MLR Team of the Week

What a weekend for Major League Rugby. Three road wins, a neutral venue flop, and a dynamite upset. It was an unpredictable adventure and a number of new players put their hands up for selection in our weekly picks. LA may feel short changed but their win was a team effort against Toronto.

1 – Nikoloz Khatiashvili (Houston SaberCats) Started at loosehead prop in the absence of injured Val Lee-Lo and switched to tighthead in the second half. Soldiered through all 80 minutes and never wavered in the scrum. A critical piece of Houston’s success against the Legion.

2 – Mahe Vailanu (LA Giltinis) Only one miscue in an other accurate day at the lineout. Carried effectively and was one of the top tacklers in defense. NOLA’s Pat O’Toole had his best game of the season before making way for Eric Howard early in the second half.

3 – Charlie Connolly (Houston SaberCats) The other half of a dominant SaberCats scrum. Also had a couple strong carries and did a lot of grunt work in the tight-loose. Dino Waldren went well for NOLA.

4 – Ben Mitchell (San Diego Legion) Has consistently been among San Diego’s best in each game. Dominant in the air and also very busy around the pitch both in attack and defense.

5 – Nate Brakeley (Rugby United New York) Speaking of consistent, it was just another day at the office for Brakeley. Mere mortals would be thrilled to get through his workload. Corey Thomas had a fine shift for LA in his first start before coming off injured just ahead of halftime.

6 – Andrew Durutalo (Seattle Seawolves) The back row laid the foundation for Seattle’s win and Durutalo was front and center with some imperious ball carrying. His try from nearly halfway harkened back to his days on the World Sevens Series. New York’s Benjamín Bonasso enjoyed his first start with a bruising effort against ATL.

7 – Lucas Rumball (Toronto Arrows) His team were second best but Rumball was the best forward on the pitch, and a step above any other contender. Once again a complete nuisance at the breakdown and put in hordes of tackles. Also made some hard yards with ball in hand.

8 – Jason Damm (Rugby ATL) An early front runner for the biggest breakthrough of the year. Damm has gone from squad filler to game breaker seemingly out of nowhere. ATL were second best but their No8 was arguably the best player on the pitch. Riekert Hattingh wasn’t far behind for the Seawolves.

9 –Nick Boyer (Houston SaberCats) What a way to celebrate his club debut. Boyer had his best game in some time and did about everything anyone could ask of a scrumhalf with some superb cover tackling, strong carrying, and accurate passing. LA’s Harrison Goddard has to settle for second place once again.

10 – Dan Hollinshead (Rugby United New York) Matt Giteau kept the Arrows moving backwards and when he wasn’t getting stirred up Bautista Ezcurra had another influential game for ATL. It was his opposite, however, who takes the spoils. Hollinshead was magnificent in every capacity and contributed 15 points to New York’s road victory.

11 – Manuel Montero (Toronto Arrows) Visibly frustrated, particularly after taking a head-high shot from Dave Dennis that went unpunished. Raced away for his first try in MLR and ran with venom at every opportunity. Now if only we can get him the right jersey number…

12 – JP du Plessis (NOLA Gold) The bleached bomber was a titan in the midfield for NOLA on both sides of the ball. Felled the much larger Jamie Mackintosh with a thunderous tackle and crashed ahead repeatedly to secure front foot ball.

13 – Veramu Dikidikilati (Houston SaberCats) His defense has been a highlight this season but it was his running game that pained the Legion. Ended Houston’s scoring drought with a furious run through traffic and made yards with every carry. Mika Kruse impressed in his first start for Utah.

14 – Conner Mooneyham (Austin Gilgronis) Has thus far earned his #1 draft position. Seems to make the most of every opportunity, whether making a searing break down the sideline or simply tying in defenders to make space elsewhere. Like Montero played on the opposite wing of his shirt number.

15 – Cliven Loubser (Utah Warriors) An admittedly difficult choice with New  York’s Ben Foden and Houston’s Matías Freyre also excellent. Loubser plays flyhalf for Namibia but has been a success at fullback for Utah with his combination of speed and vision. Filled in at halfback when Fraser Hurst was binned and scored a great try in support of a Calvin Whiting burst.