USA player ratings vs Australia A | International Rugby 2026

USA player ratings: Eagles head coach Scott Lawrence rotated his New Jersey matchday 23 to ensure all of his squad got valuable game time against a talented Australia A outfit.

The much-changed Eagles came out of the blocks fired up and tackling hard, but it quickly became apparent that it would not be their night. Just like the week prior, the Aussies repeatedly found space in the American defensive line as they ran out to a 33-0 half-time lead.

Jamason Fa’anana-Schultz carried well in attack and the Eagles’ bench shored up a creaking defensive line, but the Americans were overwhelmed as Australia’s flair in open play helped the visitors blank the hosts 52-0.

15. David Coetzer – 6
The South African-born fullback performed admirably against a more powerful opponent. In what was a capture game for Coetzer, he competed well under the high ball, often securing contestable kicks that could have generated more defensive problems for the Eagles. His scramble defence also helped avoid more Australian tries, but he was unable to generate much go-forward ball from the back.

14. Conner Mooneyham – 5
Like his fullback, Mooneyham competed well in air, diffusing some contestable Australian kicks, but he will want his one chance at getting the USA on the board back. After a strong USA scrum in the 38th minute, Fa’anana-Schultz hit Mooneyham with a looping pass that set him up to score in the corner. Some great Australian defence kept him from dotting the ball down, but the winger will feel he should have done better so close to the try line.

13. Wayne van der Bank – 6.5
One of the many changes for this match, van der Bank did well marshalling the defensive line and plugging the gaps in open play. While he’ll be disappointed Corey Toole beat him on the inside to score a try, he did well to rush up out of the line to halt several Aussie attacks. In the second half, van der Bank pulled off a memorable steal inside his own five-metre line, stopping an almost certain Australian try after Joe Brial’s barnstorming run.

12. Cash Maluia – 4
After the match, Australia A captain Matt Faessler called Maluia “a big baller carrying 12”, but the former teammate of Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen had few opportunities to show his ball-carrying ability. Subbed at half-time, Maluia had little chance to impact the game, but the American football convert still shows promising potential.

11. Joe Mano – 5.5
Mano played the full 80 minutes and worked hard throughout, consistently tracking back to cover defensively. However, in the first half he made several unforced errors, including hitting a wayward contestable kick within his own half, which led directly to an Australian attack, and running into traffic and getting strip-tackled. The effort and intent were there, but the execution needs to improve.

10. Luke Carty – 5.5
Switching from substitute to starter, Carty grew into the game on attack. As it became obvious that the Eagles couldn’t puncture the Australian rush defence, Carty began putting up contestable kicks that put the Australians under more pressure and forced their line to retreat. Defensively, he was one of the weaker points of the backline, often leaving holes for the Australians to run through.

9. Ruben De Haas – N/A
The experienced scrum-half was caught offside within the first three minutes and then went down with an injury. By the sixth minute he was subbed off with what appeared to be a leg injury. Lawrence will hope that De Haas is healthy enough to play meaningful minutes in the November tests.

1. Ezekiel Lindenmuth – 4
Lindenmuth had a fairly muted game. The American scrum was stable while he was on the field, but his contributions outside of the set-piece were negligible.

2. Kaleb Geiger – 4.5
Geiger had an inconsistent 46 minutes. While he had a steal that set up a lineout in the first half and made several meaningful tackles, often forming part of an Eagles’ double tackle aimed at limiting Australia’s ability to break the American lines, he could not find any consistency at lineout time. Several of his throws were stolen and the Eagles failed to convert any of their opportunities inside the opposition 22-metre line. The lineout will be a clear work-on for him ahead of the November tests.

3. Mason Pedersen – 3
Pedersen tackled well when the opposition ran at him and he was part of a stable scrum, but his most important contribution was tripping Zac Lomax early in the second half. He was sin-binned for his infraction and left his team down a man for ten minutes. The Eagles cannot afford silly penalties like this that cost them points and shift momentum.

4. Nathan Den Hoedt – 5.5
Den Hoedt was one of two players to start for the second week running. He played the full 80 minutes again, tackling hard and helping marshal the forward line. His lack of pace was exposed in open play, but he was otherwise solid in a difficult match for the Eagles.

5. Sam Golla – 6
Golla fought hard for 57 minutes before being subbed off. Even as the score began to blow out, he repeatedly chased down box kicks, coming close to blocking Thomas twice, and he battled hard at the breakdown, doing his best to slow down the Australian ball. Early in the match he made a big tackle on his own try line to extend the play and prevent an Australian try.

6. Marno Redelinghuys (C) – 5
The captain carried hard when he got his opportunities and led from the front in defence, but was caught out of position in moments, especially in open play. He was not able to impact the game in the way a captain would hope to.

7. Paddy Ryan – 6
One of the other players to start the previous match as well, Ryan was solid in defence. He repeatedly disrupted the Australian breakdown, counter-rucking well and pilfering the ball. With little ball to play with, Ryan was unable to contribute much in attack.

8. Jamason Fa’anana-Schultz – 7
Arguably the Eagles’ best forward, Fa’anana-Schultz was solid all night long. He carried hard, made himself available on the wing to tip passes on and carry in the channels, and nearly set up a try for Conner Mooneyham. Early in the match, he rushed out of the defensive line, letting Australia in for a try. He’ll no doubt see that on film and rectify it for the next match.

Replacements – 7
Oscar Lennon performed admirably as he played an unexpected 75 minutes after De Haas went off injured. He held up the ball in the 44th minute, preventing a try, and managed the game well alongside Carty. Shilo Klein steadied an inconsistent lineout, nailing all of his throws, and Dan Kriel performed well in his capture game for the Eagles. Like his brother Jessie does for the Springboks, Kriel provided plenty of energy, hard running, and violent tackling. The replacements showed that Lawrence is building depth a year out from the World Cup.