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The penultimate week of the regular season starts in Queens, where Rugby United New York host the Houston SaberCats at Belson Stadium early Saturday afternoon. For one team it’s a vital match with playoff implications, for the other an attempt to stop an unflattering losing streak.
New York’s postseason chances took a turn for the worse last weekend as they crashed to defeat against the Free Jacks in Weymouth. NOLA’s stunning win over the Giltinis on Sunday nudged the Gold slightly ahead on points differential into second spot in the Eastern Conference.
A loss to Houston would leave the door wide open for NOLA to widen the gap ahead of their last-round clash. With that in mind Marty Veale has named his strongest available lineup that shows three changes to the team that fell flat against New England.
The return of first choice halfbacks Andy Ellis and Dan Hollinshead is a significant boost to the side who will be looking to score as many points as possible. Argentine speedster Joel Miranda comes in on the right wing in place of Chris Mattina.
Houston had a week off to reflect on a bad run that is now at 10 consecutive defeats. In that time the team has learned that their incoming Director of Rugby for next season is former Springboks supremo Heyneke Meyer, and with significant changes to the roster also expected contracts are up for grabs.
There is a very different look to the pack this time with Nicolás Solveyra absent and Diego Magno now back in Uruguay. Nik Hildebrand moves to loosehead prop with CJ Burke handed his first Major League Rugby start at tighthead. Former Chicago Lions prop Jeffery Steele could make his pro debut after being called up from the academy squad.
Cecil Garber is a straight swap for Magno on the openside flank and Bronson Teles comes in at lock with Adriaan Booysen left on the bench. Apisai Tauyavuca moves to blindside flanker with skipper Luke Beauchamp shifting to the back of the scrum. Second row Will Crawford is another potential debutante on the bench.
More changes in the backs see Max Tacket drop out with Sam Windsor pushing to inside center and Taylor Howden wearing the No10 shirt. Nick Boyer and Veramu Dikidikilati are left in reserve with Zachary Short and Zack Godfrey starting at scrumhalf and right wing respectively.
A humid afternoon is expected in the aftermath of tropical storm Elsa but otherwise conditions should not affect play too much. In three previous meetings the SaberCats have never recorded so much as a bonus point against New York, and with no form to speak of there’s little to suggest Saturday will be any different. Take the home side as strong favorites.
Kickoff is set for 2pm local time, 11am Pacific, 1pm Central. Local broadcasts will be available on AT&T SportsNet Southwest in Houston and the MSG Network in New York, with The Rugby Network streaming worldwide.
RUGBY UNITED NEW YORK
1 Zak Taulafo, 2 Dylan Fawsitt (capt.), 3 Samu Tawake, 4 Charlie Hewitt, 5 Evan Mintern, 6 Kyle Sumsion, 7 Benjamín Bonasso, 8 Kara Pryor, 9 Andy Ellis, 10 Dan Hollinshead, 11 Apenisa Cakaubalavu, 12 Will Leonard, 13 Fa’asiu Fuatai, 14 Joel Miranda, 15 Ben Foden
Replacements: 16 Diego Maquieira, 17 James Rochford, 18 Kirk Hamilton, 19 Max Dacey, 20 Rob Irimescu, 21 Conor McManus, 22 Harry Bennett, 23 Connor Wallace-Sims
HOUSTON SABERCATS
1 Nik Hildebrand, 2 Diego Fortuny, 3 CJ Burke, 4 Bronson Teles, 5 Jérémy Lenaerts, 6 Apisai Tauyavuca, 7 Cecil Garber, 8 Luke Beauchamp (capt.), 9 Zachary Short, 10 Taylor Howden, 11 Paula Balekana, 12 Sam Windsor, 13 Joe Thomas, 14 Zack Godfrey, 15 Zach Pangelinan
Replacements: 16 Mike Brown, 17 Patrick Donovan, 18 Jeffery Steele, 19 Will Crawford, 20 Adriaan Booysen, 21 Nick Boyer, 22 Veramu Dikidikilati, 23 Jake Hidalgo
Date: Saturday, July 10
Venue: Belson Stadium, Queens
Kickoff: 14:00 local (11:00 Pacific, 13:00 Central)
Referee: Moe Chaudhry (Canada)
Assistants: Luke Rogan (USA) & Miles McIvor (USA)
Broadcasts: AT&T SportsNet Southwest, MSG Network, The Rugby Network
Historical Results
2020-03-01 – Houston SaberCats 23, Rugby United New York 31 (AVEVA Stadium)
2019-05-05 – Rugby United New York 21, Houston SaberCats 0 (MCU Park)
2019-03-02 – Houston SaberCats 8, Rugby United New York 35 (Constellation Field)
