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The most intriguing match of the weekend takes place in Seattle on Saturday night. Major League Rugby’s only remaining unbeaten sides will to head-to-head as the Seawolves host the Houston SaberCats in a rematch of last season’s Western Conference Final.
On that day it was Seattle who were the superior side, with an impressive performance in the Texas heat. This will be the ninth time they have faced off. They split their regular season engagements in each of the past two years, with the Seawolves winning their first three meetings.
Houston were staring defeat in the face last week until late when San Diego’s discipline failed and the SaberCats pounced. They show two changes to the run-on side this week and three on the bench.
Dillon Smit makes a timely return at scrumhalf in place of Carlo de Nysschen, while Marno Redelinghuys runs out on the blindside flank in the absence of Keni Nasoqeqe. Danny Barrett returns albeit among the reserves, where Jax Hidalgo and Will Vakalahi are also present. The latter is both set to make his club debut and also his first appearance at hooker, having previously played prop for Old Glory.
Seattle made short work of the Jackals in Arlington while taking the opportunity to rotate some of their lineup. Allen Clarke has made a handful of alterations this week.
The front row is changed en masse with Mzamo Majola, Peter Malcolm, and Sam Matenga back in. AJ Alatimu retains his spot at No10 with Jordan Chait a late scratch, and Martin Iosefo returns on the left wing as Lauina Futi swaps to the right at the expense of Conner Mooneyham.
Dan Kriel and Tavite Lopeti swap shirts in the midfield. It remains to be seen if this is a tactical decision, to combat Houston’s dynamic duo of Dom Akina and Christian Dyer, or one with longer-term potential. Lopeti Aisea is the backup and could make his first appearance of the season.
A relatively mild though humid evening is on the forecast. The SaberCats have added steel with Redelinghuys on the flank, while the addition of Smit is a boost. Seattle don’t have their top kicker Chait to call up but have arguably better depth on the bench. Who will keep their perfect record intact? Give the favorites tag to the home side but not by much.
Kickoff is set for 7:30pm local time, 9:30pm Central, 10:30pm Eastern. Local broadcasts will be available on AT&T SportsNet Southwest and Root Sports in Seattle, with The Rugby Network streaming worldwide.
SEATTLE SEAWOLVES
1 Mzamo Majola, 2 Peter Malcolm, 3 Sam Matenga, 4 Ben Landry, 5 Rhyno Herbst, 6 Charles Elton, 7 Nakai Penny, 8 Riekert Hattingh (capt.), 9 JP Smith, 10 AJ Alatimu, 11 Martin Iosefo, 12 Dan Kriel, 13 Tavite Lopeti, 14 Lauina Futi, 15 Duncan Matthews
Replacements: 16 James Malcolm, 17 Jake Turnbull, 18 Mason Pedersen, 19 Taylor Krumrei, 20 Ben Mitchell, 21 Karl Keane, 22 Lopeti Aisea, 23 Conner Mooneyham
HOUSTON SABERCATS
1 Rob Cobb, 2 Axel Zapata, 3 Morgan Mitchell, 4 Siaosi Mahoni, 5 Nathan Den Hoedt (capt.), 6 Hanco Germishuys, 7 Marno Redelinghuys, 8 Gideon van Wyk, 9 Dillon Smit, 10 Davy Coetzer, 11 Vereniki Tikoisolomone, 12 Dom Akina, 13 Christian Dyer, 14 Gerrie Labuschagne, 15 Drew Wild
Replacements: 16 Will Vakalahi, 17 Alec McDonnell, 18 Pono Davis, 19 Emmanuel Albert, 20 Danny Barrett, 21 Nick Boyer, 22 Jax Hidalgo, 23 Zach Pangelinan
Date: Saturday, March 11
Venue: Starfire Stadium, Tukwila
Kickoff: 19:30 local (21:30 Central, 22:30 Eastern)
Referee: Cisco Lopez (USA)
Assistants: Brad Schwalger (Canada) & Clint Lemkus (Canada)
TMO: Austin Reed (USA)
Broadcasts: AT&T SportsNet Southwest, Root Sports, The Rugby Network
HISTORICAL RESULTS
2022-06-18 – Houston SaberCats 27, Seattle Seawolves 46 (AVEVA Stadium)
2022-05-27 – Seattle Seawolves 43, Houston SaberCats 36 (Starfire Stadium)
2022-03-12 – Houston SaberCats 21, Seattle Seawolves 19 (AVEVA Stadium)
2021-07-15 – Seattle Seawolves 40, Houston SaberCats 21 (Starfire Stadium)
2021-03-20 – Houston SaberCats 30, Seattle Seawolves 24 (AVEVA Stadium)
2019-04-13 – Houston SaberCats 10, Seattle Seawolves 52 (AVEVA Stadium)
2019-03-10 – Seattle Seawolves 27, Houston SaberCats 14 (Starfire Stadium)
2018-06-02 – Houston SaberCats 7, Seattle Seawolves 20 (Dyer Stadium)
