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A first-ever Major League Rugby meeting of the canines takes place at SeatGeek Stadium on Saturday. Regardless of the result it will be a memorable occasion as both the Chicago Hounds and Dallas Jackals are yet to record a win in their short histories.
For the Jackals it’s a particularly important contest. They are currently on 20 consecutive defeats, which puts them in a tie with the now-defunct Austin franchise for most in league history. First choice halfbacks Pedro Imhoff and Martín Elías remain unavailable with injury and suspension respectively, but there are reinforcements in the pack this week.
Former Benetton hooker Tomás Baravalle, who boasts one test cap for Argentina, will make his first appearance in Dallas colors. Countryman Conrado Roura returns on the flank in place of the injured Jalen Tatum, who is thankfully on the mend following a nasty collision in San Diego last week.
Juan Pablo Aguirre comes back into the starting midfield as Alejandro Torres drops out, but Jerónimo Gómez Vara retains the captaincy. There is one new name on the bench in flanker Cameron Nelson, who is set to make his pro debut after a two year stint in Germany with HoneyBadger RFC.
The Hounds have come painfully close to victory in each of their home games. A four-point loss to the Utah Warriors was followed by a heartbreaking one-point defeat at the hands of Sam Malcolm and the Toronto Arrows. There are just two starting lineup changes this week.
Luke White has recovered from a hamstring problem to start at lock with Duke Krishnan dropping to the bench. Julián Domínguez as already back on the wing after missing just one game with a damaged shoulder. On the bench, loosehead prop Timmy Ohlwein is set to make his Chicago debut against his former team, with Sidney Shoop also in line for his club bow.
Fans in attendance would be well advised to bundle up with frigid temperatures on the forecast. That may suit the Hounds, who were exposed to similar conditions last week. Dallas will field a formidable pack, but Chicago will be boosted by White and Domínguez. The winners might be whichever team doesn’t freeze first, but the favorites tag goes to the home side.
Kickoff is set for 6pm local time, 4pm Pacific, 7pm Eastern. A local broadcast will be available on the Marquee Sports Network in Chicago, with The Rugby Network streaming worldwide.
CHICAGO HOUNDS
1 George Thornton, 2 Lindsey Stevens, 3 Charlie Abel, 4 Mike Matarazzo, 5 Luke White, 6 Luke Beauchamp, 7 Maclean Jones, 8 Michael de Waal, 9 Michael Baska, 10 Luke Carty, 11 Julián Domínguez, 12 Billy Meakes, 13 Bryce Campbell (capt.), 14 Mark O’Keeffe, 15 Chris Mattina
Replacements: 16 Mason Koch, 17 Timmy Ohlwein, 18 Paddy Ryan, 19 Duke Krishnan, 20 Dacoda Worth, 21 Sidney Shoop, 22 Caleb Strum, 23 JP Eloff
DALLAS JACKALS
1 Nicolás Revol, 2 Tomás Baravalle, 3 Juan Pablo Zeiss, 4 Sam Golla, 5 Lucas Bur, 6 Jerónimo Gómez Vara (capt.), 7 Conrado Roura, 8 Adriaan Booysen, 9 Nazareno Valentini, 10 Adriaan Carelse, 11 James Vaifale, 12 Juan Pablo Aguirre, 13 Tomás Malanos, 14 Eric Naposki, 15 Marcos Moroni
Replacements: 16 Liam Murray, 17 Connor Robinson, 18 Kyle Steeves, 19 Carson Shoemaker, 20 Cameron Nelson, 21 Danny Christensen, 22 Campbell Johnstone, 23 Aaron Gray
Date: Saturday, March 18
Venue: SeatGeek Stadium, Bridgeview
Kickoff: 18:00 local (16:00 Pacific, 19:00 Eastern)
Referee: Kat Roche (USA)
Assistants: Niall Little (USA) & Shawn Bastic (USA)
TMO: Derek Summers (USA)
Broadcasts: Marquee Sports Network, The Rugby Network
HISTORICAL RESULTS
n/a
