USA Men's 15s Head Coach Gary Gold will be taking a team to South Africa to play Currie Cup teams in part of a split-squad buildup to the Rugby World Cup Final Qualifier Series.
While the USA Selects will be in Uruguay to play Uruguay XV and Argentina XV this month, the USA Falcons will play in South Africa.
“It is an amazing opportunity to bring our side out and compete in the inaugural Toyota Challenge," said Gold. "This is a wonderful opportunity to bring together players who have competed in the MLR the first half of the year, and offers them the opportunity to play against some of the best provincial teams in South Africa. This experience will be unique to quite a few of the players who have not spent much time playing rugby outside of the United States, and an important set of fixtures for our qualifier preparations.”
This tour follows a player pool camp in Glendale, Colo. last month for a multi-week training assembly to align on fitness and conditioning goals. The 30 players going to South Africa are coming out of that pool, while Alex Cullen Maughan and Ethan McVeigh will join the Selects in Uruguay October 13-18.
“Our first job is to win in November, so it’s all about preparation and time together at this point," said Gold. "One of the biggest takeaways from our previous qualifier series is the importance of proper preparation and assembly before going into these high-pressure situations. We want to give our guys the absolute best opportunity to succeed and that comes through time together, both in training and in competition.”
Following the matches in South Africa, Gold will name his group for Dubai and the players will go to the United Arab Emirates directly from South Africa and Uruguay, with the European-based Eagles joining too. The USA Falcons roster includes a number of established Eagles, plus several players working their way up the ladder.
