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The Utah Warriors welcome the Austin Gilgronis to Zions Bank Stadium on Saturday evening for a match that could well determine who goes to the postseason. Though there are still seven games to be played for each, they are currently in a dead heat for second spot in the Western Conference.
It’s the second meeting of the season between the two founding members, and the seventh all told. Utah made it four wins against Austin in a compelling battle at Bold Stadium in Week 1. On that day the Warriors overcame adversity with three men sent to the sin bin, and the Gilgronis will be set on returning the favor at Salt Lake.
Austin fought admirably against LA last week but were ultimately outmatched. They were doubly disappointed to count the cost as loose forwards Michael de Waal and Moe Abdelmonem suffered injuries. The good news is the return of Dominic Akina and Frank Halai.
Akina takes de Waal’s spot at No8 in one of three changes to the pack. The other two are prop rotation with Jake Turnbull and Mason Pedersen coming in for Jamie Mackintosh and Paddy Ryan. There is no direct replacement for Abdelmonem as the bench is a conventional 5-3 split this week.
Filling the void in the replacements is Kurt Morath, with Rodrick Waters taking over from Nick Johnson as wing backup. Bryce Campbell moves to inside center, where he is set to play for the Eagles in July, with Halai starting at outside center for just the second time this season.
Execution let down the Warriors in their loss at New Orleans last week, their second defeat in a row including the SoFi experience against LA. They show four changes to the run-on side with the notable return of an old friend among the reserves.
With no sign of Sama Malolo it’s Veremalua Vugakoto who starts at hooker. Thomas Tu’avao is another who misses out but Matt Jensen is back in at lock. Jurie van Vuuren moves to No8, with Lance Williams taking the place of Tu’avao on the side of the scrum.
Calvin Whiting fills in at flyhalf in the absence of both Hagen Schulte and Cliven Loubser. Tyler Fisher fills the gap at outside center, and Josh Whippy replaces James Vaifale on the left wing. Providing an emotional boost to the side is speedster Tonata Lauti. Major League Rugby’s leading try scorer in the inaugural 2018 season makes his first match day appearance in two years.
This match is too close to call. Both sides are looking to bounce back from defeat, and both understand the magnitude of the result. The loss of Schulte is significant for Utah though they benefit somewhat from home field advantage. Meanwhile Akina and Halai add punch to the Austin attack that was muted against LA. Take the visitors in a coin toss decision.
Kickoff is set for 7pm local time, 6pm Pacific, 8pm Central, 9pm Eastern. Fox Sports 2 will broadcast in Canada and the USA, with The Rugby Network streaming to those located abroad.
UTAH WARRIORS
1 Franco van den Berg, 2 Veremalua Vugakoto, 3 Angus MacLellan, 4 Aston Fortuin, 5 Matt Jensen, 6 Lance Williams, 7 Bailey Wilson (capt.), 8 Jurie van Vuuren, 9 Michael Baska, 10 Calvin Whiting, 11 Josh Whippy, 12 Derek Ellingson, 13 Tyler Fisher, 14 Mika Kruse, 15 Mike Te’o
Replacements: 16 Chad Gough, 17 Alex Tucci, 18 Paul Mullen, 19 Saia Uhila, 20 Mike Gieselman, 21 Fraser Hurst, 22 Tonata Lauti, 23 James Vaifale
AUSTIN GILGRONIS
1 Jake Turnbull, 2 Hugh Roach, 3 Mason Pedersen, 4 Isaac Ross, 5 Sebastian de Chaves, 6 Dom Bailey, 7 Maclean Jones, 8 Dominic Akina, 9 Ruben de Haas, 10 Mack Mason, 11 Ned Hodson, 12 Bryce Campbell (capt.), 13 Frank Halai, 14 Cole Davis, 15 Will Magie
Replacements: 16 Mason Koch, 17 Jamie Mackintosh, 18 Paddy Ryan, 19 Cam Dodson, 20 Kyle Breytenbach, 21 Pele Cowley, 22 Kurt Morath, 23 Rodrick Waters
Date: Saturday, May 29
Venue: Zions Bank Stadium, Herriman
Kickoff: 19:00 local (18:00 Pacific, 20:00 Central, 21:00 Eastern)
Referee: Federico Anselmi (Argentina)
Assistants: Kahlil Harrison (USA) & Niku Kruger (USA)
Broadcasts: Fox Sports 2, The Rugby Network
Historical Results
2021-03-20 – Austin Gilgronis 28, Utah Warriors 30 (Bold Stadium)
2020-02-22 – Austin Gilgronis 20, Utah Warriors 20 (Bold Stadium)
2019-04-27 – Utah Warriors 35, Austin Elite 19 (Zions Bank Stadium)
2019-02-01 – Austin Elite 9, Utah Warriors 17 (Dell Diamond)
2018-06-01 – Austin Elite 41, Utah Warriors 33 (Round Rock Multipurpose Complex)
2018-05-11 – Utah Warriors 41, Austin Elite 22 (Zions Bank Stadium)
