Seattle Seawolves vs Toronto Arrows: MLR 2019

The Seattle Seawolves have sold out the match against the Toronto Arrows on Sunday, February 17 at Starfire Sports. Any resold tickets will need to be found on StubHub. The match kickoff is at 5 pm PST (8 pm EST) and is being broadcast on ESPN+, Root Sports, and on Game TV.

In Toronto, there will be a Watch Party at Quinn’s Steakhouse & Irish Bar.

The Seawolves opened there season with a win over the Glendale Raptors but then lost to the San Diego Legion and to NOLA Gold. The Toronto Arrows opened their season with a loss to NOLA Gold and after a bye came back to defeat Austin Elite Rugby last week.

Match Comments

Seattle Seawolves Head Coach Richie Walker has made three changes from last week. Cam Polson sees his first action of the season at flanker, Phil Mack returns at scrumhalf and George Barton gains a start at inside center. The Seawolves also see Nakai Penny returning from international duty with Canada to be available as a reserve.

The Seawall will again be strong in defense and the team will look to right the ship and level their record to 2-2. The Seawolves have a following from the Pacific Northwest and tap into the British Columbia market. That makes for an interesting match against the Toronto Arrows, with their largely Canadian contingent.

Toronto Arrows Director of Rugby Chris Silverthorn has made three changes to his starting XV that defeated Austin Elite Rugby last week. Canadian internationals, Mike Sheppard and Guiseppe du Toit returned from the Americas Rugby Championship with Canada and will play lock and inside center, respectively. Veteran loosehead prop Tom Dolezel will start for the first time this season. Guiseppe Du Toit makes his MLR debut with the team.

In the reserves, former Canada internationals Doug Wooldridge (prop) with 23 caps and Andy Wilson (back row) with 1 cap, could make their MLR debut.

The Toronto Arrows include Dan Moor, who is tied for the league lead with 3 tries. Toronto is ranked second in the league in tries scored (8). Paul Ciulini leads the team in tackles with 27. Thirteen of the starting 15 are Canadian, with the lone exceptions, Sam Malcolm (New Zealand) and Johnny Mitchell (New Zealand). The average squad age is 25 years old.

The Toronto Arrows are an experienced team with nine squad members having played for Canada. This includes Paul Ciulini (8 caps), Tom Dolezel (16 caps), Guiseppe du Toit (14 caps), Andrew Ferguson (11 caps), Cole Keith (10 caps), Dan Moor (14 caps), Mike Sheppard (4 caps), Doug Wooldridge (23 caps), and Andy Wilson (1 cap).

One note of interest for Arrows and MLR fans is that Uruguay National team wings Leandro Leivas and Gaston Mieres are now in Toronto with the team. They should make their team debut in the very near future.

Squads & Links to Player Articles

Seattle Seawolves: 1 Olive Kilifi 2 Stephan Coetzee  Tim MetcherApisai Naikatini Brad Tucker  6 Cam Polson 7 Eric Duechle 8 Riekert Hattingh 9 Phil Mack 10 Ben Cima 11 Peter Tiberio 12 George Barton 13  William Rasileka 14 Brock Staller 15 Mat Turner 16 Mike Shepherd 17 Kellen Gordon 18 John Hayden 19 Taylor Krumrei 20 Nakai Penny 21 JP Smith 22 Shalom Suniula  23 Sequoyah Burke-Combs

Toronto Arrows: 1 Tom Dolezel  2 AJ Quattrin 3 Morgan Mitchell  4 Mike Sheppard 5 Paul Ciulini 6 Peter Milazzo 7 Marcello Wainwright 8 Kolby Francis 9 Andrew Ferguson 10 Sam Malcolm 11 Dan Moor (C) 12 Guiseppe du Toit 13 Spencer Jones 14 Avery Oitomen 15 Shawn Windsor 16 Steven Ng 17 Doug Wooldridge 18 Cole Keith 19 Josh Van Horne 20 Andy Wilson 21 Riley DiNardo 22 Johnny Sheridan 23 Jack Evans

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North American Rugby News With A USA Slant