Interim Head Coach Milton Haig announced today the 23 players who will kick off the USA Women’s Eagles first match against Samoa in the inaugural WXV 2 tournament in Cape Town. USA v Samoa kicks off Saturday, October 14, at 8 a.m. ET, live on RugbyPass.
Autumata Hingano will make her debut as a starting back, while Meya Bizer joins the finishers list after earning her 30th cap in the Wales match two weeks ago. Jenny Kronish, who was a late replacement in the WXV player pool for Evi Ashenbrucker, was also named to the bench.
This is the first time the Women’s Eagles have ever met Samoa in a test match. The Manusina head into WXV 2 following a warmup match against hosts South Africa, which ended in a draw. Having only played three other matches this year, the USA v Samoa game will be important playing time for the Manusina.
The Eagles have been training together for three weeks and head to South Africa just after a warm up fixture with Wales. Despite a loss, the one-off matchup and scrimmage against the Irish was precisely the foundation this team needed to set markers for a successful WXV campaign and building back the winning culture. This fist game against a growing Samoa side will be a quality test for the Eagles on their improvements and time together the last few weeks.
Interim Head Coach Milton Haig on roster selection and work ons ahead of Samoa:
“We are pretty pleased with how the players are performing. There is a good mix of experience and youthfulness in terms of players getting another chance to play for the USA Eagles. I’m excited to see Lotte back on the team and see what she can do, and I’m also excited to see Tahlia at the 7. It’s an important match for us as the first one of WXV 2. We’ve trained well and want to represent our country to the highest degree we can.
“Samoa are a big team, so we really want to move the ball and play some exciting rugby. That’s going to be one of our key fundamentals for winning this game, but we also know that with a team like Samoa who brings physicality and big ball carry, we have to defensively make sure we tackle low and get them on the ground as soon as possible while giving ourselves time to steal the ball or slow the game down.”
| Name | Club | Tournament Caps |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Catie Benson | Sale Sharks | 37 |
| 2. Kathryn Treder | Loughborough Lightning | 13 |
| 3. Charli Jacoby | Colorado Gray Wolves | 21 |
| 4. Hallie Taufoou | Beantown RFC | 11 |
| 5. Erica Jarrell | Beantown RFC | 2 |
| 6. Freda Tafuna | Lindenwood University | 3 |
| 7. Tahlia Brody | Leicester Tigers | 4 |
| 8. Rachel Johnson | Exeter Chiefs | 22 |
| 9. Carly Waters | Colorado Gray Wolves | 20 |
| 10. Gabby Cantorna | Exeter Chiefs | 21 |
| 11. Charlotte “Lotte” Clapp | Saracens | 10 |
| 12. Mata Hingano | USA Sevens | Debut |
| 13. Kate Zackary (C) | Ealing Trailfinders | 32 |
| 14. Tess Feury | Leicester Tigers | 19 |
| 15. Bulou Mataitoga | Berkeley All Blues | 11 |
| 16. Paige Stathopoulos | Beantown RFC | 1 |
| 17. Monalisa Tupou | Life West/EPA Razorbacks | 3 |
| 18. Keia Mae Sagapolu | Leicester Tigers | 3 |
| 19. Jenny Kronish | Beantown RFC | 9 |
| 20. Rachel Ehrecke | Colorado Gray Wolves | 7 |
| 21. Taina Tukuafu | Lindenwood University | 3 |
| 22. Meya Bizer | Ealing Trailfinders | 30 |
| 23. Emily Henrich | Beantown RFC | 10 |
Head Coach | Milton Haig
Assistant Coach | John Haggart
Assistant Coach | Melodie Bosman
Coach Intern | Karameli Faaee
Strength & Conditioning | Sylvia Braaten
Strength & Conditioning Assistant | Owethu Durban
Analyst | Caitlin Singletary
Doctor | Derek Hatfield
Lead Physio | Katherine Henry
Physio | McKenna Medders
Team Manager | Tiffany Lopez
Team Liason | Jongi Nokwe
All matches live on RugbyPass
Saturday, Oct. 14
v. Samoa | 8 a.m. ET
Friday, Oct. 20
v. Scotland | 8 a.m. ET
Saturday, Oct. 28
v. Italy | 11 a.m. ET
