The Eagles prop corps is already thin with not many options available to the team. The prop group that participated in the Americas Rugby Championship was not overly impressive with some players being good in the field, but terrible in the scrum, and vice versa. MacDonald’s injury means that a player from the ARC, like Zach Fenoglio or Tim Paulsen will likely get an opportunity, but will have to go a long way toward proving their abilities.
Mate Moeakiola is still available and playing with Never is the Federale 1, but he is getting up there in years. Andre Liufau was called into the summer assembly, but visa issues returning to France may prevent his return to the team. Another option is Anthony Estrella, who is currently playing in Japan. The former Cal All-American hasn’t been called into a U.S. assembly yet, but this may finally be his opportunity.
No matter who is selected, it will be difficult to fill MacDonald’s shoes. The good part is that with Fry and Pittman doing well, the back-up may only see spot duty.
"Mate Moeakiola is still available and playing with Never is the Federale 1, but he is getting up there in years."
ReplyDeleteMoeakiola (34) is only 2 years older than MacDonald (32). Do we expect either one of them to be in the mix in 2015? Develop the the younger props for the next 3 years...and I'm not talking about the guys that were selected for the ARC.