Among the things we asked USA 15s Head Coach Mike Tolkin in our recent interview with him was whether he wanted to stay on as coach.

Tolkin said he definitely did, but knew that decision was in the hands of the Board. There’s still work to do, said Tolkin, and added that the team itself is going to undergo plenty of change.

And that’s what any coach of a team right after the World Cup will face. For older amateur players, balancing work, home life, and playing is hard enough in a regular year; in a World Cup year it becomes an even bigger stressor. 

For younger players who are still starting out, the lure of another World Cup, or a chance to start, keeps them going. For veteran players who may not make the next World Cup, this might be time to step back. Some players retire completely from rugby, while others still play, but decide that the work required to be an international just isn’t for them.

We at Goff Rugby Report haven’t surveyed the USA players, but it’s obvious that some won’t be back. - as much as a third of the World Cup squad. This is normal, but that doesn’t make filling in the gaps any easier.

How the Eagles fill in the gaps will be the issue. Here’s how they shouldn’t do it:

1. Rely on the 7s team. This is an Olympic year. Let the USA 7s team put everything they have into that effort. The players who crossed over from the 7s team to the 15s team in the RWC, especially Andrew Durutalo and Zack Test, showed very well, but 2016 is about Rio.

2. Get the next guy down the list. The next best available player is not necessarily an international-level player. Just because he’s the best guy around doesn’t make him good enough. So instead the USA Rugby performance brain trust needs to identify the next guy, and the next guy, and the next guy, and balance out current rugby performance with age and athleticism. If we’re short hookers (and we are), then let’s start work on not only finding guys who have the potential to be great, but helping make them great.

3. Find some US-eligible players overseas. Now this can work, if the player is young enough, mutated enough, and good enough, but too often coaches throughout the Eagles’ history have latched onto the drawbacks of a domestic player and glossed over similar deficiencies in an overseas player. We’re not saying put up a wall - just be careful. Maybe the answer is a 21-year-old American kid you can work with, not a 28-year-old guy from overseas who wants to leverage a cap into a better pro contract.

4. Beg someone to hang on. If you’ve got a 32-year-old player who might or might not retire now, asking him to hang on for a couple more years only delays the inevitable of finding a replacement. At 34 he’s not going to make the World Cup team (I hope not anyway) unless he’s a superstar. 

5. Think Todd Clever will fix it all. It’s been a nasty and tumultuous time on Planet Clever, but whether you think he’s right and hard-done-by and the greatest Eagle, or you think he’s wrong and deserved being dropped and was overrated, his presence on the USA team won’t make up for the lack of depth at scrumhalf or hooker; won’t solve the upcoming lock problem; and won’t solve the problems of amateur players.

6. Think that a high-profile coach from some other country will change it all around. This isn’t a statement that Tolkin should be retained - that’s for the Board and Tolkin and Nigel Melville to decide. We do think Tolkin has many fine qualities, and we’d also like to see some tactical changes. But … all of the issues listed above, as well as the issues regarding the level of competition in the USA, won’t be affected by the arrival of a big-name coach. it’s not like the Eagles just need a couple of extra drills on the practice field and the light will go on. 

So, what should we do?

We at Goff Rugby Report World Headquarters are in favor of going young. With the new Americas-based Six Nations, the Eagles program has a perfect chance to put players on the field in an international setting. They have a chance to emulate Mike Friday in that they can keep bringing in new faces to camp to say “we see you, and we like you, now show me you’re better than the guy I picked last time.” Sometimes those players do show it; sometimes they don’t, but learn what’s required.

Let’s keep in contact with those young players not in college. Let’s us the Eagle camp setting to build relationships, and experience. And let’s start worrying about depth for the 2019 World Cup right now.