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The first match of the penultimate weekend of the Major League Rugby regular season does not have any playoff implications but that does not make it any less compelling. An all-Texas derby at the new home of the Houston SaberCats – the AVEVA Stadium – sees Austin Elite desperate to erase the goose egg that persists in their win column.
It’s been a terrible season for Austin by any measure and to finish with no wins from 16 would be a poor reflection of the talent at their disposal. Getting a result over a Houston team suddenly enjoying their rugby again will not be easy, particularly on hostile territory.
There are three changes to the starting side that lost in New York last weekend. Japanese import Sunao Takizawa gets his first start with LaRome White dropping to the bench, while Ben Mitchell moves to his more accustomed second row spot as Travis Larsen comes in on the blindside flank.
With no specialist scrumhalves available it’s yet another shuffle in the backline. Rodrigo Silva switches back to flyhalf with Soheyl Jaoudat again forced to wear the No9 shirt. JP Aguirre changes from No10 to No13 with no sign of Simon Bienvenu.
Two name return to the bench after long absences. South African lock Dylan Pieterse last appeared against New York on March 30, while winger Alex Faison-Donahoe hasn’t suited up since the week before that against NOLA. Loan signings Ronan McCusker and Maikeli Naromaitoga both miss out.
After their stunning upset of the Gold in New Orleans last weekend, the SaberCats are looking to make it two in a row for the first time this season. They’ll do so with half the forward pack changed and one key alteration in the backs.
Mateo Sanguinetti is recalled at loosehead prop with Paul Mullen getting the start at tighthead. Matt Trouville’s blindside experiment is over as he moves back into the second row. Luke Beauchamp moves to his preferred blindside spot with Cecil Garber at openside and Alejandro Nieto the new eightman.
Just a week after returning from injury, Santiago Arata misses out yet again. With Connor Murphy also sidelined, there’s an emergency call for Zach Pangelinan to play scrumhalf. There is at least specialist cover on the bench in the form of Chris Saint should things go awry.
It’s an odd thing indeed that neither side can field a proper halfback combination in a professional competition. That may hamper continuity somewhat but both players are at the very least familiar with the attack systems to be employed.
Otherwise the edge in virtually every facet goes to Houston. Though the SaberCats beat the Elite by only a single point in the season opener, they now have a significantly stronger lineup and other key factors in their favor – momentum and home field advantage. Expect Houston to come through in more convincing fashion this time.
Kickoff is set for 5pm local time, 3pm Pacific, 6pm Eastern. The match will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network, with a Facebook stream available for those located outside the USA.
HOUSTON SABERCATS
1 Mateo Sanguinetti, 2 Pat O’Toole, 3 Paul Mullen, 4 Diego Magno, 5 Matt Trouville (capt.), 6 Luke Beauchamp, 7 Cecil Garber, 8 Alejandro Nieto, 9 Zach Pangelinan, 10 Sam Windsor, 11 Deion Mikesell, 12 Thretton Palamo, 13 Josua Vici, 14 Malacchi Esdale, 15 Osea Kolinisau
Replacements: 16 Amro Gouda, 17 Jake Turnbull, 18 Charlie Connolly, 19 Victor Comptat, 20 Robert Meeson, 21 Chris Saint, 22 Jamason Fa’anana-Schultz, 23 Kieran Farmer
AUSTIN ELITE
1 Sunao Takizawa, 2 Peter Malcolm, 3 Mason Pedersen, 4 Ben Mitchell (capt.), 5 Josh Larsen, 6 Travis Larsen, 7 Dom Bailey, 8 Rikus Zwart, 9 Soheyl Jaoudat, 10 Rodrigo Silva, 11 Sione Fangaiuiha, 12 Andrew Suniula, 13 JP Aguirre, 14 Reece Czarnecki, 15 Zinzan Elan-Puttick
Replacements: 16 Tiaan Erasmus, 17 Juan Echeverría, 18 LaRome White, 19 Dylan Pieterse, 20 Kyle Breytenbach, 21 Moe Abdelmonem, 22 Alex Faison-Donahoe, 23 Aidan McMullan
Date: Saturday, May 25
Venue: AVEVA Stadium, Houston
Kickoff: 17:00 local (15:00 Pacific, 18:00 Eastern)
Referee: Luke Rogan (USAR)
Assistants: Scott Green (USAR) & Butch Neuenschwander (USAR)
Broadcasts: CBS Sports Network, Facebook
