Austin left battered by rampant Warriors

A rampant Utah Warriors put Austin to the sword on Saturday evening, with the final score reading 45-24 at Zions Bank Stadium. The Gilgronis were left battered and bruised and saw three starters come off injured before halftime.

Utah were on the front foot from the opening whistle. Calvin Whiting sent over a penalty in the third minute, and then Aston Fortuin stretched over from close range for the opening try. Whiting’s extras were on target to make it 10-nil with only 11 minutes played.

The AG’s launched a furious attack that went through numerous phases but the defense held through to the hydration break. At the same time Dom Bailey limped off with Kyle Breytenbach taking his place on the blindside flank.

Mika Kruse broke free from his own end and sprinted down the right side, connecting with Mike Te’o and then Michael Baska. A deflection put the ball in Whiting’s hands and from the next ruck Matt Jensen went straight ahead to score under the posts.

Ned Hodson damaged his hand in an attempt to stop Kruse, to be replaced by Rodrick Waters. The next casualty was Will Magie’s hamstring, with Kurt Morath summoned to fill in at fullback.

The bad news kept coming for Austin as Isaac Ross was sent to the bin for an indiscretion at the lineout. With the AG’s short-handed Te’o sent Kruse around the outside for try number three. The conversion from whiting was good to make it 24-0 at the intermission.

Mack Mason finally got Austin on the board with a penalty goal early in the second half. The momentum was only an oasis, however, as Bailey Wilson intercepted in a Ruben de Haas telegraph to sprint 75 meters untouched for a seven-pointer.

A line break from Frank Halai earned the AG’s their first try. The ball was swung wide left and Sebastian de Chaves snagged a tipped ball, stepping between two front rowers to score.

The riposte came swiftly from the Warriors. From an attacking lineout Whiting tied up four defenders, and then Te’o came screaming onto a Baska pass with a brilliant outside-in line for a try. The extras were no bother for Whiting with Utah’s job all but finished.

Paddy Ryan and Cole Davis would score consolation tries for Austin in the final quarter but they could not conjure a bonus point. The final say went to the Warriors, with Chad Gough picking off a pass from Ross in the dying minutes.

The AG’s put the Texas Cup on the line against the SaberCats in Houston next Saturday. It’s an extra day off for the Warriors, who head north-west to Seattle to face the Seawolves on Sunday.

 

SCORING

UTAH 45
Tries – A. Fortuin (10′), M. Jensen (25′), M. Kruse (38′), B. Wilson (45′), M. Te’o (54′), C. Gough (76′)
Cons – C. Whiting 4/4 (11′, 39′, 55′, 77′), No kick 2 (25′, 45′)
Pens – C. Whiting 1/1 (3′)

AUSTIN 24
Tries – S. de Chaves (51′), P. Ryan (60′), C. Davis (73′)
Cons – M. Mason 3/3 (52′, 61′, 74′)
Pens – M. Mason 1/1 (42′)
Yellow cards – I. Ross (37′)

 

TEAMS

UTAH WARRIORS
1 Franco van den Berg (17 Alex Tucci 59’), 2 Veremalua Vugakoto (16 Chad Gough 52′), 3 Angus MacLellan (18 Paul Mullen HT), 4 Aston Fortuin (19 Saia Uhila 52′), 5 Matt Jensen, 6 Lance Williams (20 Mike Gieselman 61′), 7 Bailey Wilson (capt.), 8 Jurie van Vuuren, 9 Michael Baska (21 Fraser Hurst 61′), 10 Calvin Whiting, 11 Josh Whippy (22 Tonata Lauti 70′), 12 Derek Ellingson (23 James Vaifale 61′), 13 Tyler Fisher, 14 Mika Kruse, 15 Mike Te’o

AUSTIN GILGRONIS
1 Jake Turnbull (17 Jamie Mackintosh 52′), 2 Hugh Roach (16 Mason Koch 55’-58′, 70′), 3 Mason Pedersen (18 Paddy Ryan 52′), 4 Isaac Ross, 5 Sebastian de Chaves, 6 Dom Bailey (20 Kyle Breytenbach 19′), 7 Maclean Jones, 8 Dominic Akina (19 Cam Dodson HT), 9 Ruben de Haas (21 Pele Cowley 61′), 10 Mack Mason, 11 Ned Hodson (23 Rodrick Waters 26′), 12 Bryce Campbell (capt.), 13 Frank Halai, 14 Cole Davis, 15 Will Magie (22 Kurt Morath 36′)

 

MATCH OFFICIALS

Referee: Federico Anselmi (Argentina)
Assistants: Kahlil Harrison (USA) & Niku Kruger (USA)