\u201cHonestly, like in my head, yes, I [was nominated] but I could not have done it without the team,\u201d Vogel said, previewing the England game alongside the Eagles coach, Jack Hanratty. \u201cThey make me look good. My job is to make other people look good, but I just give the ball to Freda, and she runs through 10 people.\u201d<\/p>\n
Freda Tafuna<\/a>, the US No 8, is only 23. Out of Lindenwood University in St Charles, Missouri, she won the MA Sorensen Award<\/a> for college player of the year twice before taking part in the World Cup in England last year. She shone there, scoring two tries against Australia and four against Samoa<\/a>. Last Saturday in Nashville, Tennessee, Tafuna scored three in a 54-24 win<\/a> over Italy.<\/p>\n That lifted the US one place to sixth in the world rankings<\/a>. England are first. The last time the teams met, in the World Cup opener in front of 43,000, England won 69-7<\/a>. But the women\u2019s game is shifting a little. At the top, the Red Roses\u2019 41-game, four-year unbeaten streak ended this month with two defeats by Canada<\/a>. The Eagles contest supremacy in an improving middle tier, having beaten Ireland and Australia this year.<\/p>\n Asked what England might now know about his team, Hanratty said: \u201cThey know the No 8. Freda has been incredible with the carry meters. I would say they know more of our names \u2026 We have had good entries into the 22. So how do we get in there? We\u2019ve had great try rates. How are we scoring? I\u2019d say all of this information will be done and they\u2019ll be looking at our defense and trying to test us in new ways. They\u2019ve got multiple kickers on the field. They\u2019ve got lots of speed on the field. So they\u2019ll be challenging us in a way that other teams maybe haven\u2019t or look to exploit some of the weaknesses that we don\u2019t even know we have yet, and that\u2019s the great test for Friday. What do we think they\u2019re going to do, and how do we stop it? And that\u2019s what\u2019s exciting for me and for the players.\u201d<\/p>\n Vogel, Tafuna and other young Eagles show signs of taking such tests in their stride. The key point is that many found the game much younger than has been usual in the US, where most discover rugby at college, as the story of Hall of Fame flanker Phaidra Knight<\/a> shows well. Homeschooled in rural Pennsylvania, working the family farm, a devout Christian, Vogel started<\/a> playing rugby at 10. Playing for Knightmare Rugby<\/a>, a club in Lancaster, PA, she regularly faced Doylestown<\/a> and their own talented back, Nina Mason<\/a>. Both ended up at Life, an elite program under highly regarded coach Ryszard Chadwick<\/a>. Mason is now the Eagles fly-half with Vogel at 12.<\/p>\n The emergence of such young talent is key to the Eagles\u2019 improvement now and will be in future. By kick-off at the 2033 Women\u2019s World Cup, in the US, Mason and Vogel will be 26, in their athletic prime.<\/p>\n Hanratty is giving them every chance to learn. In April, in Sacramento, California, Vogel started on debut against the mighty Black Ferns of New Zealand. A 48-15 defeat<\/a> was full of lessons and Vogel stayed in the team, working with Mason to launch back play \u2013 Vogel\u2019s slashing break for one of captain Georgie Perris-Redding\u2019s<\/a> three tries in game one against Italy, won 36-27<\/a>, stood out \u2013 or marshal forward raids around the ruck by Tafuna and her smash-happy pals. Vogel does the goal-kicking, with impressive success.<\/p>\n Vogel has also faced<\/a> Australia, Canada, South Africa, Ireland and Wales. She\u2019s unlikely to be fazed on Friday night but this is still England, wounded by two defeats.<\/p>\n \u201cI definitely think that England\u2019s gonna be a tough game, and I think that all their fans are gonna be like, \u2018Oh, it\u2019s just USA, blah blah blah,\u2019\u201d Vogel said, perhaps still sensing a chance to sneak under the Red Roses\u2019 radar. \u201cI remember there was a post, and it was like, \u2019Canada, England, and USA are the only teams that haven\u2019t, like. lost a game\u2019 [in WXV]. And people in the comments were like, \u2018Oh, why would you compare England to USA?\u2019 I think this is our chance to show them that we are comparable, and that we are just as good as any top-three team.\u201d<\/p>\n To Hanratty, the WXV Global Series \u201chas been a huge success,\u201d producing competitive matches at a greater rate, England and Canada producing a classic three-Test series won by the Canadians with two home wins after a draw in England, the Eagles fighting out a 1-1 draw in South Africa<\/a> then taking tough wins in Ireland and Wales, and the 2-0 home win over Italy.<\/p>\n
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