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In a rematch of last year’s Semi Final the Utah Warriors will take on the Glendale Raptors on Saturday evening. This time the venue will be Utah’s home turf, Zions Bank Stadium, and conditions will be considerably less hospitable with temperatures expected to dip under 5°C (40°F) by game time.
The Warriors have had mixed results in their two matches thus far. They defeated Austin Elite without too much difficulty in their season opener, but then fell flat in San Diego last weekend. After spending much of their time training indoors they will now head outside for their home opener.
It’s an unchanged pack that will take the field against the Raptors, and that includes the reserves. Blake Burdette again deputises as hooker backup in the absence of Alex Vorster and Jackson Kaka continues to work his way back from a long-term shoulder injury.
There are two changes to the backs. With Josh Reeves in Round Rock with Brazil, Tim O’Malley moves to flyhalf and Gannon Moore is available for his first start in the midfield. At scrumhalf it’s a straight swap with Tonga ‘A’ rep Sione Ika starting and Ian Luciano moving to the bench. Nolan Tuamoheloa is set for his Major League Rugby debut as a replacement.
Glendale got one in the win column against Austin after starting the season with two straight losses. Dave Williams will have been relieved with the result but not entirely satisfied with the performance. He has largely kept the faith with his side that shows three changes all told.
Kelepi Fifita is given his first start of the season at tighthead prop, switching jerseys with Marco Fepulea’i. Kody O’Neil is fit to resume in the second row after coming off early against the Elite, and Brendan Daly is named on the blindside flank in place of Connor Cook. Jason Damm comes back to the back with Malon Al-Jiboori away on Eagles duty.
The only alteration to the backline sees Robbie Petzer starting at inside center, perhaps a sign of a tactical switch with Petzer’s boot preferred to Chad London’s hard line running style. Veteran fullback Maximo de Achaval makes his first appearance of the season in place of Nick Johnson on the bench.
Playing at home will work in Utah’s favor but in less than ideal conditions that advantage is partially mitigated. Glendale are used to playing in chilly weather and with strong kickers across the backline should make it difficult for Utah to get within striking distance. The Raptors appear to be on an upwards trajectory while the Warriors haven’t yet hit their stride. Look for the visitors to be just a step ahead.
Kickoff is set for 7pm local time, 6pm Pacific, 9pm Eastern. ESPN+ will broadcast across the USA with a live stream available on the MLR Facebook page for those located elsewhere. KMYU will carry the game locally for those in Salt Lake.
UTAH WARRIORS
1 Franco van den Berg, 2 Logan Daniels, 3 Angus MacLellan, 4 Saia Uhila, 5 Matt Jensen, 6 Lance Williams, 7 Ara Elkington, 8 John Cullen, 9 Sione Ika, 10 Tim O’Malley (capt.), 11 Fetu’u Vainikolo, 12 Gannon Moore, 13 Jeremy Misailegalu, 14 Tonata Lauti, 15 Josh Whippy
Replacements: 16 Blake Burdette, 17 Huluholo Mo’ungaloa, 18 Jackson Kaka, 19 Maikeli Naromaitoga, 20 Alex Tucci, 21 Nolan Tuamoheloa, 22 Josh Anderson, 23 Ian Luciano
GLENDALE RAPTORS
1 Blake Rogers, 2 Zach Fenoglio, 3 Kelepi Fifita, 4 Kody O’Neil, 5 Luke White (capt.), 6 Brendan Daly, 7 Peter Dahl, 8 Will Munro, 9 Carlo de Nysschen, 10 Ata Malifa, 11 Harley Davidson, 12 Robbie Petzer, 13 Mika Kruse, 14 John Ryberg, 15 Dylan Taikato-Simpson
Replacements: 16 Chad Gough, 17 Max Lum, 18 Marco Fepulea’i, 19 Connor Cook, 20 Jason Damm, 21 Mickey Bateman, 22 Chad London, 23 Maximo de Achaval
Date: Saturday, February 23
Venue: Zions Bank Stadium, Herriman
Kickoff: 19:00 local (18:00 Pacific, 21:00 Eastern)
Referee: Luke Rogan (USAR)
Assistants: Ben Crouse (SARU) & Kahlil Harrison (USAR)
Broadcasts: ESPN+, Facebook, KMYU
