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Week 2 of the new Major League Rugby season begins at The Gold Mine in New Orleans on Saturday afternoon. It’s been nearly two years since Rugby United New York collided with East Conference rivals NOLA Gold, and it’s a meeting long overdue.
Both previous meetings were razor-thin affairs but New York took bragging rights in each. The two sides will look very different this time around but the likes of Eric Howard and Holden Yungert for the home side, and Dylan Fawsitt and Nate Brakeley for the visitors will recall the intense confrontations.
NOLA will be desperate not only to get a first win over their metropolitan guests but also to move past the disappointing draw against Old Glory in the opening round. The Gold squandered an overwhelming advantage in possession and territory though they at least secured a try bonus point.
It was a different story for New York, who turned up the heat in the second half to beat San Diego in Las Vegas. A road victory in New Orleans would be a major boost to start their campaign. Both sides enjoy a bye week in Week 3 and will be holding nothing back in the contact area.
The Gold did not travel during the week and will have closely reviewed the false start against DC. If they can improve their accuracy and take advantage of scoring opportunities they will have every chance of beating their travel-weary guests. New York have proven their resilience, however, and will relish the run-out in a proper stadium.
Roster changes are minimal for both teams for the match. NOLA have rotated three members of their pack. Pat O’Toole, Ignacio Dotti, and Moni Tonga’uiha start at hooker, lock, and blindside flanker respectively. Swapping to the bench are Eric Howard, Billy Stewart, and Devin Short.
There is a potential debut for collegiate draft pick Brian Nault, who takes over for James Irey as backup tighthead prop. Ross Depperschmidt drops out of the 23 as Nate Osborne opts for a 6-2 split with Chile’s Nikola Bursic entering as lock or loose forward cover.
For New York the only alteration at all is in the No3 shirt. Samoan international Zak Taulafo misses out with new Fiji cap Samu Tawake set to make his MLR bow.
Look for New York to have the edge at the set piece, but the speed advantage on attack goes to NOLA. Fawsitt & Co. will look to tie up the ball at the breakdown while the Gold will ask more of Carl Meyer’s boot to counter New York’s kicking game. This is a virtual coin toss with the winner making their case as top team in the East. Pick NOLA to get their win in another nail-biter.
Kickoff is set for 3pm local time, 1pm Pacific, 4pm Eastern. Live broadcasts will be available on Cox Sports TV in New Orleans and via The Rugby Network worldwide.
NOLA GOLD
1 Matt Harmon, 2 Pat O’Toole, 3 Dino Waldren, 4 Kyle Baillie (capt.), 5 Ignacio Dotti, 6 Moni Tonga’uiha, 7 Andrew Guerra, 8 Cam Dolan, 9 Holden Yungert, 10 Robbie Coleman, 11 Julián Domínguez, 12 JP du Plessis, 13 Juan Cappiello, 14 Joeli Tikoisuva, 15 Carl Meyer
Replacements: 16 Eric Howard, 17 Kevin Sullivan, 18 Brian Nault, 19 Billy Stewart, 20 Nikola Bursic, 21 Devin Short, 22 Damian Stevens, 23 Timothée Guillimin
RUGBY UNITED NEW YORK
1 James Rochford, Dylan Fawsitt (capt.), 3 Samu Tawake, 4 Nate Brakeley, 5 Charlie Hewitt, 6 Hanco Germishuys, 7 Kara Pryor, 8 Evan Mintern, 9 Andy Ellis, 10 Dan Hollinshead, 11 Apenisa Cakaubalavu, 12 Will Leonard, 13 Fa’asiu Fuatai, 14 Quinn Ngawati, 15 Ben Foden
Replacements: 16 Rob Irimescu, 17 Anthony Parry, 18 Wilton Rebolo, 19 Benjamín Bonasso, 20 Conor McManus, 21 Harry Bennett, 22 Chris Mattina, 23 Connor Buckley
Date: Saturday, March 27
Venue: The Gold Mine, New Orleans
Kickoff: 15:00 local (13:00 Pacific, 16:00 Eastern)
Referee: Moe Chaudhry (Canada)
Broadcast: Cox Sports TV, The Rugby Network
Historical Results:
2019-05-26 – Rugby United New York 24, NOLA Gold 22 (MCU Park)
2019-02-16 – NOLA Gold 24, Rugby United New York 27 (Archbishop Shaw Stadium)
