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The third and final Major League Rugby match of the weekend takes place at Infinity Park on Sunday as the Glendale Raptors play host to the San Diego Legion. It’s a prime time contest between the top two teams on the table heading into Week 4 and promises to be a high flying affair with ideal weather conditions forecast in Denver.
Glendale survived a scare in Salt Lake City last weekend but remain the only undefeated side in MLR. Their match day rosters have been dictated by injury and suspension and that trend continues against the Legion with just one enforced change in the pack. Casey Rock is ruled out so Kody O’Neil gets his first start at lock. John Quill is close to full fitness after his shoulder knock and takes a spot among the reserves.
Shaun Davies returns to captain the side from his familiar scrumhalf position in one of three changes in the backs. Getting his first start of the season is veteran Ata Malifa. He’ll start at inside center with Bryce Campbell shifting out one spot and Chad London relegated to the bench. Mika Kruse is named on the wing in the absence of Harley Davidson and Nick Johnson is called up to the reserves list.
The Legion needed a last-minute miracle to get past the SaberCats and have also made three changes, one enforced. A shoulder injury rules out Siaosi Mahoni so Lance Lamprecht returns in the second row. Taking the vacancy in the reserves is Eagles loose forward Andrew Durutalo, back on US soil after departing Premiership club Worcester Warriors.
A new halfback combination will run the side with Nick Boyer at scrumhalf and Ben Cima tagging in for Tadhg Leader at flyhalf. Nate Augspurger remains in the side but will get a run-out on the wing, a position he looks set to cover with the Eagles in the June test window. Another international joins the bench in winger Brett Thompson who will make his MLR debut.
Both teams enter with win streaks on the line and will view this match as a chance to send a message ahead of the finals. San Diego’s weakness remains the scrum but Glendale have not been dominant in that area. Meanwhile the Raptors may struggle in the lineout without their first choice second row and up against the outstanding Cam Dolan.
The restoration of the all-Eagles halfback combo of Davies and Will Magie is a big boost for Glendale, however, and their team remains the most well-prepared in the competition. Each side have impact players on the bench and high quality goal kickers. With home field and the Denver altitude in their favor, the Raptors enter with the edge on paper but not an insurmountable one.
Kickoff is set for 6pm local time, 5pm Pacific, 8pm Eastern. Viewers in the San Diego area can watch on YurView. Others in the USA can watch on AT&T SportNet and ESPN+. International viewers, including those in Canada, can watch on the official MLR Facebook page.
GLENDALE RAPTORS
1 Blake Rogers, 2 Dylan Fawsitt, 3 Kelepi Fifita, 4 Kody O’Neil, 5 Luke White, 6 Zach Fenoglio, 7 Peter Dahl, 8 Sam Figg, 9 Shaun Davies (capt.), 10 Will Magie, 11 Seth Halliman, 12 Ata Malifa, 13 Bryce Campbell, 14 Mika Kruse, 15 Maximo de Achaval
Replacements: 16 Devin Vaughter, 17 Nick Kwasniewski, 18 James Del Bozque, 19 John Quill, 20 Brian Wanless, 21 Kevin Lynch, 22 Chad London, 23 Nick Johnson
SAN DIEGO LEGION
1 Sione Tu’ihalamaka, 2 Pat Blair, 3 Dolph Botha, 4 Lance Lamprecht, 5 Jay Harmon, 6 Chris Turori, 7 Devin Short, 8 Cam Dolan, 9 Nick Boyer, 10 Ben Cima, 11 Ryan Matyas, 12 JP du Plessis, 13 Anthony Salaber, 14 Nate Augspurger (capt.), 15 Dylan Audsley
Replacements: 16 Gil Covey, 17 Tony Purpura, 18 Nathan Sylvia, 19 Andrew Durutalo, 20 Drew Gaffney, 21 Tadhg Leader, 22 Brett Thompson, 23 Faitala Talapusi
Date: Sunday, May 13
Venue: Infinity Park, Glendale
Kickoff: 18:00 local (17:00 Pacific, 20:00 Eastern)
Referee: Adam Leal (RFU)
Assistants: Scott Green (USAR) & Steve Gore (USAR)
TMO: Marc Nelson (USAR)
Broadcasts: AT&T SportsNet, ESPN+, YurView, Facebook
