Seawolves spoil SaberCats new Stadium opener

The Seattle Seawolves brought the hammer down on the Houston SaberCats in the historic first ever match at the new AVEVA Stadium on Saturday, the final score reading Seattle 52, Houston 10. It was declared a soft opening, perhaps too soft as the sod under the turf had not yet settled leaving huge divots on the surface and eventually leading the referee to declare uncontested scrums as a safety precaution.

Seattle opened the scoring with disturbing ease. Houston were caught unawares at a penalty and only one pass was needed after Phil Mack’s quick tap to put Kellen Gordon into the corner. Brock Staller couldn’t convert but he would add a penalty in the 12th minute after a Sequoyah Burke-Combs break down the sideline put them into position.

Next it was Houston’s turn to strike. Sam Windsor chipped over the line and regathered, his over-the-shoulder pass finding Luke Beauchamp in support. The ball was recycled quickly and this time Windsor sprinted clean through a gap to slide in untouched. The conversion didn’t stick but the SaberCats were back in the game.

After 20 minutes of back-and-forth, a turnover at halfway cost the SaberCats dearly. Mack’s kick ahead found wide open space and Ben Cima won the race to the ball, offloading from the deck to Nakai Penny and the unmarked flanker had the easiest of finishes for the try.

Staller again pushed the extras wide, but he found his range early in the second half with a penalty goal from 35 meters. His third would be a chip-shot from straight in front. Two minutes later Windsor telegraphed a pass and it was Staller who got the message, sprinting home from beyond halfway.

The bonus point try came on the hour mark with Stephan Coetzee on the back of a lineout drive. Staller’s kick shaved the outside of the post but it didn’t matter, the result was now a foregone conclusion.

Within seconds of the restart Seattle were over again. The ball went through seven pairs of hands with the final pass delivered by Shalom Suniula to Brad Tucker, the big flanker loitering with intent on the right wing. This time Staller’s sideline effort split the posts to add the extra two.

Houston fans finally got something to cheer about in the 69th minute when new signing Thretton Palamo took an offload from Cecil Garber and sped past two defenders to score under the posts on debut. Windsor sliced the drop kick conversion and there was still time for two more Seattle tries.

Long-range finishes for Roland Suniula and Mat Turner wrapped things, both scored with the Seawolves down to 14 men after Dan Trierweiler had been shown yellow for team infringements. Two more kicks from Staller pushed the score beyond the half-century and left Houston to wonder how they conceded 39 points in a dreadful second half.

The SaberCats will have to heed their reflections quickly as they face another tough challenge in Toronto next Sunday. Also on Sunday, the Seawolves will host the NOLA Gold at Starfire Stadium in a match certain to have playoff implications.

SCORING

HOUSTON 10
Tries – S. Windsor (16’), T. Palamo (69′)
Cons – S. Windsor 0/2

SEATTLE 52
Tries – K. Gordon (3’), N. Penny (36’), B. Staller (55′), S. Coetzee (60′), B. Tucker (62′), R. Suniula (75′), M. Turner (78′)
Cons – B. Staller 4/7 (56′, 63′, 76′, 79′)
Pens – B. Staller 3/3 (12’, 48′, 53′)
Yellow cards – D. Trierweiler (68′)

TEAMS

HOUSTON SABERCATS
1 Mateo Sanguinetti (17 Jamie Dever 53′), 2 Pat O’Toole, 3 Charlie Connolly (21 Jamason Fa’anana-Schultz 48′), 4 Diego Magno (20 Robert Meeson 67′), 5 Matt Trouville (capt.) (19 Victor Comptat 58′), 6 Luke Beauchamp, 7 Cecil Garber (18 Paul Mullen 73′), 8 Alejandro Nieto, 9 Connor Murphy (23 Joe Kelly 67′), 10 Sam Windsor, 11 Malacchi Esdale, 12 Max Tacket (22 Thretton Palamo 48′), 13 Osea Kolinisau, 14 Deion Mikesell, 15 Zach Pangelinan

Not used: 16 Amro Gouda

SEATTLE SEAWOLVES
1 Kellen Gordon (18 Ryan Youngman 73′), 2 Stephan Coetzee (16 Dan Trierweiler 63′), 3 Tim Metcher (17 Djustice Sears-Duru 53′), 4 Jérémy Lenaerts (20 Eric Duechle 53′), 5 Apisai Naikatini (19 Taylor Krumrei 48′-51′, 55′), 6 Brad Tucker, 7 Nakai Penny, 8 Riekert Hattingh, 9 Phil Mack (21 JP Smith 55′), 10 Ben Cima, 11 Sequoyah Burke-Combs (23 Dion Crowder 63′), 12 Shalom Suniula (capt.), 13 George Barton (22 Roland Suniula HT), 14 Brock Staller, 15 Mat Turner

MATCH OFFICIALS

Referee: Derek Summers (USAR)
Assistants: Luke Rogan (USAR) & Greg Varnell (USAR)