
Match Report: SaberCats vs. Austin Elite Rugby 1.26.19
Fulltime
Win 21-20
After months of anticipation and speculation of all sorts, Major League Rugby season two is finally upon us. Which, for the people of Houston, means one thing: It’s time to start donning your black and yellow kits!
The SaberCats travelled North to Austin on Saturday with revenge on their minds. Just two weeks previously, the ‘Cats lost a heartbreaker of an exhibition match against The Elite 14-10, instigating online rumblings that a repeat of last season’s misfortunes may be on the horizon.
Unfortunately for the individuals with twitchy ‘Twitter-Fingers’, Coach Justin Fitzpatrick, and perhaps more importantly Sam Windsor, had other plans. With the rain falling, soaking ball and body, Houston stuck it out and came out on top in what was an old-school opening weekend slugfest.
This game was all about field position. While the soaked condition of the field may have inhibited much of the big play potential for both sides, all that meant was the boots of Fullbacks Zin-Zan Elan Puttick (Elite) and Zach Pangelinan (SaberCats) got an extra workout as each man continuously sent rockets and high-hanging bombs at the other and into touch.
While Elan Puttick certainly gave the defending backs of Houston a workout, Pangelinan ultimately came out on top in the dueling efforts to keep the other team on its back heel. While not securing any points himself, Pangelinan’s effort certainly went a long way in assuring the scoring opportunities for The Elite were kept to a minimum.
However, when it came to those who did put points on the board, look no further than Mr. Wonderful himself, Sam Windsor. While The Elite’s Tim Guilliman went a respectable 2-for-3 on the night kicking for posts, Windsor outstripped the whole of Major League Rugby, going a perfect SEVEN-FOR-SEVEN on penalty conversions, for an astounding total of 21 points (for those who like to deal in percentages, that’s 100% of his team’s total score).
The improvements from preseason were also apparent in the passing game. Scrum-half Santiago Arata has brought a new element of fastball to this team’s formula, as he consistently found ways to get playmakers such as Malachi Esdale and Connor Mills involved in the passing game. Arata’s style is complimented almost perfectly by Connor Murphy, who came off the bench to bring a more methodical, forward oriented attack that was successful in pounding the Elite defense in the waning minutes of the game.
It may not have been flashy, but this is in many ways the kind of rugby Coach Fitzpatrick has been trying to coax out of his players since the start of training camp. Toughness, and the resiliency to keep the foot to the pedal for all 80-minutes.
One game in, and the ‘Cats are undefeated. So far, so good.
Stream the match  here
For tickets to upcoming games click here
Photo Cred: Norma Salinas
Recent Posts
Spring Youth Flag Rugby
2021 INAUGURAL SPRING CO-ED YOUTH FLAG RUGBY LEAGUE Spring Co-Ed Youth Flag
The 2021 Season Schedule is Here
MAJOR LEAGUE RUGBY ANNOUNCES 2021 SEASON SCHEDULE SaberCats Open 2021 Season on
Kit Reveal 2021
The Houston SaberCats and Major League Rugby have revealed the team kit
Rugby 101
Whether you are a loyal rugby fan, or completely new to the
Rugby 101 – Episode 1
Learn the basics of rugby with special guest Shalom Suniula
News Tags
Archives
- January 2021 (1)
- December 2020 (1)
- November 2020 (3)
- October 2020 (1)
- September 2020 (2)
- August 2020 (3)
- July 2020 (4)
- June 2020 (1)
- May 2020 (1)
- March 2020 (8)
- February 2020 (14)
- January 2020 (4)
- December 2019 (4)
- November 2019 (2)
- October 2019 (1)
- September 2019 (1)
- August 2019 (3)
- July 2019 (1)
- June 2019 (3)
- May 2019 (12)
- April 2019 (9)
- March 2019 (10)
- February 2019 (7)
- January 2019 (9)
- December 2018 (1)
- November 2018 (2)
- August 2018 (2)
- July 2018 (5)
- June 2018 (4)
- May 2018 (5)
- April 2018 (19)
- March 2018 (9)
- February 2018 (14)
- January 2018 (16)
- December 2017 (9)
- November 2017 (3)
- October 2017 (1)