one of the best teams in the world, the USA scored five tries. After that game, wing David Fee told me way, way back then (has it really been seven years?) that the backs hardly ran a set play all day.
They had, by then, been under the tutelage of backs coach Brett Taylor for over a year, and were working together well. They had the basics of good backline play down and Taylor, whose first tenet of backline play was to get the ball out of the ruck in less than two seconds, wasn’t invested in making them run set plays.
He wanted them to run hard from depth, keep the ball moving, use their passing to keep the defense guessing, read the matchups, and play rugby.
A year before that game, I remember watching the USA in another match. This time, it was their forward running upfield; each player taking contact, staying on his feet, and allowing another to simply rip the ball away and run further. It was basic, animalistic rugby at its most simple. Rip and run. But it worked.
They forwards all ran hard into contact, and all had support runners right behind them.
 These were basic approaches to rugby. You run from depth not because you catch the ball back there and get a run at the defense, but because when you catch that pass sent flat from your teammate, you are running flat out and the defender has almost no time to react to you.
You come from depth because you can then adjust your run to ruck over, or cut inside for a switch pass.
If you are taking a one-off pass from the scrumhalf off the ruck, you should be moving forward, ideally at pace, when you catch it.
I am not seeing this USA team do much of that. I see players having to catch the ball flat-footed. I see no desire to use the most basic of moves (the loop, the switch), which have a time-honored ability to break defenses. The Eagles don’t do switches the way players all over the country practice them on the training ground. There’s no sleight of hand transfer of the ball in a blur of bodies. It’s a lazy pass to a guy coming from the other direction – easily spotted and easily stymied.
More often, the USA passes outward. If the first pass is to the left, the second pass (if there is one) will be also. No shift in direction of attack; no inside pass to a trailing forward; no reading of matchups.
The USA team of the past few months has been working from a playbook that doesn’t take the opposition into account, and doesn’t read what the opposition is giving them.
The coaching staff, I hope, has to know this. They have to know their attack is easily defended.
In the last nine internationals, the USA has scored 17 tries. Of those, eight came from broken play, counter, or turnover. Only about half have come from a concerted pattern of play.
I don’t think this is because the players aren’t following the plan, or working hard enough. In the last three test matches, the USA is 36 points for and 28 against in the first half, and 7-47 in the second. As easy as it might be to point to fitness for that dichotomy, I think it’s due to the predictability of the pattern. I think, if the USA attack returns to basic rugby tenets of coming from depth, passing more than once, and letting the players read what’s in front of them.
|
|
|
|
Written by A.W. Scott
Monday, 22 August 2011 16:13 |
|
|
|
|
|
World Cup: The Pretenders |
|
RUGBYmag Premier -
Columns and Opinions
|
|
Having talked about the favorites, columnist A.W. Scott discusses the pretenders for the Rugby World Cup in this installment.
|
|
|
|
