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Houston’s stay at Constellation Field comes to a close on Saturday evening when the SaberCats host the Ontario Arrows in the second match of a doubleheader in Sugar Land. A Division 1 Collegiate tilt between Texas A&M and Louisiana State will act as the curtain raiser at 4pm, with the main event following at 7pm.
After suffering back-to-back defeats to the UBC Old Boys and Uruguay, the SaberCats have rattled off five wins in a row. They got past the New Orleans Gold by a score of 30-12 in last weekend’s historic first-ever match between two Major League Rugby franchises. The Arrows are not part of MLR just yet but are angling for inclusion in 2019.
Built on the framework of the highly successful Ontario Blues side from the regional Canadian Rugby Championship, the Arrows draw heavily from the Blues roster but have added two players from other regions and feature four others who have yet to play in the CRC.
This will be the first fixture of 2018 for the Arrows though they do have one previous match on their record, a 41-7 defeat to the Glendale Merlins last September. A dozen players return from that match but only five retain their starting roles.
Three Canadian internationals bolster the tight five with props Rob Brouwer and Tom Dolezel leading the way. Powerful second row Paul Ciulini has his sights set on a return to test rugby and he partners skipper Mike Sheppard in the engine room. The latter has represented Canada ‘A’ as has flanker Peter Milazzo.
With Andrew Ferguson away on Canada duty the Arrows welcome Alex Gliksten at scrumhalf. The 20-year-old arrives from the UK where he has been part of the Saracens Academy program. He forms a potent halfback combination with the established Shawn Windsor.
McMaster Marauders standout Jamie Leveridge is a new name in the midfield beside another Canada ‘A’ rep in Mitch Richardson. Speedy New Zealand-born fullback Aaron McLelland arrives from BC. He is one of three players who have already faced the SaberCats this year, the others Ciulini and Richardson.
A solid bench includes Jack McRogers, one of two Canada u20 hookers from the Aurora Barbarians along with starter AJ Quattrin. Back row Andrew Wilson is a former Canadian international and there are two outstanding flyhalf prospects in Atlantic Rock select Cooper Coats and Canada u20 starter Will Kelly. The former will also provide cover for the outside backs with the latter an option in the midfield.
The SaberCats have made only three changes from the team that beat NOLA. Charlie Hewitt replaces Justin Allen in the second row and Chris Coyle is handed his first start in the flank in place of Cecil Garber. One alteration in the backs sees Zach Panglelinan restored at fullback with Fiji 7s star Osea Kolinisau swapping to the reserves.
An extended Houston bench welcomes former Junior All-American flanker Andres Diaz, who is set to play hooker in the second half. USA Select XV prop Jake Turnbull continues his return from injury absence and Eagles 7s cap Pago Haini is back after missing last week’s match. 19-year-old Kieran Farmer is one of three replacement backfielders.
Last week’s game against New Orleans gave spectators exactly what they were hoping for with fast, attacking rugby and plenty of collisions. The Arrows are not a fully professional side but have been training regularly and are certainly formidable opponents. Their scrum should be an area of strength. The backs will miss the out-and-out speed of Canada winger Kainoa Lloyd but make up for it with strong footballing abilities.
Counting against the Canadian side is the travel and relative inactivity. Many of the squad have not played a competitive match in 2018 and the opening moments will be a shock to the system. Once the nerves settle this should be another highly entertaining and competitive match.
Home field advantage certainly favors Houston but more significant is their firepower out wide. Strike runners Alex Elkins and Josua Vici are high quality finishers and Malacchi Esdale was outstanding against New Orleans. The fitness standards of the professionals will also make a difference in the final quarter.
The match will not be streamed live but audio commentary from Grant Cole and Brent Mills will be available on MIXLR.
HOUSTON SABERCATS
1 Adam Macklin, 2 Lindsey Stevens, 3 Paul Mullen, 4 Charlie Hewitt, 5 Robert Meeson, 6 Kyle Sumsion (capt.), 7 Chris Coyle, 8 Matt Trouville, 9 Connor Murphy, 10 Sam Windsor, 11 Alex Elkins, 12 Conor Mills, 13 Malacchi Esdale, 14 Josua Vici, 15 Zach Pangelinan
Replacements: 16 Andres Diaz, 17 Jake Turnbull, 18 Petey Hepburn, 19 Justin Allen, 20 Chris Parker, 21 Cecil Garber, 22 Pago Haini, 23 Osea Kolinisau, 24 Dan Paul, 25 Kieran Farmer
ONTARIO ARROWS
1 Rob Brouwer, 2 AJ Quattrin, 3 Tom Dolezel, 4 Mike Sheppard (capt.), 5 Paul Ciulini, 6 Marcello Wainwright, 7 Peter Milazzo, 8 Kolby Francis, 9 Alex Gliksten, 10 Shawn Windsor, 11 Jon West, 12 Jamie Leveridge, 13 Mitch Richardson, 14 Johnny Sheridan, 15 Aaron McLelland
Replacements: 16 Jack McRogers, 17 Pat Lynott, 18 Mike Smith, 19 Josh van Horne, 20 Andrew Wilson, 21 Mario van der Westhuizen, 22 Cooper Coats, 23 Will Kelly
Date: Saturday, March 3
Venue: Constellation Field, Sugar Land
Kickoff: 19:00 local (17:00 Pacific, 20:00 Eastern)
Broadcasts: MIXLR (audio only)
