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A pair of original Major League Rugby franchises will collide at The Gold Mine on Sunday afternoon. NOLA are holding on to the final playoff position in the East by a single point, with Miami hot on their trails. The visiting Seawolves, meanwhile, have won two straight but remain at the bottom of the West and are in dire need of points to keep the pace.
| CURRENT STANDINGS |
3-6-0 (L1) East 4th
4-5-0 (W2) West 5th
| STARTING LINEUP CHANGES |
|
IN | OUT |
| 1 | Matt Harmon | Bart Vermeulen |
| 3 | Paul Mullen | Isaac Salmon |
| 8 | Jonah Mau’u | Tupou Afungia |
| 10 | Dorian Jones | Luke Carty |
| 13 | Isaac Te Tamaki | Ed Fidow |
|
IN | OUT |
| 2 | Kerron van Vuuren | Dewald Kotze |
| 4 | Taylor Krumrei | Devin Short |
| 11 | Jade Stighling | Malacchi Esdale |
| CAPPED INTERNATIONALS |
(13) – Harmon, Mullen, Dolan, Tonga’uiha, de Haas, Taufete’e, Carty (USA), Mau’u (Samoa), Foliaki, Afungia (Tonga), Mignot, Galletier (France), Matchem (Canada)
(10) – Zeiss (Argentina), Noa, Iona (Samoa), Hattingh, Smith, Futi, Wenglewski (USA), Rossouw (Namibia), Kotze, Gallagher (Canada)
| NOTABLE ABSENTEES |
– Jarred Adams (LH), Isaac Salmon (TH), Ed Fidow (WI)
– Malembe Mpofu (LO), Mika Kruse (CE/WI), Toni Pulu (WI)
| PREDICTION |
Having played Anthem just four days ago, the Seawolves will have tired legs come the second half. Allen Clarke has nonetheless named a largely unchanged lineup with only three personnel alterations. The Gold, on the other hand, should be well rested with an extra day to prepare and welcome back French international Kélian Galletier from a two-month absence. NOLA are slight favorites at home.
| LINEUPS |
NOLA GOLD
1 Matt Harmon, 2 Ale Lopeti, 3 Paul Mullen, 4 Jay Tuivaiti, 5 Cam Dolan, 6 Moni Tonga’uiha (capt.), 7 Aidan King, 8 Jonah Mau’u, 9 Ruben de Haas, 10 Dorian Jones, 11 Nikolai Foliaki, 12 JP du Plessis, 13 Isaac Te Tamaki, 14 Xavier Mignot, 15 Julian Roberts
Replacements: 16 Joe Taufete’e, 17 Bart Vermeulen, 18 Tyler Matchem, 19 Chase Jones, 20 Kélian Galletier, 21 Tupou Afungia, 22 Luke Campbell, 23 Luke Carty
SEATTLE SEAWOLVES
1 Cameron Orr, 2 Kerron van Vuuren, 3 Juan Pablo Zeiss, 4 Taylor Krumrei, 5 Rhyno Herbst, 6 OJ Noa, 7 Charles Elton, 8 Riekert Hattingh (capt.), 9 JP Smith, 10 Rodney Iona, 11 Jade Stighling, 12 Dan Kriel, 13 Divan Rossouw, 14 Lauina Futi, 15 Duncan Matthews
Replacements: 16 Dewald Kotze, 17 Chance Wenglewski, 18 Mason Pedersen, 19 Isaia Lotawa, 20 Devin Short, 21 Brock Gallagher, 22 Eddie Fouché, 23 Malacchi Esdale
| MATCH INFO |
Date: Sunday, April 27
Venue: The Gold Mine, Metairie
Kickoff: 15:00 local (13:00 Pacific, 16:00 Eastern)
Weather Forecast: partly cloudy, 84°F (29°C), S 7-11mph (11-18km/h)
Broadcasts: ESPN+, Fox 13+ Seattle, Gulf Coast Sports, Sky Sports NZ, The Rugby Network
| OFFICIALS |
Referee: Peter Pender (Canada)
Assistants: Luke Rogan (USA) & Juan Pablo Parra (Colombia)
TMO: Mike Kelly (USA)
| HISTORY |
HEAD-TO-HEAD (8) – Seattle 5, NOLA 3
2024-05-11 – NOLA Gold 32, Seattle Seawolves 31 (The Gold Mine)
2023-04-02 – NOLA Gold 35, Seattle Seawolves 36 (The Gold Mine)
2022-03-04 – Seattle Seawolves 24, NOLA Gold 25 (Starfire Stadium)
2021-07-11 – Seattle Seawolves 30, NOLA Gold 6 (Starfire Stadium)
2019-04-21 – Seattle Seawolves 25, NOLA Gold 24 (Starfire Stadium)
2019-02-10 – NOLA Gold 41, Seattle Seawolves 31 (Archbishop Shaw Stadium)
2018-05-27 – Seattle Seawolves 55, NOLA Gold 26 (Starfire Stadium)
2018-05-12 – NOLA Gold 29, Seattle Seawolves 31 (Archbishop Shaw Stadium)
