Will the Eagle Women Take Some Risks?
Will the Eagle Women Take Some Risks?
Will the Eagle women take a few risks against England Sunday? Quite possible.
“We’ve got that physicality, the directness of Hope Rogers or Rachel Johnson, and then we've got the mobility, and the ability to move the ball in our carries but also in our catch pass with players like Katy [Zackary] or Hallie [Taufoou],” said USA Head Coach Sione Fukofuka. “We are developing that more expansive game in the two locks [Taufoou and Erica Jarrell] and, what they give away in size they more than make up for in mobility and their ability to play in our system. So it's pretty exciting.”
This USA pack is essentially a pack with five loose-forward-type players. Fukofuka talks about Faufoou and Jarrell being 80-minute players with good engines.
“We will be able to provide ball for the backs to strike off, and I think just adding to it is just the dynamic aspect.”
Fukofuka said that the Eagles have not always been a traditional game, and his captain, Zackary, talks about that, too.
“All of our back five are very similar players; so they're dynamic, they're quick,” said the Eagle captain. “They play for long periods of time. So no one's like set into a little box of a position; rather everyone kind of fills different roles.”
Getting out of a box … that’s important. Playing a conservative, traditional game against England isn’t too smart.
“If we try and stay in a box and play traditional rugby, we're going to get found out,“ said Fukofuka. “So we really want to push ourselves to take some risks, and look for some opportunities.”
USA plays England Sunday, September 29 at 3:30PM ET on RugbyPass.
