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Anthem came close but for a second week in a row were denied a first franchise win, this time by Old Glory who came from behind to take a 26-22 win at home. It was the visitors who held a two-score lead at halftime, but DC took control in the final quarter and grabbed a bonus point for their efforts.
From the start the team from Carolina looked fired up and after repelling an initial assault from DC, three points came from the boot of Cliven Loubser to open the scoring. A flat pass from Karl Keane sent Makeen Alikhan clean through a gap, and the flanker found Junior Gafa in support for the finish. Loubser’s conversion made it 10-nil to Anthem. Damien Hoyland looked to have finished off a fine attacking sequence from DC but the try was waved off the board for an earlier indiscretion at a tackle from Joe Wrafter, the prop earning a yellow card for his troubles.
Two bits of magic from Nick Grigg brought Old Glory back into the game. The Scotland international punched straight up the middle to bash in under the posts for a seven-pointer. Soon after his audacious around-the-back offload found Ethan McVeigh for another try. Jason Robertson tacked on the extra two and suddenly it was 14-10 to the home side.
It wasn’t long before Anthem were back in front. A clean turnover gave Gafa the space to sprint upfield, connecting with Conner Mooneyham for a breakaway try into the right corner. Before halftime Loubser chipped over the line and regathered, earning a penalty to set up an attacking lineout. The maul was formed and Connor Robinson steered the ship over the line, the hooker taking the credit with Loubser’s extras making the halftime score 22-14 in favor of the visitors.
A stalemate ensued for 20 minutes following the intermission, with Anthem struggling to gain momentum despite a yellow card to Jack Iscaro for a head-high tackle. Instead it was a third try to DC despite being down a man. KoiKoi Nelligan somehow kept the ball alive before being driven into touch, and Jamason Fa’anana-Schultz did the rest with the big flanker reaching out of a tackle to score.
DC brought on fresh legs and kept the pressure on. Soon after Iscaro returned to the pitch it was too much for Anthem to contain. Logan Weidner spotted a half-gap on the edge of a ruck and needed no second invitation, the replacement forward crashing over to give Old Glory the lead. Anthem had a couple opportunities to advance in the final minutes but couldn’t quite make it into scoring position.
It’s a week off for Anthem, who return to action on March 22 at home against the Houston SaberCats. Old Glory take their show on the road for a clash against the Chicago Hounds next Saturday.
| SCORING |
DC 26
Tries (4) – N. Grigg (22′), E. McVeigh (26′), J. Fa’anana-Schultz (61′), L. Weidner (69′)
Cons (3) – No kick (22′), J. Robertson 2/3 (27′, 70′)
YC (2) – J. Wrafter (18′), J. Iscaro (57′)
CAROLINA 22
Tries (3) – J. Gafa (15′), C. Mooneyham (30′), C. Robinson (37′)
Cons (2) – C. Loubser 2/2 (16′, 38′), N. Latu 0/1
Pens (1) – C. Loubser 1/1 (10′)
| LINEUPS |
OLD GLORY DC
1 Joe Wrafter (17 Jack Iscaro 45′), 2 KoiKoi Nelligan (16 Facundo Gattas 70′), 3 Cali Martinez (18 Sam Davies 20′-31′, 45′), 4 Ignacio Dotti (19 Tevita Naqali 56′), 5 Bill Whiteside, 6 Jamason Fa’anana-Schultz (3 Cali Martinez 65′-67′), 7 Cory Daniel, 8 Collin Grosse (17 Jack Iscaro 27′-28′) (20 Logan Weidner 62′), 9 Ethan McVeigh, 10 Jason Robertson, 11 Axel Müller, 12 Nick Grigg (22 Jason Emery 64′), 13 Steff Hughes (capt.), 14 Owen Sheehy (23 John Powers 70′), 15 Damien Hoyland
Not used: 21 John LeFevre
ANTHEM CAROLINA
1 Jake Turnbull (co-capt.) (17 Dan Hanson 60′), 2 Connor Robinson (16 Ethan Howard 52′), 3 Alex Maughan (18 Joe Apikotoa 60′), 4 Puna Vuli, 5 Mikey Grandy, 6 Sam Golla (capt.), 7 Makeen Alikhan (19 Shawn Clark 58′-68′), 8 Michael Ma’afu (20 Alby O’Shannessey 52′), 9 Karl Keane (21 Carlo de Nysschen 19′-28′, 70′), 10 Cliven Loubser, 11 Jason Tidwell, 12 Junior Gafa, 13 Watson Filikitonga (23 EJ Freeman 73′), 14 Conner Mooneyham, 15 Line Latu
Not used: 22 Mateo Gadsden
| MATCH INFO |
Date: Saturday, March 8
Venue: Maryland SoccerPlex, Germantown
Kickoff: 15:00 local
Weather: sunny, 45°F (7°C), wind NW 17-25mph (27-40km/h)
| OFFICIALS |
Referee: Ben Connor (Wales)
Assistants: Federico Anselmi (Argentina) & Allen Alongi (USA)
TMO: Amanda Cox (USA)
| HIGHLIGHTS |
