Preview: Romania v USA
Louis Stanfill will earn his 50th cap for the Unites States when they face Romania in Bucharest on Saturday.
Stanfill made a substitute appearance in his 49th cap last weekend in Chicago, where 61,500 fans saw a masterclass performance from New Zealand at a sold-out Soldier Field.
Tai Tuisamoa, an early replacement in Chicago, will partner Stanfill in the second row behind Nick Wallace, Phil Thiel, and Olive Kilifi.
Captain Todd Clever remains the only professional with the squad following the departure of seven overseas Eagles. He will line up alongside John Quill and Matt Trouville in the back row.
Danny Barrett sustained a fractured metacarpal Saturday and will not return to the team during the remaining weeks of the tour.
Trouville featured in two matches for the Eagles Select XV at the 2014 IRB Americas Championship in October and will get his first cap against Romania.
"We need the forwards to perform on Saturday, and they know it. So the challenge is before them and they are up for it. The guys from Saturday are looking forward to a more competitive match," Tolkin said.
Mike Petri and Adam Siddall resume their partnership in the playmaking positions of scrumhalf and flyhalf, respectively. Andrew Suniula and Seamus Kelly will also build on the continuity from the All Blacks match at Soldier Field in the centers.
Blaine Scully and Chris Wyles have returned to Leicester and Saracens, respectively, forcing changes in the back three positions. Brett Thompson, scheduled to be available for this month's matches, sustained an AC shoulder injury in Chicago and is doubtful to return to the team.
Tim Stanfill will earn his second cap on the wing Saturday, while Taku Ngwenya returns from a year-long national team absence on the opposite wing.
Roland Suniula, brother of Andrew and Shalom, joins the squad in Europe as injury cover, while John Cullen, Greg Peterson, and Ben Tarr could each earn their first cap from the reserves.
"After a physical game up front [against the All Blacks] and more to come, we felt that having the extra forward on the bench was prudent. It is unlucky for Tim [Maupin] as Roland can cover a few more positions, which is important this week," he added.
Ranked two places ahead of the Eagles in the IRB World Rankings, Romania is hosting the squad for the second time in two years. Tolkin's second win at the helm of the Eagles came in Bucharest in November 2012, where Ngwenya, Andrew Suniula, and Wyles each scored tries in a 34-3 victory.
Players to watch:
For Romania: His name is a mouthful but Valentin Calafeteanu could be a handful for the Americans. Ion Paulica has represented his country at three World Cups and, with the help of Castres' Mihaita Lazar, will look to assert their dominance on the American front row.
For Unites States: Captain Todd Clever will be looking to lead from the front and lift the team's morale after the heavy defeat they suffered at the hands of New Zealand. Takudzwa Ngwenya set the world alight when he outpaced Bryan Habana at the 2007 World Cup and Tim Stanfill proved to be more than a handful for the All Blacks in that one-off Test.
Head to head: Adrian Apostol and Robert Neagu will have their work cut out for them as they look to nullify the pace and skills of Takudzwa Ngwenya and Tim Stanfill. There will be a mouth-watering encounter in the front row as Olive Kilifi and Nick Wallace have to front up to the experience of Ion Paulica and Mihaita Lazar
Previous results:
1919: USA won 21-0, Colombes
1924: USA won 37-0, Colombes
1988: USA won 17-7, Moscow
1999: Romania won 27-5, Dublin (World Cup pool match)
2005: USA won 28-22, Tokyo
2012: USA won 34-3, Bucharest
Prediction: Recent results between the sides suggest it will be a walkover for the USA, but it will be interesting to see if the heavy loss to the All Blacks will have any ill-effect on their performance. USA should claim a 15 point victory.
Teams:
Romania: 15 Catalin Fercu, 14 Adrian Apostol, 13 Csaba Gal, 12 Florin Vlaicu, 11 Robert Neagu, 10 Dorin Manole, 9 Valentin Calafeteanu, 8 Daniel Carpo, 7 Ovidiu Tonita, 6 Mihai Macovei, 5 Alin Coste, 4 Marius Sirbe, 3 Ion Paulica, 2 Otar Turashvili, 1 Mihaita Lazar.
Replacements: 16 Andrei Radoi, 17 Andrei Ursache, 18 Horatiu Pungea, 19 Valentin Popirlan, 20 Vlad Nistor, 21 Florin Surugiu, 22 Robert Dascalu, 23 Florin Ionita.
United States: 15 Folau Niua, 14 Takudzwa Ngwenya, 13 Seamus Kelly, 12 Andrew Suniula, 11 Tim Stanfill, 10 Adam Siddal, 9 Mike Petr, 8 Matt Trouville, 7 John Quill, 6 Todd Clever (captain), 5 Louis Stanfill, 4 Tai Tuisamoa, 3 Olive Kilifi, 2 Phil Thiel, 1 Nick Wallace.
Replacements: 16 Tom Coolican, 17 Benjamin Tarr, 18 Mate Moeakiola, 19 Greg Peterson, 20 John Cullen, 21 Kyle Sumsion, 22 Shalom Suniula, 23 Roland Suniula.
Date: Saturday, November 8
Venue: Bucharest
Kick-off: 17.30 (15.30 GMT, 11:30 Eastern American Time)
Expected weather: Partly cloudy, high of 13, low of 10
Referee: Leighton Hodges (Wales)
Assistant referees: Ian Davies (Wales), Neil Hennessy (Wales)
TMO: Marshall Kilgore (Ireland)
