Austin Elite Rugby vs. New Orleans Gold Rugby

The Austin Elite Rugby Club met the New Orleans Gold Rugby Club in the concluding Major League Rugby pre-season match for both teams on April 7 at the Round Rock Multipurpose Complex. NOLA Gold left with a 38-10 win and went 3-2-1 in the pre-season. Although Austin Elite Rugby was 0-3 during the pre-season, the improvement was evident.

The Major League Rugby regular season begins on April 21 with Austin Elite Rugby facing the Glendale Raptors away in the CBSSN game of the week. New Orleans Gold is also away in Houston and after two pre-season matches against the SaberCats will look to secure a win after a draw in the last meeting.

Pre-season is an opportunity to test player combinations in anticipation of the regular season. Injuries are also a factor, and the NOLA win over Austin Elite also meant the loss of Vince Jobo for the season. That is unfortunate and it is hoped that Vince has a smooth recovery.

Austin Elite vs. New Orleans Gold Recap

This recap only includes player scoring where known, as the match was not available to view. Players deserve the recognition and support as the Major League Rugby season will begin on April 21.

Austin Elite Rugby scored a try by a forward in the 3rd minute to take a 5-0 lead. Three minutes later, NOLA Gold answered back as Ratu Rinakama grounded the ball to tie the match 5 all.

Austin Elite Rugby then reclaimed the lead 10-5 with a try by captain Andrew Suniula. After some back and forth by both teams, Cam Falcon added a try for New Orleans and after JP Eloff’s conversion, the lead was 12-10. This lead held up until the break.

During the second half, New Orleans Gold scored four tries in a ten-minute span to secure a 38-10 win. Tries were added by Matt Hughston, Jojo Tikoisuva, Tim Maupin and John Sullivan in the 58th, 61st, 64st, and 68th minutes, along with conversions on the later three tries by JP Eloff.

The Man of the Match for Austin Elite Rugby and for New Orleans Gold Rugby were Knute O’Donnell and Matt Hughston, respectively.

Austin Elite: Round Rock Multipurpose Complex Home Venue

Austin Elite Release

” ROUND ROCK, Texas (April 12, 2018)—The population of the Sports Capital of Texas is growing by one professional sports team! Austin Elite Rugby, in conjunction with the City of Round Rock, today announced at a press conference that all of its 2018 Major League Rugby (MLR) home games will be played at the Round Rock Multipurpose Complex.

Located within Old Settlers Park at 2001 N. Kenney Fort Blvd., the RoundRockMultipurpose Complex is a $27 million state-of-the-art sports venue that enables Round Rock to host many new types of events, such as rugby, lacrosse, soccer, ultimate frisbee, flag football and more. The 60-acre sports complex features a World Rugby regulation championship grass field, another championship field with synthetic turf, four multipurpose fields with natural grass and four with synthetic turf, and Musco sports lighting on all 10 fields. Spectator amenities include permanent seating with shade structures, a clubhouse, plazas, pavilions, playgrounds and more.

“We are excited to kick off our inaugural Major League Rugby season at the Round Rock Multipurpose Complex,” Austin Elite Rugby President/Owner Richard Osborn said. “The City of Round Rock has been incredible to work with thus far. With Round Rock’s growing community of rugby clubs and fans, we look forward to entertaining the region with world-class play, and attracting new fans in the process.”

The four-game home season kicks off Saturday, May 3 against NOLA Gold. This season also includes matches against the San Diego Legion May 25, Utah Warriors June 1 and the Seattle Seawolves June 8. All games will be broadcast live on CBS Sports, AT&T or ESPN+.

“We want to officially welcome all of the professional rugby players, their families and fans to Round Rock for the inaugural 2018 season,” Round Rock Mayor Craig Morgan said. “The Austin Elite Rugby games will provide yet another family-friendly entertainment option for Central Texas residents, who have helped make Round Rock the Sports Capital of Texas through their love of sports.”

Rugby is the fastest growing sport in the U.S., with more than 40 million fans nationwide. Texas is home to two MLR teams and nine collegiate teams, five of those in the Austin area. Two international rugby matches were played in Round Rock as part of the America’s Rugby Championship (2016 and 2017,) playing host to the USA Eagles national team.

“We are excited to see professional rugby being played in the Sports Capital of Texas, and we look forward to broadcasting the inaugural Major League Rugby season from Round Rock Multipurpose Complex,” commented MLR Commissioner Dean Howes.

Single-game tickets and season tickets are now available online at AustinEliteRugby.com, along with the complete 2018 schedule and official team merchandise.”

New Orleans Gold & Austin Elite Rugby Squads

Austin Elite: 1 Tim Fitzgerald 2 Chris Scade 3 Mason Pedersen (C) 4 Ben Mitchell (VC) 5 Kyle Breytenbach 6 7 Hanco Germishuys 8 Deon Minnaar 9 Michael Reid 10 Timothée Guillimin 11 Reece Czarnecki 12 Andrew Suniula 13 Sani Taylor14 Zac Mizell 15 Zinzan Elan-Puttick 16 David LeMasters 17 Siaosi Finau 18 Robert Drummond 19 Dylan Goulding 20 Alex Faison-Donahoe 21 Knute O’Donnell 22 Vetekina Malafu 23 Pat Sullivan 24 Sione Fangaiuha 25 Pita Naruma + Head Coach Alain Hyardet (Reserve # not specified in release)

New Orleans Gold: 1 Hubert Buydens (VC) 2 Cameron Falcon 3 Ben Tarr 4 Matt Wirken 5 Nikola Bursic 6 Vince Jobo 7 Matt Hughston 8 John Sullivan 9 Holden Yungert 10 Taylor Howden (C) 11 Ratu Rinakama 12 JP Eloff 13 Tim Maupin 14 Bobby Johns 15 Michael Baska 16 Derrek Van Klein 17 Amro Gouda 18 Alec Janotka 19 Myles McQuone 20 John Stapleton 21 Zack Stryffeler 22 Tesimoni Tongauiha 23 Joeli Tikoisuva + Head Coach Nate Osborne