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The weekend wraps up in Seattle as the Seawolves take on the NOLA Gold at Starfire Stadium. It’s been well over two years since their last meeting at the same venue which was one of the most exciting games of the 2019 season, the eventual champions winning by only a single point.
A poor first half cost Seattle dearly in Chula Vista last weekend as the Legion picked up a win. The Seawolves did show some resilience in the second half but they are still carrying a seven-game losing streak into a game that means a lot more to their guests.
Allen Clarke has opted for a gargantuan forward pack with Ben Landry coming in on the blindside flank and Samu Manoa scrumming down at No8. Travis Larsen is the man to miss out. Obert Nortjé makes his first match day appearance in two months as backup hooker.
It’s all change in the backline. JP Smith returns to scrumhalf and Aaron Matthews starts in the midfield for the first time, with Kieran Joyce pushing back to fullback. The new wingers are Akihito Yamada and Sitiveni Tamaivena, with Karsten Leitner on the bench and Suliasi Tamaivena missing out.
The Gold are flying high after their remarkable victory over LA at the Coliseum last Sunday. They were level with New York on points heading into the weekend and need another victory to set up a winner-take-all match between the two in the final week of the regular season.
Only two changes are made to the lineup. John Sullivan comes in at tighthead prop with Brian Nault on the bench. Kavika Peniata makes his first appearance of the season as backup loosehead. Julián Domínguez returns from injury on the left wing with Joeli Tikoisuva named as a replacement.
Ideal conditions are on the forecast which sets the stage for an interesting match. Seattle enjoy home field advantage but aren’t in great form. NOLA are on a four-game winning streak and only a win will do. If the Gold can move the heavyweight Seawolves pack around they should find the space they need to put tries on the board and get the result they need.
Kickoff is set for 6pm local time, 8pm Central, 9pm Eastern. Fox Sports 2 will broadcast the game in Canada and the USA, with The Rugby Network streaming worldwide.
SEATTLE SEAWOLVES
1 Huluholo Mo’ungaloa, 2 James Malcolm, 3 Tim Metcher, 4 Victor Comptat, 5 Rhyno Herbst, 6 Ben Landry, 7 Naulia Dawai, 8 Samu Manoa, 9 JP Smith, 10 AJ Alatimu (capt.), 11 Akihito Yamada, 12 Aaron Matthews, 13 Lauina Futi, 14 Sitiveni Tamaivena, 15 Kieran Joyce
Replacements: 16 Obert Nortjé, 17 Mike Shepherd, 18 Gavin Prentice, 19 Conor McGill, 20 Tommy Clark, 21 Devereaux Ferris, 22 Moses Lalasava, 23 Karsten Leitner
NOLA GOLD
1 Kevin Sullivan, 2 Pat O’Toole, 3 John Sullivan, 4 Kane Thompson, 5 Billy Stewart, 6 Malcolm May, 7 Giovanni Lapp, 8 Moni Tonga’uiha, 9 Holden Yungert, 10 Timothée Guillimin, 11 Julián Domínguez, 12 JP du Plessis, 13 Juan Cappiello, 14 Hanno Dirksen, 15 Carl Meyer
Replacements: 16 Kevin O’Connor, 17 Kavika Peniata, 18 Brian Nault, 19 William Waguespack, 20 Osaiasi Tonga’uiha, 21 Joeli Tikoisuva, 22 Damian Stevens, 23 Kyle Rogers
Date: Sunday, July 11
Venue: Starfire Stadium, Tukwila
Kickoff: 18:00 local (20:00 Central, 21:00 Eastern)
Referee: Mike Lash (New Zealand)
Assistants: Denny Russell (USA) & Ryan Curtis (USA)
Broadcasts: Fox Sports 2, The Rugby Network
Historical Results
2019-04-21 – Seattle Seawolves 25, NOLA Gold 24 (Starfire Stadium)
2019-02-10 – NOLA Gold 41, Seattle Seawolves 31 (Archbishop Shaw Stadium)
2018-05-27 – Seattle Seawolves 55, NOLA Gold 26 (Starfire Stadium)
2018-05-12 – NOLA Gold 29, Seattle Seawolves 31 (Archbishop Shaw Stadium)
