In recent weeks USA 7s team Head Coach Mike Friday said two things that stuck with me.

One was that the USA team had in recent years just been “participating” in the Sevens World Series. The other was in an interview with The Rugby Paper about the Olympics. He wasn’t talking about the USA specifically - he was more talking about the Great Britain team - but the comments are telling:

“I’d say that if you put the best Sevens specialists from England, Scotland and Wales, and put them against a team of international fifteens stars with Sevens experience after a ten-week conversion course, then my money would be on the international stars nine times out of ten.”

And, he adds … “I’d put in a couple of Sevens play-makers who could make them tick, like Tom Mitchell (England) or Colin McGregor (Scotland) do now, and Simon Amor used to for England, but that would do.”

So what tat tells me first of all is, what the USA has been doing in recent years - surviving - is not good enough. Even if you add in the fact that they made the Cup Quarterfinals or better seven times in the last two years, Friday expects more, and he has used fairly direct language to communicate that.

And he also thinks that there are better players out there. You can actually see Friday put the sell job on Todd Clever or Blaine Scully or Chris Wyles to come back to 7s.

I say all this because, while the USA effort at the Gold Coast 7s was pleasing - 9th, the Bowl win, beating Canada, and going 4-2 - I also get the feeling that it’s not good enough for the coach. I get the feeling that they might celebrate a little, enjoy the long flight home, and then get right back to work once more.

If you want to qualify for the Olympics, 9th isn’t good enough. Fumbling away games to England and Argentina isn’t good enough.

It’s better than the way the USA usually starts a season - they haven’t finished 9th or better in the opener since Dubai in 2010 - but there are things still to pick apart.

Friday’s key issue will likely be ball security. Especially against Argentina, which was a game begging to be won, they were bad with the ball. They forced passes when in contact. They dropped balls for no reason. They, frankly, kind of panicked.

His second issue - penalties. The Eagles defended quite well at times, especially when they were patient, looking for the right poaching moment and not forcing the issue. Their tackling was solid. But when they tried to rush the turnover, they usually gave up a penalty (not releasing the tackled player, playing the ball on the ground) and that hurt them.

And there’s more to do tactically. Every halftime talk from Friday was about tactics - when they could exploit a team on the outside; when they could exploit them on the inside, how the referee was handling the tackle. Friday clearly wants his players to figure that out before halftime shows up, but at least they are listening.

Perhaps that’s the best news from the weekend - that players began to understand their roles. Of these, the biggest step forward was taken by Garrett Bender. The former St. Cloud State forward was guilty of some of those turnovers on Day One, but was much better on Day Two. He realized that his role was to engage defenders, but also make sure the ball was secure and presented when he did so. Repeatedly Bender sucked in tacklers only to create space for Perry Baker, Zack Test, and Madison Hughes. And the scores on Sunday - 90-20 - reflected that.

As for Baker, well he may have come out of nowhere to those overseas - we’ve known about him for a while. I wrote about him nine years ago http://www.erugbynews.com/goffonrugby/archive/member/2005/7srankings0628.... He was playing for Daytona in the Club 7s Nationals in 2006. The reason he played well in Gold Coast is that he has been playing rugby for a while, sometimes as a back, sometimes as a forward. He knows what a ruck is, he knows how to pull out and look for support, he knows the game.

That’s not to denigrate Carlin Isles - he’s great, and his physicality and desire to play more than just try-scorer is evident. I wanted him to start lat year and I like him as a starter now … but you can’t argue with the results, and Baker’s six tries is why he’s starting.

And if we look back on Friday’s comments and how I think he feels about consolation trophies, I would also say that no one on the USA team is safe. Some are safer than others, though.

Baker and Isles look like they will be back. Hughes played well and Friday was complimentary of his team’s resiliency in bouncing back on Sunday to win three games in a row. Hughes, the captain, has to have a hand in that.

Zack Test was better than he was last year. He looks fitter and stronger, and that’s one reason why he was among the leaders in tries scored this past weekend. The thing about Test is, he can play all over the field, and thus is a plus player in a ruck, in a tackle, or with the ball in his hand.

Danny Barrett had some very good moments, but I just wonder whether he will be around for the full season. He certainly would like a pro contract overseas, and that would likely mean he’s out of 7s team contention for a while. The good news - Andrew Durutalo had a very strong tournament, producing the kind of line-breaking runs he needs to produce. And as we said, Bender became a big factor by the end of the weekend.

Folau Niua did nothing to hurt his chances of re-selection.

So that’s eight players who I expect to see in Dubai. The rest? Well, we’ll see. Judging by minutes played on Day Two, some players will have to work very had in camp.

Nick Edwards was a starter on Day One when Danny Barrett was out for foul pay, but logged about a half of rugby on Day Two. Maka Unufe started the first game of the weekend, and saw his minutes dwindle considerably over the two days. Pat Blair and Peter Tiberio didn’t see a lot of time, although Blair seemed to get stuck in when he was on the field.
The question is, are there players ready to overtake these guys, or are there players in camp ready to push these guys? I think there are, and you can bet Mike Friday and Chris Brown will be looking for them.

Winning the Bowl is better than capitulating on a Sunday because things didn’t go your way on Saturday. But winning the Bowl doesn’t get you to Rio. I think, judging by their muted celebration when they got their trophy, the USA players know this.