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Two teams looking to secure their first ever postseason appearances will collide at Choctaw Stadium on Sunday evening. Dallas came up just short against New England and will be aiming for a bonus-point result to ward off the challenges of Utah and LA in the West. Chicago have lost three in a row but still have a chance to earn a home Quarter Final if they finish the regular season strongly.
| CURRENT STANDINGS |
5-7-0 (L1) West 4th
5-6-1 (L3) East 3rd
| STARTING LINEUP CHANGES |
1 Joaquín Horcada replaces Liam Murray
7 Makeen Alikhan replaces Daemon Torres (No4 vs New England)
9 Juan-Dee Oliver replaces Pedro Imhoff
14 Jason Tidwell replaces Nazareno Valentini (No15 vs New England)
4 George Merrick replaces Ben Landry (No6 vs NOLA)
8 Conall Boomer replaces Luke White
9 Nick McCarthy replaces Jason Higgins
14 Noah Brown replaces Julián Domínguez
15 Kian Meadon replaces Luke Carty
| CAPPED INTERNATIONALS |
(4) – Zeiss (Argentina), Richardson, Murray, Steeves (Canada)
(10) – Fawsitt, Ryan, McCarthy, Augspurger, Campbell, White (USA), Flesch, Rumball, Higgins (Canada), Péculo (Uruguay)
| CLUB DEBUTS |
(1) – Kieran Farmer
(1) – Kian Meadon
| NOTABLE ABSENTEES |
– Sam Golla (LO), Vaughen Isaacs (FB)
– Zura Zhvania (LH), Ben Landry (LO/FL), Luke Carty (FH/FB), Julián Domínguez (WI)
| NOTES |
- the return of Makeen Alikhan to the back row sees Jerónimo Gómez Vara switching to lock… club captain Sam Golla remains sidelined with an ankle injury
- Tomás Malanos shows his versatility with a first MLR start at fullback… the former Argentina XV select has played both center and wing positions for Dallas
- Kieran Farmer is set to make his Jackals debut three years after his last appearance in MLR with Houston… the 25-year-old flyhalf or fullback is originally from Scotland but earned USA u20 selection before his pro career was derailed by a serious knee injury
- Lucas Rumball returns from injury to take up a spot on the Hounds bench… the Canadian captain has been out since mid-April… he takes the roster spot of Sid Shoop, who remarkably played flanker against NOLA having previously been a specialist scrumhalf
- another ex-Houston back will make his Chicago debut at fullback… Kian Meadon gets the start in place of Luke Carty… the 23-year-old has represented South Africa at u20 level
| PREDICTION |
Both teams have opted for six forwards on the bench, a wise decision given the sweltering conditions on the forecast. On paper the Hounds have the better side and have a significant height advantage at the lineout, but Dallas are a cohesive unit with a solid scrum. Their two previous meetings have been razor-thin and this should be no exception. Chicago are slight favorites on the road.
| LINEUPS |
DALLAS JACKALS
1 Joaquín Horcada, 2 Dewald Kotze, 3 Juan Pablo Zeiss, 4 Jerónimo Gómez Vara (capt.), 5 Lucas Bur, 6 Ronan Foley, 7 Makeen Alikhan, 8 Sam Tuifua, 9 Juan-Dee Oliver, 10 Martín Elías, 11 Nic Benn, 12 Tomás Cubilla, 13 Mitch Richardson, 14 Jason Tidwell, 15 Tomás Malanos
Replacements: 16 Liam Murray, 17 Tomás Bekerman, 18 Kyle Steeves, 19 Kyle Breytenbach, 20 Daemon Torres, 21 Brock Gallagher, 22 Marques Fuala’au, 23 Kieran Farmer
CHICAGO HOUNDS
1 Charlie Abel, 2 Dylan Fawsitt, 3 Paddy Ryan, 4 George Merrick, 5 James Scott, 6 Mason Flesch, 7 Maclean Jones, 8 Conall Boomer, 9 Nick McCarthy, 10 Adriaan Carelse, 11 Nate Augspurger, 12 Billy Meakes (capt.), 13 Bryce Campbell, 14 Noah Brown, 15 Kian Meadon
Replacements: 16 Janus Venter, 17 Fred Apulu, 18 Ignacio Péculo, 19 Brad Tucker, 20 Luke White, 21 Lucas Rumball, 22 Jason Higgins, 23 Cassh Maluia
| MATCH INFO |
Date: Sunday, June 9
Venue: Choctaw Stadium, Arlington
Kickoff: 19:00 local (17:00 Pacific, 20:00 Eastern)
Weather Forecast: sunny, 90°F (32°C), humidex 97°F (36°C), wind SE 9-12mph (14-19km/h)
Broadcasts: KTXA, Marquee Sports, The Rugby Network
| OFFICIALS |
Referee: Federico Anselmi (Argentina)
Assistants: Marquise Goodwin (USA) & Jono Cooper (USA)
TMO: Mike Kelly (USA)
| HISTORY |
HEAD-TO-HEAD (2) – Chicago 2, Dallas 0
2023-06-17 – Dallas Jackals 28, Chicago Hounds 29 (Choctaw Stadium)
2023-03-18 – Chicago Hounds 24, Dallas Jackals 22 (SeatGeek Stadium)
