NEWS

SEATTLE SEAWOLVES MAKE THIRD MLR CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL AFTER 27 – 46 VICTORY OVER THE HOUSTON SABERCATS

Beneath the baking Texas sun, the Seattle Seawolves reached a third Major League Rugby Championship Final as a result of their 27 – 46 Western Conference Final victory over the Houston SaberCats.

For the first time ever, the AVEVA Stadium hosted playoff rugby. As it should be for games of this sort of magnitude, plenty had made their way to the venue to watch two of the Western Conference’s best battle it out, and they certainly weren’t disappointed.

To begin, each side just prodded and probed at one another, a monster handoff by Houston’s Christian Dyer on Seattle flanker, Andrew Durutalo, an early highlight. 

In keeping with an early bit of home dominance, it was the SaberCats that took an early advantage.

Coming in the form of a try for fly-half Davey Coetzer, there was a stroke of good fortune to the score. Seattle full-back, Duncan Matthews, was unable to collect a ball fizzed to him, Coetzer showing good soccer skills to kick the ball down field, pick it up and score the try before adding the conversion.

The Seawolves would not be subdued for all that long as AJ Alatimu penalty getting his team on the scoreboard. On the return kick-off, Houston was called for having players in front of the kicker, but a scrum penalty led to a penalty kick from within their own half, SaberCats wing, Gerrie Labuschagne, slotting those points from the tee with ease.

To end the first half, it was all Seawolves. A break from wing Martin Iosefo resulted in Houston straying offside, the ball kicked to the corner and the lineout maul yielding a try for hooker, James Malcolm.

Alatimu would miss that conversion, the Samoa international wouldn’t make the same mistake at the next time of asking. Knocking over a penalty to give he and his teammates the lead for the first time in the game, it wouldn’t be long until that advantage was extended.

First came a try for scrum-half, JP Smith, the South African combing well with his captain, Riekert Hattingh, who fed the half-back from the back of a scrum to score beneath the posts.

Matthew’s converted try would be the last notable moment of the half. Sent over thanks to a stunning Alatimu break from within his own half before feeding his full-back in space to dive over.

After a half-time team talk from their Director of Rugby, Heyneke Meyer, and head coach, Pote Human, the SaberCats came out with their tails up. First was a try for Labuschagne, the 26-year-old the beneficiary of some hard carrying from his forwards towards the try line.

USA Eagle, Christian Dyer, was the next to get in on the try scoring action. This one following a loose kick from Iosefo that fell fortunately for Coetzer, the playmaker’s break through the Seawolves defensive line bringing Labuschagne into the action, the wing finding Dyer in space to register a score that would be converted.

Whilst Seattle hadn’t impressed themselves since the second half began, they soon would. Mzamo Majola would barrel over the whitewash, the prop forward heaved over soon after his teammates had stolen a Houston lineout.

After adding the conversion, Alatimu would have a heavy involvement in Ross Neal’s score. Fielding a return kick from Labuschagne, the Samoan sent the ball on to Dan Kriel, the South African center making good ground before being tackled, Alatimu’s support of his teammate seeing him quickly find Neal out wide to score.

Making a rare foray into Seawolves territory, Houston were unable to stake the claim for any sort of comeback. Durutalo stole a ball in his own half, the Eagle finding Matthews who would attempt to kick through, and while not being his best effort with the boot, the scrappy kick ricocheting off a Houston player, allowing 28-year-old to break free with several more stabs through before acrobatically diving over.

As game came to a close, Dyer would add a second try to his collection for the afternoon, the score coming as a result of Iosefo misjudging the bounce of the ball just centimeters from his own line.

To be crowned Western Conference champions and book their place in the MLR Championship Final, as well as making their playoff record 6-0, the Seawolves kept the ball close, inching forward before being told that time was up and that they would be finalists once more.