United States squad: Winger who shut down Van der Merwe, the face of MLR, new 'quarterback'

With the approaching Pacific Nations Cup, Scott Lawrence has named his roster for the campaign, reflecting a further evolution of his player pool, and therefore some insight into his ideal mix. The group includes six uncapped players, with an eye toward rebuilding some thin and aging positions in the USA pool, including second row, flyhalf, and fullback. Currently assembled in a development and selection camp in Chula Vista, new and old faces alike will have no shortage of opportunities to make their case to Lawrence and his staff.

When any new head coach takes over the reins, he has to strike a balance between immediate results and (re)building the team and development process in his vision– this often manifests in starting with the inherited “old guard” first-choice players of his predecessor before systematically mixing in “his guys.”

Famously process-minded Lawrence certainly leaned toward developing and testing new faces on his first tour(s), capping fourteen new Eagles in the fall, including eight in his first match versus Romania.

Interestingly, whether by selection, injury, or availability, a full eight of those fourteen are not on the traveling roster for the PNC, forcing Lawrence to further expand his search for talent.

As we look at the camp roster by position, we can get some insight into Lawrence’s priorities:

Prop - Jack Iscaro, Jake Turnbull, Pono Davis, Alex Maughan, Paul Mullen

In the absence of David Ainu’u, we see the first choice pairing of Jack Iscaro and Paul Mullen return, a duo that managed to win a penalty against a strong Scotland scrum in their last outing.

The exciting new face here is Pono Davis, a football crossover, who has impressed with the Houston Sabrecats. In a similar mold to Kaleb Geiger, Davis’ selection speaks to Lawrence’s appetite for investing in freak athletes with high ceilings for development.

With tighthead regarded as one of the most difficult positions in rugby, it’s encouraging that good old fashioned American muscle paired with dogged work ethic and intentional coaching can build international caliber players.

Hooker - Kapeli Pifeleti, Sean McNulty, Cyrille Cama

With the notable absence of Dylan Fawsitt, Kapeli Pifeleti is the only international hooker in the pool, though he brings a wealth of experience from his career in Europe.

He is the clear starter here, with McNulty and Cama looking to earn their first caps off the bench.

Despite the modern emphasis on mobile, attacking hookers, set piece perfection– both lineout throws and scrumming– is table stakes at the international level. Expect the choice between the two to come down to how they perform in these areas in camp.

Locks - Greg Peterson, Jason Damm, William Waguespack

Captain Greg Peterson gets some new blood to potentially pair with in William Waguespack, alongside Jason Damm who appears to have switched to second row permanently for USA.

Second row has long been a bastion of the old guard, with Peterson, Brakeley, and Dolan rotating (not to mention Civetta and Landry before them), so it’s encouraging to see an injection of youth.

As Vili Helu also covered the position during the summer Tests, we’ll see whether Lawrence opts to blood the new talent or stay with a known quantity, even if it’s not his preferred position.

Back Row - Vili Helu, Cory Daniel, Paddy Ryan, Moni Tonga'uiha, Jamason Fa'anana-Schultz, Thomas Tu'avao

Back row is USAs deepest position, and this camp boasts some formidable combinations, even with the absence of Sam Golla and Ben Bonasso.

Tonga'uiha and Daniel are tackling machines, Helu and Ryan are savvy ball players, and Fa'anana-Schultz and Tu'avao are destructive ball carriers. All of them match the prototypical player Lawrence is looking for– endless motor and insatiable physicality.

Selection for the back row will likely hinge on performance in the Chula Vista camp, where there will be no shortage of competition in those categories.

Scrum Half - JP Smith, Ruben de Haas, Ethan McVeigh

Familiar face Ruben de Haas returns to the fold after recovering from injury, which sets up an interesting competition between him and newcomer JP Smith.

Coming off another great season marshaling the Seawolves to another MLR Championship match, JP Smith clearly earned his first-choice status in the summer Tests. Like Smith, however, de Haas attacks dynamically around the ruck and presents further threats beyond simply producing quick ball.

Again, I would expect Lawrence to lean heavily on in-camp performance to select the starter for Canada. Including Ethan McVeigh again signals that the one-cap Eagle did enough in the summer to earn another nod over the other talented 9s on the non-traveling roster. 

Flyhalf - Luke Carty, Rand Santos

A collective “finally!” could be heard across the USA rugby fandom with some fresh blood announced at flyhalf. Although the position still belongs to AJ MacGinty until further notice, having only Luke Carty in the stable put USA an injury away from a crisis.

Fresh off a finalist performance with the USA in the World U20 Trophy competition, Rand Santos is the first USA college-developed flyhalf prospect in quite a while. While the step to international rugby is a large one, his U20 performance shows he is on the track to develop into something special.

I would expect little-to-no playing time this tour in favor of getting his feet under him, but Lawrence will be thrilled to have such a young prospect at the "quarterback" position.

Midfielders - Bryce Campbell, Tavite Lopeti, Dom Besag, Tommaso Boni

A year ago, Tommaso Boni was an Italian rugby player unknown to Americans. Today, he is a stalwart of the USA midfield and a favorite face in the MLR.

His introduction, plus the arrival of Dom Besag, have reinvigorated USA’s midfield ranks. Similar to the back row, Lawrence has plenty of styles to play with here– Campbell and Boni are crashing runners and sturdy defenders, Lopeti brings a deceptive step and rapid acceleration, and Besag is a slashing runner with great top end speed.

I would expect Lawrence to select horses for courses here, pairing the play style to the week’s competition.

Back Three - Nate Augspurger, Conner Mooneyham, Mitch Wilson, Toby Fricker, Chris Mattina

Upon finally getting his shot in the USA jersey, Mooneyham did not disappoint versus Scotland, effectively shutting down Duhan van der Merwe in what was expected to be a marquee day for the Scottish star.

His instinctual defense stymied attacks before they could develop, and his dogged kick-chase displayed just the style Lawrence is looking for in his wings. Expect him to be paired with Augspurger, whose dynamism balances Mooneyham well.

Fullback is another position that has been long filled by committee, with Hooley, Brache, and Te’o variously owning the jersey for stints.

Mattina performed well in Spain in the fall, but through injury and selection hasn’t developed the MLR body of work to cement the position as his. Lawrence brings a new face in Welshman Toby Fricker, who typically featured at wing for the FreeJacks. Between the two of them, hopefully we’ll see some consistency at the position– one of the standout differences between Tier 1 and Tier 2 teams is an unflappable kicking game with sure hands under the high ball.

The Bottom Line

The bottom line with Scott Lawrence, as with any international coach, is whether the player fits into his game plan and ethos.

Lawrence has signaled the way he wants to play, a style featuring precision set piece followed by dogged pursuit around the park. Similar to John Mitchell when he led from 2016-17, Lawrence leans into the unique characteristics of the American athlete– motor, physicality, and endless appetite for work, intending to make up for any gap in rugby IQ or innate savvy by beating the opposition into the ground.

With the ten day Chula Vista camp ahead of the first test week against Canada, expect a more well aligned Eagles squad to take the pitch in Los Angeles.