BOULDER, Colo. - Eagles Head Coach Eddie O’Sullivan has announced his first domestic training squad of the year, in what will be a very busy 2011 for the Men’s National Team in their buildup to the 2011 Rugby World Cup (RWC).

O’Sullivan has also added a few members to his coaching staff to best prepare the Eagles for a full list of pre-RWC fixtures.

The 35 players will assemble at the Olympic Training Center (OTC) in Chula Vista, Calif., from Wednesday May 4 to Sunday May 8.

“This is the first and only assembly for the domestic Eagles in 2011. It is an immediate opportunity for everybody invited to push for a place at the Churchill Cup in June,” O’Sullivan said, acknowledging that many overseas players are tied-up in their professional duties for their respective clubs.

O’Sullivan also noted that some players are also unavailable for personal reasons and others are unavailable due to injury and involvement in domestic collegiate rugby.

The squad assembling at the OTC consists of 17 forwards and 18 backs. Thirteen members of the squad have represented the Eagles in the IRB Sevens World Series and 14 of the 35 players have caps for the Eagles fifteens side.

“The pool is a mix of players that we are familiar with and some new faces who have played themselves into contention in recent months. The May camp is very important as we get ever closer to RWC and possibly the final opportunity for some of the pool to stake a claim for a seat on the flight to New Zealand,” added O’Sullivan.

USA EAGLES DOMESTIC PLAYER CAMP | MAY 4 – 8 | CHULA VISTA, CALIF.

Forwards:
Chris Baumann (Glendale), Chris Biller (San Francisco Golden Gate), Will Brazier (Old Blue RFC), Ryan Chapman (Utah Warriors), Todd Clever (Suntory Sungoliath, Japan), Pat Danahy (Life), James Denise (New York Athletic Club), Tala Esera (Tama Laie Lions Rugby Club), Eric Fry (Las Vegas Blackjacks), Tom Katzfey (New York Athletic Club), Alec Parker (Gentleman of Aspen), Brendan Purcell (Old Mission Beach Athletic Club), Ben Nelson (Kansas City Blues), Phil Thiel (Life), John van der Giessen (Utah Warriors), Jon Vitale (Chicago Lions), Jesse Witkowicki (Old Mission Beach Athletic Club)

Backs:
Matthew Byrd (Utah Warriors), Paul Emerick (Life), Tai Enosa (Belmont Shore), Colin Hawley (Olympic Club), Jordan Kohn (Unattached), Kelly Kolberg (Dallas Reds), Nese Malifa (Glendale), Folau Niua (San Francisco Golden Gate), Tui Osborne (Life), Mike Palefau (Utah Warriors), Mike Petri (New York Athletic Club), Mile Pulu (San Francisco Golden Gate), Volney Rouse (San Francisco Golden Gate), Andrew Suniula (Chicago Griffins), Roland Suniula (Boston Rugby), Shalom Suniula (USA Men’s Sevens/Brisbane), Zack Test (Unattached), Pate Tuilevuka (Old Puget Sound)

Unavailable due to injury: Troy Hall (New York Athletic Club), Taylor Mokate (Univ. of Oklahoma)

Selected but unavailable: Brian Daniels (Glendale), Matt Kelly (Chicago Lions), Samu Manoa (San Francisco Golden Gate)

Considered but unavailable: Cameron Dolan (Life University), Don Pati (Univ. of Utah), Danny Barrett (University of California - Berkeley), Seamus Kelly (University of California - Berkeley), Blaine Scully (University of California - Berkeley), Duncan Kelm (San Diego State Univ.), Ryan Roundy (Brigham Young University), Shaun Davies (Brigham Young University)

USA EAGLES STAFF 2011
Eddie O’Sullivan (Head Coach), Dave Hodges (Forwards Coach & Technical Analyst), Matt Sherman (Backs Coach), Mike Tolkin (Defensive Coach), Dan Payne (Skills Coach), Fiore Screnci (Scrum Coach), Chris O’Brien (Kicking Coach), David Williams (Strength & Conditioning), Tristan Lewis (Team Manager), Kevin Battle (Assistant Manager), Dallen Stanford (Eagles RWC Team Media Manager)