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The Austin Gilgronis dominated an exhausted Arrows side by a record score of 47-21 at a blazing hot Bold Stadium on Saturday evening. It set a new mark for points scored against the Canadian franchise, and is the first time Toronto has suffered three consecutive defeats.
An early foray into Austin territory yielded three points for the Arrows via the boot of Spencer Jones, but there was a quick response from the AG’s. Isaac Ross sent Pele Cowley in behind the defense with a deft offload. Cam Dodson made more ground passed off the deck to keep the move alive, and quick hands put Zinzan Elan-Puttick over in the corner.
It wasn’t long before Austin were in again. A penalty gave them an attacking lineout, and the maul worked as intended with Robbie Coetzee falling over the line for the try. Kurt Morath found his range this time to land the extra two.
Both sides saw players make early exits. Austin tighthead prop Paddy Ryan went off with an arm injury, to be replaced by LaRome White. The Arrows lost Siaki Vikilani with what looked like a bad shoulder, with Manuel Diana summoned from the bench.
When play resumed Toronto managed to create a try. Their sputtering lineout failed but the scrum was up to scratch. Gastón Mieres came in off his wing to create the extra attacker, and a soft pass from Will Kelly found a flying Joaquín Tuculet for the finish.
There was enough time in the half for one more try from the AG’s. The first assault was repelled but the second did the business. Dominic Akina burst onto a short ball from Cowley and split the Arrows defense, showing a clean pair of heels to the cover. Morath’s conversion sailed over as the whistle sounded.
The Arrows scored first in the second half as Jones landed a penalty from just outside the 10-meter line, but Austin were in a try-scoring mood. White made hard yards up the middle and when it was recycled Morath sent Kyle Breytenbach through a gap left after Ben LeSage shot out of the line.
Two long-range tries in a span of three minutes put the result beyond doubt. Akina made it a double with a searing break down the left sideline that left multiple defenders grasping at air. The second came from an unlikely figure as White picked off a pass, the prop sprinting from his own 22-meter line to score untouched under the posts.
LeSage redeemed himself with a try in the 70th minute, but it was quickly erased by Hugh Roach just five minutes later. Another consolation score from Mitch Richardson at least prevented a record losing margin but the Arrows were still left to ruminate over an unsightly scoreline.
The good news for Toronto is that their road games are finished for the season, with reinforcements set to arrive in the coming week. They will host the NOLA Gold as part of an MLR double-header in Marietta next Saturday. Austin’s will start their four-week road trip in Seattle next Sunday.
SCORING
AUSTIN 47
Tries – Z. Elan-Puttick (13’), R. Coetzee (17’), D. Akina 2 (40’, 61’), K. Breytenbach (50’), L. White (64’), H. Roach (75’)
Cons – K. Morath 4/5 (18’, 40’, 51’, 76’), No kick 2 (61’, 64’)
TORONTO 21
Tries – J. Tuculet (35’), B. LeSage (70’), M. Richardson (78’)
Cons – S. Jones 0/3
Pens – S. Jones 2/2 (8’, 47’)
TEAMS
AUSTIN GILGRONIS
1 Jamie Mackintosh (17 Jake Turnbull 51’), 2 Robbie Coetzee (16 Hugh Roach 43’), 3 Paddy Ryan (18 LaRome White 28’ {1 Jamie Mackintosh 73’}), 4 Isaac Ross (19 Reegan O’Gorman 59’), 5 Cam Dodson, 6 Kyle Breytenbach, 7 Maclean Jones (20 Michael de Waal 59’), 8 Dominic Akina, 9 Pele Cowley (21 Sidney Shoop 61’), 10 Kurt Morath, 11 Conner Mooneyham, 12 Bryce Campbell (capt.), 13 Frank Halai (22 Ned Hodson 51’), 14 Zinzan Elan-Puttick (23 David Still 61’), 15 Mack Mason
TORONTO ARROWS
1 Pat Lynott, 2 Jack McRogers (16 Andrew Quattrin 49’), 3 Gastón Cortes (18 Marc-Antoine Ouellet 54’), 4 Mason Flesch (19 Adrian Wadden HT), 5 Mike Sheppard (17 Luke Schlotman 61’), 6 Tomás de la Vega, 7 Lucas Rumball (co-capt.), 8 Siaki Vikilani (20 Manuel Diana 32’), 9 Ross Braude (21 Jason Higgins 54’), 10 Will Kelly (23 Patrick Parfrey 61’), 11 Gastón Mieres, 12 Spencer Jones, 13 Ben LeSage (co-capt.), 14 Johnny Sheridan (22 Mitch Richardson 65’), 15 Joaquín Tuculet
MATCH OFFICIALS
Referee: Luke Rogan (USA)
Assistants: Kat Roche (USA) & Butch Neuenschwander (USA)
