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Major League Rugby’s Vegas Weekend starts with a Saturday morning showdown between the Utah Warriors and New England Free Jacks. It’s the first ever meeting of the two. The Free Jacks are coming off an impressive debut win over Rugby United New York. Utah started well against ATL but faded in the final quarter and missed out on a losing bonus point.
The Warriors have made just two personnel changes to their starting XV. Former rugby league player Thomas Tu’avao makes his first MLR appearance replacing Saia Uhila on the blindside flank. Calvin Whiting moves from the left wing to his more accustomed outside center spot, with Fetu’u Vainikolo coming in at No11 and Tyler Fisher dropping to the bench.
New England have their bumps and bruises from the Sam Boyd turf but also make just two changes. A front row shuffle sees Donald Brighouse starting at tighthead prop with Simon Courcoul in at loosehead. Kensuke Hatakeyama is rested with Quentin Newcomer set to make his debut as a replacement.
The backline is near identical with the exception of the No10 shirt where Timothée Guillimin starts in place of the concussed Tadhg Leader. A second new cap in fullback Danny Collins is named on the bench with Beaudein Waaka providing cover at flyhalf if required.
While Utah were forced to travel to the game, the short flight is unlikely to have an impact in fatigue levels. Whether the Warriors can last a full 80 minutes, however, remains the biggest question to be answered. The Free Jacks are riding high and showed they are unperturbed by the establishment. Look for New England to make it two from two on Saturday.
Kickoff is set for 11:30am local time, 12:30pm Mountain, 2:30pm Eastern. Broadcasts will be available on For The Fans and their parent company Eleven Sports. Those located outside the USA can access the live stream on the official MLR Facebook page.
UTAH WARRIORS
1 Franco van den Berg, 2 Veremalua Vugakoto, 3 Angus MacLellan, 4 John Cullen, 5 Matt Jensen, 6 Bailey Wilson, 7 Thomas Tu’avao, 8 Jurie van Vuuren, 9 Dwayne Polataivao (capt.), 10 Hagen Schulte, 11 Fetu’u Vainikolo, 12 Blake Hohaia, 13 Calvin Whiting, 14 Gannon Moore, 15 Josh Whippy
Replacements: 16 Ricky Tu’ihalangingie, 17 Huluholo Mo’ungaloa, 18 Kalolo Tuiloma, 19 Puna Vuli, 20 Saia Uhila, 21 Michael Baska, 22 Robbie Povey, 23 Tyler Fisher
NEW ENGLAND FREE JACKS
1 Simon Courcoul, 2 Sean McNulty, 3 Donald Brighouse, 4 Josh Larsen (capt.), 5 Jackson Thiebes, 6 Naulia Dawai, 7 Zack Stryffeler, 8 Brad Hemopo, 9 John Poland, 10 Timothée Guillimin, 11 Mitch Wilson, 12 Sam Beard, 13 Liam Steel, 14 Poasa Waqanibau, 15 Beaudein Waaka
Replacements: 16 Steven Hinshaw, 17 Kyle Ciquera, 18 Quentin Newcomer, 19 Conor Kindregan, 20 Owen Hundt, 21 Erik Thompson, 22 Deion Mikesell, 23 Danny Collins
Date: Saturday, February 15
Venue: Sam Boyd Stadium, Whitney
Kickoff: 11:30 local (12:30 Mountain, 14:30 Eastern)
Referee: Scott Green (USA)
Assistants: Jamie Nutbrown (New Zealand) & Kat Roche (USA)
Broadcasts: Eleven Sports, Facebook, For The Fans
