GRR: National Teams
The USA Men's National 15s team will face Harlequins Sunday at 3pm ET at PPL Park in Chester, Pa., and Head Coach Mike Tolkin will field an extended bench, with Blaine Scully getting a start at fullback and captain the team.
As expected, Tolkin is resting some players, including Scott LaValla, Hayden Smith, and regular captain Chris Wyles.
This summer allowed the American public a decent look at the current and up-and-coming stars, and that player-centric search tends to monopolize attention. But there is an equally exciting cast of coaches wending through the system. In particular, there’s a trend among former Women's Rugby World Cup (WRWC) players who are returning to the national ranks, only with whistle in hand.
The Eagles are now in the Philadelphia area set to face off with the famed Harlequins Football Club of London, and things will be a bit different from this past weekend’s game against Canada.
The Women's Collegiate All American (WCAA) 7s has assembled a 12-player team bursting with experience. With one exception, the first-ever WCAA 7s players are known entities, and it'll be interesting to see how they gel together during this weekend's Elite City 7s in Malvern, Pa.
Kyla Chipman was one of 12 Women’s Junior All Americans (WJAAs) who competed at the previous two Can-Am games. The Penn State junior, however, captained the team both years (vice captain in 2014) and has a rounder take on the most recent assembly and the successes achieved therein.