Gold clinch first ever playoff spot with win over Sharks

NOLA booked their first ever postseason match with a 20-13 road win over the Miami Sharks on Sunday. Contested in searing heat, the extreme humidity affected continuity but not the spirit of the Gold who are the last remaining founding franchise to qualify for the knockout stage.

The Miami Sharks watched their playoff hopes drift further away as they came up short against the NOLA Gold on Sunday by a final score of 20-13. It was contested in searing heat with the extreme humidity affecting continuity and accuracy throughout.

Much of the opening half was contested in the center of the pitch. Dorian Jones finally broke the deadlock at 23 minutes with a three-pointer after Ross Depperschmidt won a breakdown penalty. A 50-22 from Matías Freyre led to the equalizer from Santiago Videla when NOLA couldn’t escape their end.

Another 50-22 from Miami, this time from Tomás Cubelli, set up the game’s opening try seconds before halftime. Matías Orlando took the ball at first receiver and managed to get his pass away to Tomás Inciarte just before the tackle arrived. Inciarte ducked under the final defender to score, with Videla converting to make it 10-3 to the home side.

Early in the second half Jarred Adams was found loitering on the wing, and a charging run by the prop led to a penalty. The result was a driving maul that pushed Augusto Böhme over the line with the conversion from Jones leveling the scores. Some ill-discipline after the restart however gave Videla a crack at the posts and Miami were back on on top.

Jones attempted an ambitious penalty goal from halfway that missed its mark, but the Sharks couldn’t clear their end. NOLA regained possession and Malcolm May attacked the short side of a ruck and found nobody home to stop him, putting the Gold ahead by four points with an hour up on the clock.

An even more astounding attempt from Jones, this time from nearly 60 meters, fell well short but Miami were swiftly running out of petrol. Marcos Young delivered a try-saving tackle on Fintan Coleman but it was only a stay of execution for the home side. Jones added a three-pointer and a mix-up at the lineout ended Miami’s final possession of the game.

Both teams are back in action next Sunday. Miami’s slim hopes of making the postseason will start with a road game against Anthem, while NOLA travel west to square off against Los Angeles.

 

SCORING

MIAMI 13
Tries (1) – T. Inciarte (39′)
Cons (1) – S. Videla 1/1 (40′)
Pens (2) – S. Videla 2/2 (29′, 47′)

NOLA 20
Tries (2) – A. Böhme (43′), M. May (59′)
Cons (2) – D. Jones 2/2 (44′, 60′)
Pens (2) – D. Jones 2/4 (23′, 73′)

LINEUPS

MIAMI SHARKS
1 Jonas Petrakopoulos (17 Alec McDonnell 54′), 2 Sean McNulty, 3 Tau Koloamatangi (18 Setu Vole 78′), 4 Rick Rose, 5 Stan van den Hoven, 6 Dan Pryor (16 Kirby Myhill 13′-23′, 47′), 7 Roelof Smit (19 Michael Etete 60′), 8 Benjamín Bonasso, 9 Tomás Cubelli (capt.) (21 Damian Morley 75′), 10 Santiago Videla, 11 Avery Oitomen, 12 Matías Orlando (20 Guiseppe du Toit 65′), 13 Tomás Inciarte, 14 Marcos Young (22 Michael Hand 73′), 15 Matías Freyre (23 Eric Naposki 60′)

NOLA GOLD
1 Jarred Adams (17 Matt Harmon 49′), 2 Augusto Böhme (16 Ale Lopeti 49′), 3 Sean Paranihi (18 Isaac Salmon 49′), 4 Callum Botchar (19 Fintan Coleman 52′), 5 William Waguespack, 6 Malcolm May (20 Osaiasi Tonga’uiha 64′), 7 Moni Tonga’uiha (capt.), 8 Cam Dolan, 9 Luke Campbell (21 Damian Stevens 58′), 10 Dorian Jones, 11 Taniela Filimone, 12 JP du Plessis (22 Reece Botha 64′), 13 Ross Depperschmidt (23 Julian Roberts 52′), 14 Harley Wheeler, 15 Jordan Jackson-Hope

MATCH INFO

Date: Sunday, June 9
Venue: AutoNation Field, Fort Lauderdale
Kickoff: 18:00 local
Weather: partly cloudy, 88°F (31°C), humidex 97°F (36°C), wind S 9-14mph (14-22km/h)

OFFICIALS

Referee: Scott Green (USA)
Assistants: Cisco Lopez (USA) & Tom Ciampa (USA)
TMO: Amanda Cox (USA)

HIGHLIGHTS