Legion blast through Seawolves in return to Torero Stadium

The San Diego Legion celebrated their return to Torero Stadium with a dominant 40-26 victory over the Seattle Seawolves on Sunday. While just two scores separated the two sides at the final whistle, the game was over as a contest early in the second half as the home side piled on five unanswered tries with zero points conceded until the 56th minute.

Three tries in under 15 minutes left the visitors reeling as the home faithful roared their approval. Lincoln McClutchie line break sent Christian Poidevin in under the sticks just three minutes in, and five minutes later the Seawolves defense was all at sea leaving the door wide open for Ryan James to finish on the end of an overlap. Jed Holloway finished off a long breakout for a try in his Major League Rugby debut.

More defensive lapses created holes for the Legion to attack, and James grabbed a double after stepping the last man. McClutchie tacked on his third successful conversion from a wide angle. Seattle nearly got on the board on the final play of the half but Malembe Mpofu was smashed in touch just ahead of the line, leaving it 28-nil as the two sides headed into the sheds.

Tomas Aoake coasted in for a fifth San Diego try early in the second half, and the Legion took their foot off the gas pedal. Jimmy Hokafonu saw yellow for a dangerous clearout, and then Poidevin joined him in the bin for an infringement while OJ Noa was held up over the line. At last the visitors broke the duck when Cameron Orr fought his way through two defenders to score.

Eddie Fouché looped around AJ Alatimu to take a pass in for a second Seawolves try, and then Ethan Grayson missed a long-range shot at goal in an attempt to slow Seattle’s new-found momentum. The two sides exchanged tries in a span of three minutes with Jesse Mackail crossing from a lineout drive before Marcel brache’s line break paved the way for Connor Tupai to breach the line on the short side of a ruck.

With the clock moving into the red the Seawolves upped the tempo in an effort to secure a four-try bonus point. A string of penalties resulted in a yellow card to Paddy Ryan. It would take another four minutes of stoppage but the visitors were finally rewarded as Mackail punched in for a double on debut.

The Seawolves have a week off to recuperate and prepare for their next road game against the Houston SaberCats on March 1st. Meanwhile it’s a very short turnaround for the Legion, who now take to the road for a Friday night fixture against Anthem in Charlotte.

SAN DIEGO 40
Tries (6) – C. Poidevin (3′), R. James 2 (8′, 28′), J. Holloway (14′), T. Aoake (45′), C. Tupai (76′)
Cons (5) – No kick (3′), L. McClutchie 4/5 (9′, 15′, 29′, 46′)
Pens (0) – E. Grayson 0/1
YC (3) – J. Hokafonu (53′), C. Poidevin (55′), P. Ryan (80′)

SEATTLE 26
Tries (4) – C. Orr (56′), E. Fouché (63′), J. Mackail 2 (73′, 80’+4′)
Cons (3) – R. Iona 1/2 (64′), E. Fouché 2/2 (74′, 80’+5′)

SAN DIEGO LEGION
1 Payton Telea-Ilalio (17 Nathan Sylvia 59′), 2 Hugh Roach (16 Shilo Klein 53′), 3 Darcy Breen (18 Oliver Kane 67′), 4 Jed Holloway, 5 Brandon Harvey (19 Vili Helu 60′), 6 Christian Poidevin, 7 Brad Wilkin (capt.), 8 Jimmy Hokafonu (20 Paddy Ryan 63′), 9 Richard Judd (21 Connor Tupai 72′), 10 Lincoln McClutchie, 11 Ryan James, 12 Tiaan Loots (22 Marcel Brache 51′), 13 Tavite Lopeti (23 James Vaifale 61′), 14 Tomas Aoake, 15 Ethan Grayson

SEATTLE SEAWOLVES
1 Cameron Orr (17 Chance Wenglewski 57′), 2 Dewald Kotze (16 Jesse Mackail 53′), 3 Juan Pablo Zeiss (18 Njabulo Gumede 53′), 4 Rhyno Herbst (capt.), 5 Malembe Mpofu (19 Isaia Lotawa 46′), 6 Huw Taylor, 7 Devin Short (20 Siaosi Mahoni 57′), 8 OJ Noa, 9 JP Smith (21 Brock Gallagher 62′), 10 Rodney Iona (23 David Busby 68′), 11 Jade Stighling, 12 Dan Kriel, 13 Mika Kruse, 14 Jeremiah Sio (22 Eddie Fouché 51′), 15 Divan Rossouw

Date: Sunday, February 16
Venue: Torero Stadium, San Diego
Kickoff: 14:00 local
Weather: sunny, 64°F (18°C), wind W 6-10mph (8-16km/h)

Referee: Lex Weiner (USA)
Assistants: Mike Lawrenson (USA) & Will Nelson (USA)
TMO: Chris Assmus (Canada)