Head coach Gary Gold has made four changes to the starting XV with three new reserves as the USA Men’s XVs National Team faces Ireland at Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Saturday, KO 2:15 PM ET, on florugby.com.
Bryce Campbell will be the captain and the team enters the match against Ireland after an impressive performance against England on July 4 at Twickenham. The USA was rusty in the first half but came back in the second half outscoring England 26-17 for a final score of 43-29.
Roster Changes
- Joe Taufete’e starts at hooker (previously on the bench vs England)
- Hanco Germishuys starts at flanker (previously on the bench vs England)
- Marcel Brache is out due to HIA, Mike Te’o jumps in at fullback
- Christian Dyer starts at wing after scoring a try in his national team debut last week (previously on the bench vs England)
- Kapeli Pifeleti (hooker), Andrew Guerra (flanker), and Will Magie (fullback) added to the bench
Head Coach Gary Gold said: “I’m proud of the guys for the fight they showed against England last week but obviously we have a new and difficult task ahead with Ireland. While we did some very good things last week, it’s important that we improve on those and eradicate the silly errors that allowed us to give away soft tries. We need to keep building on our basics and enjoy the opportunity to learn from teams who play in this environment regularly.
“Luke and Christian did themselves proud last week, as did the rest of the boys. It was a great occasion for them and they showed the carefree exuberance of youth. We hope to see them build on that energy this weekend with a focus on improving.”
The USA Men and Ireland last met in 2018 when the Irish were ranked No. 2 in the world. While the Eagles fell 14-55, it was their first test match loss all year. They face an Irish team ranked fourth in the world, having defeated Japan in a close 39-31 last week at home. The USA is ranked at No. 16.
reland Head Coach Andy Farrell has included 𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗱 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀 in his Ireland Match Day Squad against the United States. There are four new caps in the starting XV and a further four uncapped players in the replacements.
James Ryan is the captain and with the uncapped Nick Timoney at openside flanker. In the front row, Tom O’Toole is set to make his international debut. Craig Casey will debut at scrumhalf and James Hume at the outside center.
The replacements include Dave Heffernan, Ed Byrne, Finlay Bealham, Will Addison, and the uncapped quartet Fineen Wycherley, Paul Boyle, Caolin Blade, and Harry Byrne.
USA Men’s XVs National Team Roster
| PLAYER NAME | POSITION | CLUB | CAPS |
| 1. David Ainu’u | Prop | Toulouse (FRA) | 10 |
| 2. Joe Taufete’e | Hooker | Lyon (FRA) | 28 |
| 3. Paul Mullen | Prop | Utah Warriors | 19 |
| 4. Gregory Peterson | Lock | Newcastle Falcons (ENG) | 31 |
| 5. Nick Civetta | Lock | Rugby United New York | 27 |
| 6. Hanco Germishuys | Flanker | Rugby United New York | 22 |
| 7. Riekert Hattingh | Flanker | Seattle Seawolves | 1 |
| 8. Cam Dolan | No. 8 | NOLA Gold | 52 |
| 9. Ruben de Haas | Scrumhalf | Austin Gilgronis | 18 |
| 10. Luke Carty | Flyhalf | LA Giltinis | 1 |
| 11. Mika Kruse | Wing | Utah Warriors | 1 |
| 12. Bryce Campbell (C) | Center | Austin Gilgronis | 33 |
| 13. Calvin Whiting | Center | Utah Warriors | 2 |
| 14. Christian Dyer | Wing | USA Sevens | 1 |
| 15. Mike Te’o | Fullback | Utah Warriors | 29 |
| 16. Kapeli Pifeleti | Reserve | Saracens (ENG) | 3 |
| 17. Matt Harmon | Reserve | NOLA Gold | 1 |
| 18. Dino Waldren | Reserve | NOLA Gold | 20 |
| 19. Nate Brakeley | Reserve | Rugby United New York | 24 |
| 20. Psalm Wooching | Reserve | San Diego Legion | 5 |
| 21. Andrew Guerra | Reserve | NOLA Gold | uncapped |
| 22. Michael Baska | Reserve | Utah Warriors | 1 |
| 23. Will Magie | Reserve | Austin Gilgronis | 26 |
USA Men’s XVs National Team Staff
Head Coach | Gary Gold
Asst Coach | Rob Hoadley
Coach Consultant | Neal Hatley
Coach Consultant | Chris Wyles
Head of Strength & Conditioning | Huw Bevan
Performance Analyst | Jimmy Harrison
Team Doctor | Marc Kowalsky
Head Physiotherapist | Kristen Douhan
Athletic Trainer | Ron Klingensmith
Team Manager | Oscar Alvarez
Asst Manager | Will Bevan
USA vs England | 43-29 (L)
July 4, 2021
Twickenham Stadium, England
USA vs Ireland
July 10, 2021
Aviva Stadium, Ireland
KO 2 PM ET
Streamed LIVE on florugby.com in the USA
Ireland Squad
- 1. Dave Kilcoyne (UL Bohemians/Munster) 44 caps
- 2. Ronan Kelleher (Lansdowne/Leinster) 12 caps
- 3. Tom O’Toole (Ballynahinch/Ulster) uncapped
- 4. Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster) 4 caps
- 5. James Ryan (UCD/Leinster) 36 caps captain
- 6. Caelan Doris (St Mary’s College/Leinster) 8 caps
- 7. Nick Timoney (Banbridge/Ulster) uncapped
- 8. Gavin Coombes (Young Munster/Munster) 1 cap
- 9. Craig Casey (Shannon/Munster) 2 caps
- 10. Joey Carbery (Clontarf/Munster) 23 caps
- 11. Andrew Conway (Garryowen/Munster) 24 caps
- 12. Stuart McCloskey (Bangor/Ulster) 5 caps
- 13. James Hume (Banbridge/Ulster) uncapped
- 14. Robert Baloucoune (Enniskillen/Ulster) uncapped
- 15. Hugo Keenan (UCD/Leinster) 12 caps
- 16. Dave Heffernan (Buccaneers/Connacht) 5 caps
- 17. Ed Byrne (UCD/Leinster) 5 caps
- 18. Finlay Bealham (Buccaneers/Connacht) 15 caps
- 19. Fineen Wycherley (Young Munster/Munster) uncapped
- 20. Paul Boyle (Buccaneers/Connacht) uncapped
- 21. Caolin Blade (Galwegians/Connacht) uncapped
- 22. Harry Byrne (Lansdowne/Leinster) uncapped
- 23. Will Addison (Enniskillen/Ulster) 4 caps
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