Eagles ready for full-strength Munster
Sat, 16 Aug 2008 12:19
United States coach Scott Johnson has declared his side "ready" for their encounter with a full-strength Munster team in their Challenge Cup match at Rentschler Field, East Hartford, Connecticut, next Saturday.
Both the US Eagles and Heineken Cup champions Munster have named the players that will assemble in New England next week in preparation for the showdown.
The Eagles are coming off a tough match against the French club Clermont Auvergne, which the visitors won 37-4, Johnson has tried hard to keep the same squad for their next contest.
"The whole idea is to get a good look at these players," Johnson said.
"One week doesn't allow for a fair enough assessment and overall the team is making good progress. There are still things we have to work on and get better at, but we acknowledge what those things are and that's the first step.
"Munster will be quality opposition," he added.
"They will probably bring even more depth in their forwards, which will be a great challenge and since our set piece didn't look that great against Clermont, that is definitely an area we will have to work on. But this is a young team and we are working hard on getting it right."
The US squad will spend next week training in West Point, New York at the US Military Academy, and will travel to Hartford on Friday for the captains run at the stadium.
Munster will spend the week prior to the match in Boston, training at the Irish Cultural Centre.
The Eagles squad Johnson has chosen includes props Ben Barclay (University College Dublin), Brian Lemay (Boston Irish Wolfhounds) and Matekitonga Moeakiola (Pukekohe, New Zealand), while hooker Owen Lentz (Maryland Exiles) rejoins the squad and will look to add a bit of competition with Mark Crick (PAC) and Joe Welch (California) for a spot in the front row.
Locks Casey Rock (Glendale Raptors), Hayden Smith (Metropolitan State College of Denver), John Van der Giessen (Denver Barbarians) and Ben Wiedemer (Belmont Shore) return for this assembly, and captain Todd Clever (Old Mission Beach Athletic Club) joins Rikus Pretorius (California), Pat Quinn (Denver Barbarians), Kevin Sheahan (St. Mary's College, Dublin), Louis Stanfill (California) and newcomer and rugby league player Nick Isbrandtsen (Connecticut Wildcats) in the back row for the US.
The backs include wings Justin Boyd (Dallas Harlequins), Tyrone Coppedge (South Logan Magpies, Australia) and Blaine Scully (UCLA). Flyhalf/centre Hanno Dirksen (Trojans Rugby Club - Georgia) has rejoined the squad after his stint in IRANZ and will be side by side with returning centres Gary Golding (California), Albert Tuipulotu (Beziers, France) and Alipate Tuilevuka (Park City Haggis). Robbie Shaw (Connacht and Galwegians), Chad Erskine (Rotherham, England) and Mike Petri (New York Athletic Club) will all vie for the scrumhalf position for the Eagles, while flyhalf Valenese Malifa (Belmont Shore) and fullback Chris Wyles (OMBAC) round out the returning backline.
Munster, the Heineken Cup champions, brings nearly a full-strength squad including Tony Buckley, Brian Carney, Ian Dowling, Keith Earls, Jerry Flannery, Denis Fogarty, Billy Holland, Anthony Horgan, Denis Hurley, Darragh Hurley, John Hayes, Marcus Horan, Doug Howlett, Kieran Lewis, Lifeimi Mafi, Jeremy Manning, Mark Melbourne, Barry Murphy, Donncha O'Callaghan, Paul O'Connell, Tommy O'Donnell, Mick O'Driscoll, Ronan O'Gara, Tomas O'Leary, John O'Sullivan, Federico Pucciariello, Mike Prendergast, Alan Quinlan, Niall Ronan, Donncha Ryan, Frank Sheahan, Peter Stringer, Rua Tipoki and Paul Warwick.
"We are of course looking forward to this match," said Munster head coach Tony McGahan.
"Last year's trip proved very beneficial both in terms of the match itself and the subsequent season. While it's a great honour to play against international opposition, this game also represents the ideal type of preparation ahead of the new season and we are certainly looking forward to our trip to Boston."
