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A try from Andrew Quattrin in the 80th minute gave the Free Jacks a remarkable 33-26 come from behind win over the Warriors on Saturday night. Despite arriving without injured playmaker Jayson Potroz, New England recovered from a 21-point halftime deficit to overturn the form guide and deal Utah just their second defeat of the season.
The opening exchanges left both teams on even footing. Utah forced a turnover and soon after Liam Coltman crossed on the back of a driving maul. The Free Jacks fired back and pinned the Warriors back on their line, with Jerónimo Gómez Vara muscling over to pull it even. Aki Seiuli equaled the Argentine’s effort at the other end and with 15 minutes played it was 12-5 to the home side.
This time the Warriors kept the pressure on. Joel Hodgson’s loopy pass bounced but Jordan Trainor used a nifty bit of footwork to keep the ball alive enough to send Nic Benn diving over in the corner. Trainor then saved the day with a superb cover tackle to prevent Brock Webster from scoring what looked a certain try. Just before halftime Spencer Jones took on the line and offloaded to midfield partner Kyle Brown, with the conversion from Hodgson making it 26-5 to Utah after 40 minutes.
New England opted to bring on Faletoi Peni at halftime, the Aucklander taking over at flyhalf with Harrison Boyle dropping back to fullback. The decision paid off as an offload from Boyle sparked a line break and when Cam Nordli-Kelemeti was stopped just short of the line, his forwards piled in from behind to drive the scrumhalf over the line for the try.
A loose pass from Utah in their own end gave Le Roux Malan a chance to hack it on with his foot. Benn couldn’t corral the bouncing ball and Brock Webster grounded the ball instead, with Peni’s conversion closing the gap to seven. The scores were leveled after Malan broke from the edge of a ruck and found support from Oscar Lennon to set up a grandstand finish.
With the Warriors pressing for a winning score, Paul Lasike was singled out by the TMO for a dangerous clearout on Gómez Vara, and a yellow card dispatched. Utah kept coming but this time Joe Johnston won the ball cleanly at a ruck, tearing upfield and connecting with Josiah Morra. The scramble defense arrived in time but Quattrin was too strong and he bashed over the line to give New England a famous victory.
It’s a week off for the Warriors, who will shake off the disappointment before returning on the road against RFC Los Angles on April 12. New England have a full week to prepare for the Miami Sharks, who arrive at Fort Quincy next Sunday.
| SCORING |
UTAH 26
Tries (4) – L. Coltman (5′), A. Seiuli (15′), N. Benn (20′), K. Brown (38′)
Cons (3) – J. Hodgson 3/4 (16′, 21′, 39′)
YC (1) – P. Lasike (76′)
NEW ENGLAND 33
Tries (5) – J. Gómez Vara (9′), C. Nordli-Kelemeti (49′), B. Webster (56′), O. Lennon (62′), A. Quattrin (80′)
Cons (4) – H. Boyle 0/1, F. Peni 4/4 (50′, 57′, 63′, 80’+1′)
| LINEUPS |
UTAH WARRIORS
1 Aki Seiuli (17 Emerson Prior HT), 2 Liam Coltman (16 Phil Bradford 55′), 3 Tonga Kofe (18 Angus MacLellan 50′), 4 Matt Jensen, 5 Gavin Thornbury (capt.), 6 Frank Lochore, 7 Tamarau McGahan (19 Saia Uhila 68′), 8 Dylan Nel (20 Bailey Wilson 43′), 9 Zion Going, 10 Joel Hodgson (23 Gabe Casey 77′), 11 Joe Mano, 12 Spencer Jones, 13 Kyle Brown (22 Paul Lasike 56′), 14 Nic Benn, 15 Jordan Trainor (23 Gabe Casey 66′-77′)
Not used: 21 Sam Reimer
NEW ENGLAND FREE JACKS
1 Tevita Sole (17 Malakai Hala-Ngatai 48′), 2 Connal McInerney (16 Andrew Quattrin 48′), 3 Kaleb Geiger (18 Jone Koroiduadua 48′), 4 Piers von Dadelszen (19 Conor Keys 68′), 5 Kyle Baillie (20 Joe Johnston 48′), 6 Jerónimo Gómez Vara, 7 Jed Melvin, 8 Wian Conradie (capt.), 9 Cam Nordli-Kelemeti (21 Oscar Lennon 52′), 10 Harrison Boyle, 11 Killian Coghlan, 12 Le Roux Malan, 13 Wayne van der Bank, 14 Brock Webster (23 Josiah Morra 77′), 15 Simon-Peter Toleafoa (22 Faletoi Peni HT)
| MATCH INFO |
Date: Saturday, March 29
Venue: Zions Bank Stadium, Herriman
Kickoff: 19:00 local
Weather: cloudy with showers, 41°F (5°C), wind NW 7-11mph (11-18km/h)
| OFFICIALS |
Referee: George Myers (Australia)
Assistants: Kahlil Harrison (USA) & Kevin Duran (USA)
TMO: Mike Kelly (USA)
