Legion put Raptors to the sword to close Vegas weekend

Recap

The San Diego Legion came away comfortable winners over the Colorado Raptors on Sunday, closing out the Major League Rugby Vegas Weekend with a 49-22 result. Though the Raptors managed to score three tries, the Legion never looked likely to slip up after taking the lead in the opening quarter.

Luke Burton opened the scoring with a penalty goal in the fourth minute but it was Colorado who grabbed the first try. Rene Ranger hit Mika Kruse in space, the right winger then offloading to Mason Emerson on the wrap-around. Emerson somehow grounded the ball despite a crunching high hit from JP du Plessis.

San Diego fired back in decisive fashion. Tevita Tameilau broke through and though the ball was spilled, the Legion pushed Colorado into touch for an attacking lineout. Kelepi Fifita took out a lifter and was summarily sent to the bin. The Raptors held up the first drive over the line but couldn’t stop the ensuing scrum with the referee heading under the posts to award the penalty try.

Colorado managed to win a penalty from the restart which Tomás Quinlan duly converted but the momentum again swung back for San Diego immediately. Ranger shot out of the line to briefly disrupt the attack but Dylan Audsley picked up the spilled ball and cut through the hole left behind.

The Legion would score twice more before the break. Ma’a Nonu went straight through the middle and wrong-footed Emerson with a right-foot step to score his first Major League Rugby try. Not long after it was a classic hooker’s try off the back of a maul for Dean Muir, his third in two weeks.

Now trailing 31-8 the Raptors could have faded but a try on the stroke of halftime gave them a bit of life heading into the sheds. A switch play came back to the blindside from a scrum where Nick Boyer had the pace to find the line, with Quinlan’s extras making it seven.

It was the Raptors who scored first in the second half, though against the run of play. Nonu’s pass intended for Audsley was picked off by Kruse who went in under the posts from beyond halfway.

The gap was now just nine points but that was as close as it got. Burton landed two penalty goals to push the game beyond Colorado’s reach, then runaway tries for Nate Augspurger and du Plessis rounded out the scoring. The latter earned a yellow for a reckless tackle three minutes from time.

SCORING

SAN DIEGO 49
Tries – Penalty try (14’), D. Audsley (20’), M. Nonu (29’), D. Muir (35’), N. Augspurger (67’), J. du Plessis (70’)
Cons – L. Burton 4/5 (21’, 30’, 36’, 68’)
Pens – L. Burton 3/3 (4’, 59’, 62’)
Yellow cards – J. du Plessis (77’)

COLORADO 22
Tries – M. Emerson (7’), N. Boyer (40’), M. Kruse (49’)
Cons – T. Quinlan 2/3 (40’, 50’)
Pens – T. Quinlan 1/1 (19’)
Yellow cards – K. Fifita (11’)

TEAMS

SAN DIEGO LEGION
1 Faka’osi Pifeleti (17 Nathan Sylvia HT), 2 Dean Muir (16 Peter Malcolm HT), 3 Paul Mullen (18 Aaron Mitchell HT), 4 Siaosi Mahoni (20 Louis Stanfill 46’), 5 Joshua Furno (19 Ben Mitchell 65’), 6 Jasa Veremalua (21 Devin Short 63’), 7 Psalm Wooching, 8 Tevita Tameilau, 9 Nate Augspurger (capt.), 10 Luke Burton, 11 Tira Patterson (22 Devereaux Ferris 63’), 12 Ma’a Nonu, 13 JP du Plessis, 14 Save Totovosau, 15 Dylan Audsley (23 Tai Enosa 68’)

COLORADO RAPTORS
1 Kelepi Fifita (18 Zak Taulafo 51’), 2 Chad Gough (16 Jay Finau 57’), 3 Marco Fepulea’i (17 Xendy Tatibouët 72’), 4 Brendan Daly (19 Kody O’Neil 52’), 5 Luke White (capt.) (8 Sam Slade 76’), 6 Michael Curry (18 Zak Taulafo 12’-21’), 7 Mike Stewart, 8 Sam Slade (20 Connor Cook 60’), 9 Nick Boyer, 10 Tomás Quinlan (21 Ata Malifa 72’), 11 John Ryberg (23 Carlo de Nysschen 55’), 12 Chad London, 13 Rene Ranger (22 Robbie Petzer HT), 14 Mika Kruse, 15 Mason Emerson