The USA Women's Eagles are primed and ready for the must win match against Australia in their second pool fixture of Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025.
The team travelled to York this week where they will kick off on Saturday, August 30th at York Community Stadium at 2:30 PM ET (7:30 PM local time). The match will be available for USA fans to watch live on Paramount+.
Following a challenging opening match against host nation and No. 1 ranked England, the Women’s Eagles have a bullseye on Australia to secure their place in the quarterfinals. Currently ranked 9th, the USA Women will be looking to halt the 6th ranked Wallaroo’s momentum coming off a convincing victory against Samoa in their own first pool match.
The USA and Australia competed earlier this year during the Pacific Four Series in May from Canberra, where the Wallaroos won a close match off the back of a strong first half. With a significant amount of match play and camp assembly between the spring fixture and this Rugby World Cup, the Eagles look forward to reversing results against Australia on Saturday.
Head Coach Sione Fukofuka has made some adjustments to the starting squad for the weekend, Cass Bargell moves off the bench to starting scrumhalf while Cheta Emba and Erica Coulibaly step into the match day roster to make their Rugby World Cup 2025 debuts. In the pack, Hallie Taufoou will rejoin the starting lineup while Georgie Perris-Redding sits out following recovery protocols from last week’s injury. Emilie Henrich moves to Center and Gabby Cantorna adds power to the bench for the marquee pool match.
Fukofuka commented:
“The Australia game in the Pacific Four Series was one we didn’t perform to our potential, so we have targeted this game as an opportunity to not only advance to the quarterfinals, but also an opportunity to express ourselves and play to our capacity, and convert possession into points.
“The players have been dialed in since we started our preparation this week as we know we are in knockouts. The pressure we face this week is a privilege and we are fortunate to know that we hold our destiny in our own hands this week. We reviewed the English game in detail and identified the positives that we want to replicate and the areas that we felt we fell short of our own standards and let England put us under pressure.
“Playing in front of 42,000 people last week in Sunderland was a testament to the growth of the women's game and the platform that this Rugby World Cup affords the players as an opportunity to express themselves and showcase the skills and talent that this team has. The support from the fans was outstanding and the players fed off the energy and are excited to do this for the rest of the tournament.”
| Name | Club | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hope Rogers | Exeter Chiefs |
| 2 | Kathryn Treder | Loughborough Lightning / Bay Area Breakers |
| 3 | Keia Mae Sagapolu | Loughborough Lightning |
| 4 | Hallie Taufoou | Loughborough Lightning / Denver Onyx |
| 5 | Erica Jarrell - Searcy | Sale Sharks |
| 6 | Freda Tafuna | Lindenwood University |
| 7 | Kate Zackary (C) | Ealing Trailfinders |
| 8 | Rachel Johnson | Exeter Chiefs / Denver Onyx |
| 9 | Cassidy Bargell | Boston Banshees |
| 10 | McKenzie Hawkins | Denver Onyx |
| 11 | Erica Coulibaly | Denver Onyx |
| 12 | Emily Henrich | Leicester Tigers / Boston Banshees |
| 13 | Ilona Maher | Bristol Bears / USA Sevens |
| 14 | Cheta Emba | Boston Banshees |
| 15 | Lotte Sharp | Saracens |
| 16 | Paige Stathopoulos | Ealing Trailfinders / Boston Banshees |
| 17 | Alivia Leatherman | Trailfinders / Twin Cities Gemini |
| 18 | Charli Jacoby | Exeter Chiefs / Queensland Reds |
| 19 | Rachel Ehrecke | Denver Onyx |
| 20 | Tahlia Brody | Loughborough Lightning |
| 21 | Olivia Ortiz | Sale Sharks |
| 22 | Gabby Cantorna | Exeter Chiefs |
| 23 | Sariah Ibarra | USA Sevens |
Head Coach, Attack + Backs | Sione Fukofuka
Assistant Coach, Defense | Sarah Chobot
Assistant Coach, Forwards | Mel Bosman
Head of Athletic Performance | Charles Dudley
Intern S&C | Nina Forte
Analyst | Callum Howells
Lead Physiotherapist | Alice Mae
Athletic Trainer | Sam Malette
Team Doctor | Abbie Hamilton
Massage Therapist | Delwyn Griffith
Performance Psychologist | Scott Goldman
Team Manager | Alana Gattinger
General Manager, High Performance | Tamara Sheppard
Media Manager | Jenni Burke
USA v England 69-7 (L)
Stadium of Light, Sunderland
USA v Australia
August 30 | 2:30 pm ET | York Community Stadium, York
Paramount+
USA v Samoa
September 6 | 8:30 am ET | York Community Stadium, York
CBS, Paramount+
Quarterfinals Begin September 13
