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Houston will be looking to redeem their home opener defeat against Chicago when they travel west to California on Sunday. The SaberCats will hand a Major League Rugby debut to former Scotland winger Rufus McLean. They’ll face dangerous opposition in RFC Los Angeles, who gave the defending champion Free Jacks a run for their money last weekend.
| CURRENT STANDINGS |
0-1-0 (L1) West 3rd
0-1-0 (L1) West 2nd
| STARTING LINEUP CHANGES |
|
IN | OUT |
| 12 | Billy Meakes | Matias Jensen |
| 14 | Seth Purdey | Christian Dyer |
| 15 | Rory van Vugt | Cameron Gerlach |
|
IN | OUT |
| 2 | Pita Anae-Ah Sue | Seth Smith |
| 4 | Johan Momsen | Justin Basson |
| 8 | Sam Tuifua | Ronan Murphy |
| 14 | Rufus McLean | Seimou Smith |
| 15 | Max Schumacher | Drew Wild |
| CAPPED INTERNATIONALS |
(7) – Damm, Sosene-Feagai (USA), O’Gorman, Coe, Heaton (Canada), Bertranou (Argentina), Leali’ifano (Australia/Samoa)
(4) – Davis (USA), McLean (Scotland), Lindenmuth, Alatimu (Samoa)
| CLUB DEBUTS |
(4) – Wynyard*
(1) – McLean*
* – MLR debut
| NOTABLE ABSENTEES |
– Conor Young (TH), Christian Dyer (WI), Reece MacDonald (FB)
– Drew Wild (FB)
| PREDICTION |
Clear and calm conditions set the stage for an entertaining contest. The SaberCats have rotated their pack and have enviable quality to call on from the bench. They will fancy the set piece, whereas LA’s path to victory lies in speed of attack. It’s an intriguing clash of styles, and one the Cats need to win to restore their credentials as title contenders. Houston are favorites on the road.
| LINEUPS |
RFC LOS ANGELES
1 Alessandro Heaney, 2 Ben Sugars, 3 Cronan Gleeson, 4 Jason Damm (capt.), 5 Reegan O’Gorman, 6 Tim Anstee, 7 Ed Timpson, 8 Ben Houston, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 10 Christian Leali’ifano, 11 Andrew Coe, 12 Billy Meakes, 13 Nick Chan, 14 Seth Purdey, 15 Rory van Vugt
Replacements: 16 Mike Sosene-Feagai, 17 Declan Leaney, 18 Maliu Niuafe, 19 Mikaea Wynyard, 20 Matt Heaton, 21 Ben Strang, 22 Tas Smith, 23 Cameron Gerlach
HOUSTON SABERCATS
1 Valdemar Lee-Lo, 2 Pita Anae-Ah Sue, 3 Pono Davis, 4 Johan Momsen, 5 Nathan Den Hoedt (capt.), 6 Emmanuel Albert, 7 Marno Redelinghuys, 8 Sam Tuifua, 9 André Warner, 10 Davy Coetzer, 11 Jeremy Misailegalu, 12 Sam Hill, 13 Dom Akina, 14 Rufus McLean, 15 Max Schumacher
Replacements: 16 Seth Smith, 17 Ezekiel Lindenmuth, 18 Michael Scott, 19 Justin Basson, 20 Keni Nasoqeqe, 21 Ronan Murphy, 22 Jay Renton, 23 AJ Alatimu
| MATCH INFO |
Date: Sunday, February 23
Venue: Wallis Annenberg Stadium, Los Angeles
Kickoff: 15:00 local (17:00 Central, 18:00 Eastern)
Weather Forecast: sunny, 72°F (22°C), wind SW 6-9mph (10-14km/h)
Broadcasts: ESPN+, FanDuel SoCal, CW39, Sky Sports NZ, The Rugby Network
| OFFICIALS |
Referee: Moe Chaudhry (Canada)
Assistants: Kahlil Harrison (USA) & Kirk Swanner (USA)
TMO: Greg Gilliam (USA)
| HISTORY |
HEAD-TO-HEAD (5) – Houston 3, ATL/LA 2
2024-06-08 – Houston SaberCats 29, RFC Los Angeles 12 (SaberCats Stadium)
2024-03-10 – RFC Los Angeles 12, Houston SaberCats 27 (Dignity Health Track Field)
2023-03-25 – Houston SaberCats 40, Rugby ATL 28 (SaberCats Stadium)
2022-03-05 – Rugby ATL 29, Houston SaberCats 22 (Silverbacks Park)
2021-06-19 – Rugby ATL 33, Houston SaberCats 15 (Lupo Family Field)
