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Old Glory DC’s home opener was a memorable one. The Major League Rugby newcomers rebounded from their crushing loss in New Orleans last week with a thrilling 28-22 upset victory over the defending champion Seattle Seawolves at a sold-out Cardinal Stadium on Saturday.
It was a near-perfect start for the home side. Tendai Mtawarira had two carries in the opening moments of his debut. The second bent the defensive line just enough for Jason Robertson to scamper between two forwards and pin back his ears for a scintillating 40 meter sprint to the corner.
Robertson missed the tricky conversion but landed a penalty soon after. His effort off the tee was matched by Brock Staller. The first scrum followed and The Beast was given a rude welcome with the Seawolves folding the DC front row backwards. It would not be the only time.
A dangerous tip-tackle gave Staller his second shot at goal and he made no mistake. The same couldn’t be said for the handling of both sides, and a series of ineffective tactical kicking offered neither side further advantage through to the hydration break.
It was another darting run from Robertson that pinned the Seawolves deep in their end. A knock-on gave Seattle the scrum but when Riekert Hattingh broke he was met with three white jerseys and no support. Old Glory took the corner with the penalty, and after tying in the forwards a huge pass from Robertson put Dylan Taikato-Simpson in space. The fullback checked the cover and sent Doug Fraser diving into the corner for a well-worked try.
Seattle frustrations were becoming increasingly evident. They went to work through the forwards and got into try-scoring range only to spill possession at the critical moment. Old Glory cleared and when the Seawolves came back they settled for three points through Staller making it 13-9 at halftime.
Another brutal scrum display from Seattle saw Old Glory blasted back on their own ball to earn Staller another shot just after the restart. He duly obliged and the gap was now just one.
The momentum swung fully on the very next play. A knock-on handed the ball to Seattle and Mat Turner ducked and weaved into DC territory. Quick ball went wide and the attack ended with Hattingh over the line. Staller’s kick gave the Seawolves the lead for the first time.
A Staller break down the right and yet another scrum massacre set off the panic button. With alarm bells ringing and Seattle looking certain to score again, Mungo Mason intercepted a telegraph from Scott Dean and tore up the field. Only a desperation tackle from Nakai Penny prevented the try, but the Seawolves flanker lost his feet in the challenge and was sent to the bin for his troubles.
It would prove a pivotal moment. Robertson knocked over three points and though Staller fired back with three of his own, Old Glory had time to collect themselves. Down a man, Seattle’s support was again found wanting and a turnover cost them a lineout deep in their end. The DC pack took it on until Renata Roberts-Te Nana was left wide open on the left, Robertson’s bounce-pass unseemly but finding its mark.
This time Robertson split the posts with the sideline kick and Old Glory were back on top with 20 minutes to play. Instead of raising their game, however, the Seawolves committed a succession of errors that repeatedly handed attacking opportunities to DC. Once more it was Robertson who took advantage as he slipped through and crossed for a 77th minute try that brought the crowd to their feet.
His conversion missed, however, and left the door open for one last-gasp effort from Seattle. The Seawolves launched a furious barrage from an attacking scrum with Brad Tucker barreling just a couple meters short. Hattingh was next, using all his strength to crawl over the line but three white jerseys enveloped the ball to prevent the grounding, the whistle then sounding for full-time.
The first win is now on the books for Old Glory and they will carry new confidence to Houston on Saturday when they play the SaberCats at AVEVA Stadium. Seattle head home to Starfire Stadium deflated and facing the unbeaten Toronto Arrows later that same day.
SCORING
OLD GLORY 28
Tries – J. Robertson 2 (3′, 77′), D. Fraser (28′), R. Roberts-Te Nana (59′)
Cons – J. Robertson 1/4 (60′)
Pens – J. Robertson 2/2 (8′, 52′)
SEAWOLVES 22
Tries – R. Hattingh (44′)
Cons – B. Staller 1/1 (45′)
Pens – B. Staller 5/5 (11′, 15′, 39′, 43′, 55′)
Yellow cards – N. Penny (51′)
TEAMS
OLD GLORY DC
1 Tendai Mtawarira (18 Will Vakalahi 71′), 2 Dante Lopresti (16 Max Lum 67′), 3 Gordon Fullerton (17 Jake Turnbull 60′), 4 Tevita Naqali, 5 Apisai Naikatini (19 Dylan Pieterse 60′), 6 Travis Larsen (20 Matt Hughston 55′), 7 Mungo Mason (co-capt.), 8 Jamason Fa’anana-Schultz (21 Nic Mirhashem 71′), 9 Danny Tusitala (22 Michael Reid 78′), 10 Jason Robertson, 11 Renata Roberts-Te Nana (23 Mike Dabulas 78′), 12 Ciaran Hearn, 13 Thretton Palamo (co-capt.), 14 Doug Fraser, 15 Dylan Taikato-Simpson
SEATTLE SEAWOLVES
1 Djustice Sears-Duru (17 Kellen Gordon 60′-74′, 78′), 2 Mike Shepherd (16 Vili Toluta’u 69′), 3 Jake Ilnicki (18 Tim Metcher 48′), 4 Brad Tucker, 5 FP Pelser (19 Jérémy Lenaerts 25′), 6 Andrew Durutalo (20 Eric Duechle 50′), 7 Nakai Penny, 8 Riekert Hattingh (capt.), 9 JP Smith, 10 Scott Dean (21 Jope Motokana 60′), 11 David Busby (22 Siti Tamaivena 69′), 12 George Barton (23 Joey Iosefa 48′), 13 Shalom Suniula, 14 Brock Staller, 15 Mat Turner
MATCH OFFICIALS
Referee: Lex Weiner (USA)
Assistants: Mike O’Brien (USA) & Stu Geiger (USA)
Attendance: 2,850
