COIMBRA, Portugal – The USA Men’s Eagles return to the international pitch this Saturday, opening their three-match November tour against Portugal in Coimbra, a small city just north of Lisbon.
Veteran names return to the squad, including flyhalf AJ MacGinty, while three selected players will look ahead to their USA Eagles debuts. USA vs Portugal kicks off on Saturday, November 9 at 11:00am ET, live on FloRugby.
Three Major League Rugby rising stars earn their first international roster selection, in Shilo Klein (San Diego Legion), Tomas Casares (Miami Sharks), and 2024 first overall draft pick Erich Storti (Anthem Rugby Carolina) looking to secure USA Eagle numbers. Klein will start at hooker, while Casares and Storti are named to the reserves. Casares was a late addition to the traveling roster in place of Jamason Fa’anana-Schultz. Michael Grandy of Anthem was also called into camp; he replaces Thomas Tu’avao.
This is the third time in as many years that the USA has faced Portugal, the last two editions resulting in a tie and loss for the Eagles. Of the 23 rostered last summer, 10 will be on the foeldthis Saturday in the rematch, with the same balance expected from Portugal.
Head Coach and General Manager Scott Lawrence said on the opening match, “Our goal this tour remains the same from the Pacific Nations Cup, to compete and get better each week. This Saturday is our first opportunity to do that. What we’ll take into consideration is who we’re playing and what they’re going to bring, but as always focus on our own performance objectives. Portugal is coming off an extensive Rugby World Cup campaign, so we’ll face a cohesive team that will be a good test of our focus as a young team, looking to stay switched on for all 80 minutes.”
