Glendale Raptors vs. Rugby Americas Selects

The Rugby Americas Selects used a strong second half to defeat the Glendale Raptors 59-31 at Infinity Park on Saturday, October 27. The match was placed in quarters with the Selects taking advantage of the reserves to claim the win.

The Selects struck first with a try by Uruguayan hooker Germán Kessler for a 5-0 lead. A Glendale Raptors try by Nick Johnson knotted the match, as Will Magie conversion bounced off the posts.

Fullback Gastón Mieres added a try for the Selects and Jonny Layne replied for the Raptors making the score 12 all.

In the 36th minute, Brazil’s Arthur Bergo fond a gap to score and Josh Reeves adding his second conversion giving the Selects a 19-12 lead at the break.

In the 42nd minute, Chad Gough intercepted a pass and ran for a try, which was then converted by Will Magie to tie the match. After that, the Americas Selects began to take advantage of the reserves with tries by Diego Magno, Rodrigo Silva with two tries, and others by Daniel Sancery, Leandro Leivas, and Ryan Rees.

The Raptors added tries by Dwayne Pienaar, a second by Nick Johnson to go along with the Gough try in the second half. Lindenwood’s, JP Aguirre added three conversions for the Selects with Moisés Duque adding the final two conversions.

The World Rugby Combine intent was for Americas rugby countries to obtain high-level coaching and exposure, which will hopefully lead to obtaining professional contracts, most likely with Major League Rugby. It is expected there will be a number of signings announced in the coming weeks. None of the U.S. Collegiate players were contract-eligible, as the intent was to gain high-performance opportunities and to finish their collegiate careers.

Scoring Recap

Glendale Raptors 31
Tries – Nick Johnson 2 (17’, 70’), Jonny Layne (30’), Chad Gough (42’). Dwayne Pienaar (60’)
Cons – Will Magie 3/5 (31’, 43’, 71’)

Rugby America’s Selects 59
Tries – Germán Kessler (11’), Gastón Mieres (25’), Arthur Bergo (35’), Diego Magno (49’), Rodrigo Silva 2 (53’, 76’), Daniel Sancery (57’), Leandro Leivas (63’), Ryan Rees (80’)
Cons – Josh Reeves 2/3 (26’, 36’), J.P. Aguirre 3/4 (50’, 58’, 64’), Moisés Duque 2/2 (77’, 80’)

Glendale Raptors: 1 Blake Rogers, 2 Chad Gough, 3 Kelepi Fifita, 4 Kody O’Neil, 5 Luke White, 6 Jonny Layne, 7 John Quill, 8 Connor Cook, 9 Shaun Davies (capt.), 10 Will Magie, 11 Nick Johnson, 12 Ata Malifa, 13 Mika Kruse, 14 Campbell Johnstone, 15 Colin Gregory 16 James Del Bozque, 17 Max Lum, 18 Tom Kacor, 19 Siale Maka, 20 Dwayne Pienaar, 21 Carlo de Nysschen, 22 Mickey Bateman, 23 Mike Garrity, 24 Adrian Chatelier, 25 Mateo Gadsden

Rugby Americas Selects: 1 Mateo Sanguinetti, 2 Germán Kessler, 3 Wilton Rebolo, 4 Cléber Dias, 5 Diego Magno, 6 Manuel Diana, 7 Arthur Bergo, 8 Alejandro Nieto (capt.), 9 Marcelo Torrealba, 10 Josh Reeves, 11 Daniel Sancery, 12 Moisés Duque, 13 Felipe Sancery, 14 Leandro Leivas, 15 Gastón Mieres 16 AN Other, 17 Lucas Abud, 18 Liam Murray, 19 Leandro Segredo, 20 Ignacio Silva, 21 Ryan Rees, 22 Rodrigo Silva, 23 Calvin Whiting, 24 Mike Scarcella, 25 JP Aguirre