With the pressure of qualifying for the Olympics out of the way, USA Rugby’s attention turns towards the Eagles preparation for the upcoming Rugby World Cup. The squad has a full slate of matches scheduled this Summer to prepare the side as they head to England as the underdog looking for an upset. The Eagles are slotted into Pool B alongside South Africa, Samoa, Scotland, and Japan.

With a jam-packed Summer ahead of them, Eagles’ Head Coach Mike Tolkin has named his Rugby World Cup training squad. The 50-man squad is a mix of experience, potential, and youth. Of the players in the training squad, 20 are playing their trade professionally overseas and five are in the Residency program with the USA Sevens team. The remaining players are based with domestic clubs. The Seattle Saracens commit the most to the roster as nine of their players have been named to the squad.

Fresh off of Olympic qualification, forwards Danny Barrett and Andrew Durutalo join the roster along with backs Zach Test, Brett Thompson, and Folau Niua. Notably absent from the roster is Madison Hughes who many have pegged for a shot at an Eagles 15s cap to go along with his World-Class sevens play.

Back in the mix is Taku Ngwenya who saw action last Fall with the Eagles and still has some striking power. He’ll face stiff competition for a roster spot with a solid group of wings. Inaki Basauri also returns to the fold after being absent from the roster for most of the past two years. He’ll also be in for a battle as the Eagles are extremely deep in the 2nd and 3rd rows.

“In the last World Cup cycle, we didn’t have nearly the same level of depth as we do this go-round,” Tolkin said in a release from USA Rugby. “It gives you a little bit of relief to think that, if someone were to go down or wasn’t playing well, there are some quality choices that you can make experience-wise.”

The Eagles are most notably loaded in their back-row forwards as they have star-power in Samu Manoa, Scott LaValla, Danny Barrett, Cam Dolan, and the aging Captain Todd Clever. The depth of the Eagles’ back row allows Head Coach Mike Tolkin to employ Manoa and LaValla in the 2nd row as well providing a capable and mobile forward pack. The battle for roster spots in the Eagles’ back row should be one of the most interesting competitions this Summer.

The Eagles’ training camp begins on the West Coast on July 11th as the team prepares for the Pacific Nations Cup. The Eagles face off against two of their World Cup opponents as they take on Samoa on July 18th at the new Avaya Stadium in San Jose, CA and then battle Japan on July 24th at Bonney Field in Sacramento.

After the first two rounds of the PNC, the games shift to Canada as the Eagles play Tonga on July 29th at BMO Field in Toronto. The PNC Finals take place on August 3rd at Swangard Stadium in Burnaby, Canada.

The USA finishes off their pre-RWC preparations in August with a match against English Premiership side Harlequins before taking on Australia at Soldier Field in Chicago in their final World Cup warm up match.

Men’s Eagles | Rugby World Cup 2015 Training Squad

Danny Barrett – Men’s Eagles Sevens

Inaki Basauri – Tarbes (France)

Chris Baumann – Santa Monica RFC

Todd Clever – OMBAC

Tom Coolican – Sydney Stars (Australia)

John Cullen – Seattle Saracens RFC

Cameron Dolan – Cardiff RFC (Wales)

Andrew Durutalo – Men’s Eagles Sevens

Zach Fenoglio – Glendale Raptors RFC

LeMoto Filikitonga – Metropolis RFC

Eric Fry – Newcastle RFC (England)

Troy Hall – NYAC

Seamus Kelly – San Francisco Golden Gate RFC

Olive Kilifi – Seattle Saracens RFC

Niku Kruger – Kutztown University

Titi Lamositele – Saracens RFC (England)

Ben Landry – Seattle Saracens RFC

Scott LaValla – Stade Francais (France)

Toby L’Estrange – NYAC

Chad London – Glendale Raptors RFC

Samu Manoa – Toulon RFC (France)

Tim Maupin – Trinity College (Ireland)

Al McFarland – NYAC

AJ MacGinty – Life Rugby

Ronnie McLean – Ealing RFC (England)

Matekitonga Moeakiola – Castenet (France)

Louis Mulholland – University of Bath (England)

Takudzwa Ngwenya – Biarritz (France)

Folau Niua – Men’s Eagles Sevens

Thretton Palamo – Saracens RFC (England)

Zach Pangelinan – OMBAC

Greg Peterson – Glasgow Warriors (Scotland)

Mike Petri – NYAC

John Quill – NYAC

Blaine Scully – Cardiff RFC (Wales)

Robbie Shaw – Bristol RFC (England)

Mike Shepherd – Seattle Saracens RFC

Hayden Smith – Saracens RFC (England)

Louis Stanfill – Seattle Saracens RFC

Tim Stanfill – Seattle Saracens RFC

Kyle Sumsion – Brigham Young University

Andrew Suniula – CSM Bucuresti (Romania)

Shalom Suniula – Seattle Saracens RFC

Zach Test – Men’s Eagles Sevens

Phil Thiel – Life Rugby

Brett Thompson – Men’s Eagles Sevens

Matt Trouville – Seattle Saracens RFC

Tai Tuisamoa – London Scottish RFC (England)

Nick Wallace – Glendale Raptors RFC

Chris Wyles – Saracens RFC (England)

Men’s Eagles | Staff

Mike Tolkin – Head Coach

Justin Fitzpatrick – Assistant Coach (Forwards)

Nate Osborne – Assistant Coach (Backs/Attack)

Phil Bailey – Assistant Coach (Defense)

David Williams – Strength and Conditioning Coach

Chris O’Brien – Assistant Coach

Paul Goulding – Video Analyst

Richard Quincy – Physiotherapist

Zach Vyhnanek – Physiotherapist

Sarah Sall – Massage Therapist

Matt Schmitz – Doctor

Sam Akhavan – Doctor

Steve Durant – Sports Psychologist

Matt McCarthy – Media Manager

Kevin Battle – Assistant Team Manager

Tristan Lewis – Team Manager