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The Chicago Hounds will be hoping the weather gods are kind on Sunday afternoon when they host the Houston SaberCats at SeatGeek Stadium. Thankfully there is no sign of lightning on the forecast, with mild temperatures and partly cloudy skies expected at kickoff.
Last week’s cancellation of the second half against Seattle might have spared them a heavier defeat, but it also denied Chicago a chance to redeem themselves after a poor opening 40 minutes. They will at least be well rested, and have four fresh faces in the starting lineup that didn’t see the pitch at all against the Seawolves.
George Thornton returns from injury to slot straight back in at loosehead prop. Former Eagles lock John Cullen will make his Hounds debut in the second row, with Mike Matarazzo coming in on the blindside flank. Luke Beauchamp switches to openside in the absence of Maclean Jones, who is attending his brother’s wedding.
The backline sees a first start at flyhalf for Chris Mattina, who moves up from his usual fullback spot. JP Eloff takes up the No15 shirt as Luke Carty drops to the bench. Winger Caleb Strum is back in the reserves bench that shows a conventional 5/3 split.
Houston returned to form against ATL at home with a blistering opening 40 minutes. While they seemed to coast through the second half, Pote Human has stuck with a virtually identical lineup with only two personnel changes to the match day squad.
Rob Cobb is back in at loosehead prop, with Alec McDonnell returning to the bench. The run-on side is otherwise unchanged. On the bench there is a first appearance in Houston colors for flanker Asa Carter, a second-round pick in the 2021 Collegiate Draft who suited up for both Austin and Dallas last season.
The SaberCats are near the top of the Western Conference with their only defeat thus far against the unbeaten Seawolves. Their offensive output of 30 points-per-game puts them at the top of the league, ahead of high-flying San Diego. Chicago meanwhile have one win to show for in their five games to date and are yet to really find their shape. Take the visitors as strong favorites.
Kickoff is set for 1pm local time, 11am Pacific, 2pm Eastern. Local broadcasts will be available on Marquee Sports Plus in Chicago and AT&T SportsNet SouthWest in Houston, with The Rugby Network streaming worldwide.
CHICAGO HOUNDS
1 George Thornton, 2 Lindsey Stevens, 3 Paddy Ryan, 4 John Cullen, 5 Luke White, 6 Mike Matarazzo, 7 Luke Beauchamp, 8 Michael de Waal, 9 Michael Baska, 10 Chris Mattina, 11 Julián Domínguez, 12 Billy Meakes, 13 Bryce Campbell (capt.), 14 Mark O’Keeffe, 15 JP Eloff
Replacements: 16 Mason Koch, 17 LaRome White, 18 Charlie Abel, 19 Duke Krishnan, 20 Dacoda Worth, 21 Sean Yacoubian, 22 Luke Carty, 23 Caleb Strum
HOUSTON SABERCATS
1 Rob Cobb, 2 Dean Muir (capt.), 3 Morgan Mitchell, 4 Siaosi Mahoni, 5 Nathan Den Hoedt, 6 Marno Redelinghuys, 7 Danny Barrett, 8 Wynand Grassmann, 9 Carlo de Nysschen, 10 Davy Coetzer, 11 Gerrie Labuschagne, 12 Louritz van der Schyff, 13 Dom Akina, 14 Christian Dyer, 15 Drew Wild
Replacements: 16 Axel Zapata, 17 Alec McDonnell, 18 Pono Davis, 19 Asa Carter, 20 Malon Al-Jiboori, 21 Nick Boyer, 22 Zach Pangelinan, 23 Emmanuel Albert
Date: Sunday, April 2
Venue: SeatGeek Stadium, Bridgeview
Kickoff: 13:00 local (11:00 Pacific, 14:00 Eastern)
Broadcasts: AT&T SportsNet Southwest, Marquee Sports Plus, The Rugby Network
Referee: Scott Green (USA)
Assistants: Shawn Bastic (USA) & David Zaccaria (USA)
TMO: Luke Rogan (USA)
HISTORICAL RESULTS
n/a
