USA Rugby Release- Photo: Mike Lee/ KLC Fotos
The HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series returns next weekend in Toulouse, France where fourteen players have been named by Head Coach Mike Friday to the USA Men’s Sevens traveling squad. This week sees the healthy return of a few key players with Australia, New Zealand and Scotland slated to compete with the United States in Pool C. Match times have yet to be confirmed by World Rugby, however all games and the entirety of France and London Sevens will be streamed live on NBC’s Peacock.
Roster Highlights
- Men’s Sevens see healthy returns for Stephen Tomasin, David Still and two-time World Rugby Men’s Sevens Player of the Year Award winner, Perry Baker.
- Baker had an early exit from Vancouver following an on-field collision but was cleared post-tournament and ready to return in France.
- USA Club 7s and RugbyTown 7s standout, Jerome Nale will make his third appearance on the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series after debuting in Vancouver in September 2021.
- Leading the USA in tries from Vancouver, young guns Lucas Lacamp, Malachi Esdale and Ben Broselle look to carry offensive momentum into France.
Last Tournaments | Singapore and Vancouver
Following some schedule restructuring by World Rugby, the HSBC World Rugby Seven Series crossed the globe from Singapore to Vancouver in mid-April where the USA Men’s Sevens finished sixth and thirteenth respectively. Stung by a string of injuries, a relatively inexperienced squad ran out against heavy opponents as 7 of their 12 matches were against fellow top 10 teams. The USA showed flashes of light in those fixtures, including a 3-0 pool play result in Singapore with a notable win over series leading South Africa. To date, Vancouver remains the only tour stop where the USA haven’t taken home 10+ series points as they look to get back on track and make another appearance in the cup qualifiers. Despite the unexpected results last month, the USA were able to hold on to their 4th place position in the overall standings with three remaining tour stops.
Toulouse Matchups
Pool play in France includes matches against New Zealand, Australia and Scotland. The USA will look for a little redemption against Scotland having surrendered the 9th place quarterfinal to them a few weeks ago in Vancouver. The Men’s Sevens have yet to face New Zealand this year with the All Blacks Sevens only joining the 2022 series in Singapore, so that matchup will provide a good marker for the replenished USA side against a quality team. Australia leads the pool in series points to date and will top off yet another exciting day one for the United States as they target advancement to the cup quarterfinals. With France being a Men’s and Women’s tournament bracket, pool play and the knockout stages will take place over three days.
Head Coach Mike Friday’s comments ahead of France:
“We have a very challenging group as a result of our underperformance in Vancouver, and we are keen to right that wrong having made too many mistakes at important times. We are under no illusion on how tough a challenge this pool is with a very dangerous Australian team, physical and talented New Zealand team and a gritty Scotland side who caused problems we didn’t manage well in Vancouver.
“Nonetheless, we welcome back some experience in Stevie and Perry to complement and strengthen this young evolving squad, who will have learned the ruthless lessons this game provides.
“We are confident that if we can work hard for each other and be accurate in our attacking game with enough speed, agility and physicality – we can compete with any team as we have proven on the circuit this season. The real challenge is to do that from minute one of game one, and execute with consistency across the weekend.”
USA MEN’S SEVENS TRAVELING ROSTER | FRANCE AND LONDON SEVENS
1. D’Montae NobleUtility2
2. Ben BroselleForward/Wing9 3
David StillForward5
4 Maceo BrownUtility18
5 Joe SchroederForward20
6 Kevon Williams (C)Halfback/Wing35
7 Folau NiuaHalfback73
8 Malacchi EsdaleCenter/Wing4
9 Stephen TomasinUtility41
10 Faitala TalapusiHalfback7
11 Perry BakerWing/Center54
12 Lucas Lacamp10/Center/Wing4
13 Adam ChannelCenter/Forward3
14. Jerome NaleHalfback2
USA Men’s Sevens France Sevens Schedule | Pool C
vs Australia | FRI 7:06AM ET
vs New Zealand | FRI 1:24PM ET
vs Scotland | SAT 7:06PM ET
USA Men’s Sevens Traveling Staff
Head Coach | Mike Friday
Performance Analyst | Dave Gardner
Strength & Conditioning | Josh Schnell
Athletic Trainer | Bobby Gragston
Team Manager | Scott Novack
