The USA Women’s 7s team has some time off to recharge, but it’s back at work next week as Head Coach Julie McCoy looks to establish what ix of players she wants.

The Eagles are coming off a very disappointing 11th place in Dubai - not an auspicious start for McCoy, who took over for Ric Suggitt in the fall.

But McCoy, who coached the USA to a 3rd-place finish at the 2009 Rugby World Cup, isn’t bowed by the setback, even as she recognizes that Dubai wasn’t optimal.

“I know it’s disappointing for fans for us to finish 11th in Dubai,” McCoy told Goff Rugby Report. “But the performance changes we would need to make would still be the case had we won the close games that we lost. Had we come 6th, the performance problems would have been the same, so finishing 11th is a blessing in disguise because it kicks us in the ass.”

McCoy said part of the issue was that she is making changes, and that transition to a different style was difficult for some players, especially those who had really only known Ric Suggitt as their rugby coach.

“I am trying to transition from the old way they were playing to the new way we’re playing,” McCoy explained. “The way they were playing is different from how I would approach it - more individual, less connected. And under pressure I think the girls reverted to kind of a hybrid approach of what they were doing and what they were asked to do.”

Having said she is changing things, McCoy was quick to defend Suggitt, her predecessor.

“I have a lot of empathy for any coach whose contract was not continued or coaches who have moved on,” she said. “It’s not an easy job. You don’t have control for all the factors. I have a lot of empathy for anyone, including coach Suggitt, who has been here. It’s just a different style, a different coach. There are a lot of good coaches, Ric’s a good coach. I am just doing things differently.”

So what does McCoy want? She needs players to move the ball more, and work in support more. She wants them to engage contact a little less, and not just rely on getting the ball to the fast runner and letting her cruise in for a try.

Tactical and Execution Improvements

Coming out of Dubai, McCoy had several work-ons for the roster as a whole. Three near the top of the list were restarts, support running, and tackling.

“We’re looking at some players such as Cheta Emba to be able to get the ball in the air. It wasn’t an area where we were robust in. We were adequate, but I want to emphasize that part of the game. When we’ve got some of the best kickers on the circuit, you want to use that. You’d expect that skill set to be something American players would have. We want to be stupendous at it. The only way to do it is to work on it and to find those people with the nose for the ball in the air - our Zack Test.”

In support running, that’s all about thinking that the attacking movement will need your help - the old 7s adage of following your pass.

“They weren’t used to playing in space as much; they were used to shedding tacklers and using their speed,” said McCoy. “The pendulum is swinging towards working together to find the person open in space than it is I’m going to throw it to you and I hope you shag the tackler. And that approach worked - it works for 5th [in the 2014-15 Series]. But now I am asking them to support the ball more.”

And in tackling, McCoy said the tackling wasn’t good, but it was also a case of not being in the right position to make that tackle. 

“Some of our tackling issues is our alignment and our ability to close down the space,” explained McCoy. “Part of it is organizing the defense to know when you’re tackling and who you’re tackling, and who you’re not tackling. So adding a defensive structure is probably the biggest thing that I bring to this team. Our tackle rates are improving.”

Statistical analysis on the intrasquad scrimmages has shown an improvement in tackle rates, said McCoy.

“We’re hoping that change will be obvious when we get to Brazil.”

Now What?

The Eagles will assemble next week and Japan will be in town to scrimmage. Those scrimmages against actual opposition helps, and in fact in the previous assembly, the USA scrimmaged Canada.

Of interest there was the fact that the Americans beat the Canadians in one of those games. 

“You think about that; going from losing 55-7 in the final of the Pan-Am Games, to losing 35-5 in Dubai, to beating them in a scrimmage at the OTC. That’s some improvement,” said McCoy.

It’s not everything, of course, but it could be a sign. McCoy is expected to make some shifts in the lineup for the next leg in Brazil. And with the work they’ve already done, and those changes, she might be looking at the three games they lost in Dubai by a try or less, and figure they can change that around.