NEWS

MLR Week 6 | First XV, Player of the Week

MLR Week 6 | First XV, Player of the Week

By Aaron Castro, League Correspondent

Photo: Quinn Width

1. Loosehead Prop, Alex Tucci (Utah Warriors) – Alex was a dynamic runner with the ball in hand, grabbing the ball from Utah’s rucks to create quick carries and generate space in the Houston backfield.
2. Hooker, Ray Barkwill (Seattle Seawolves) – On the first scrum, Ray stole the ball away from fellow Canada teammate Eric Howard, helping to establish the Seawolves scrum-theme throughout the night.
3. Tighthead Prop, Tim Metcher (Seattle Seawolves) – Tim was the right anchor for the Seawolves dominant scrum over the Gold. He won the battle against Hubert Buydens on multiple restarts, facilitating Barkwill’s stealing of the NOLA ball.
4. Left Lock, Matt Jensen (Utah Warriors) – Matt scored Utah’s first try of the match, and in the lineout he was a threat — bringing the ball down for Utah each time. When he had the ball in his hands, he made positive meters against a forceful Sabercats defensive line.
5. Right Lock, Victor Comptat (Austin Elite) – Victor was an asset in the second-row for Austin, providing the needed drive to establish a dominant scrum over the Legion. In the lineout he provided a great second option to Ben Mitchell throughout the match.
6. Blindside Flanker, Eric Duechle (Seattle Seawolves) – THE BEAST IS BACK. Eric scored two tries for the Seawolves, proving almost impossible to tackle throughout the match.
7. Openside Flanker, Hanco Germishuys (Austin Elite) – Hanco Germishuys continues to show exemplary vision when he receives the ball, as he cut through the Legion defensive line to score a try unencumbered.
8. No 8., Cam Dolan (San Diego Legion) – Cam had to fight for lineouts with 6’7” Ben Mitchell as his opposite. He rapidly adjusted to the situation at hand and created positive outcomes for San Diego’s attacking maul.
9. Scrum-half, Holden Yungert (NOLA Gold) – Holden’s ruck management kept NOLA in the match. He passed the ball out to the first receiver with speed, stopping Seattle from creating turnovers off intercepts.
10. Fly-half, Kurt Morath (Utah Warriors) – Kurt demonstrated effective tactical kicking that put the ball deep in the SaberCats territory throughout the match, creating conditions that allowed the Warriors to convert possessions for scores. He scored eleven points on four conversions and one penalty.
11. Blindside Wing, Josua Vici (Houston SaberCats) – Josua found the holes in Utah’s bend-but-don’t-break defense, keeping the high attack-tone for the ‘Cats when he scored his try mid-way through the first half.
12. Inside Center, Paul Lasike (Utah Warriors) – Paul is the locomotive that tears through defensive lines. He gutted the SaberCats defensive line with each carry granting Utah excellent field position to build a team victory.
13. Outside Center, Roland Suniula (Austin Elite) – Roland gained ground on every carry — able to sidestep tacklers and drive through for extra meters. He was a force in the mid-field, completing a high percentage of his tackles and stunting the San Diego Attack.
14. Openside Wing, Tim Maupin (NOLA Gold) – Tim, in his first match back from injury, brought great physicality to NOLA’s defense in the first half as evidenced by the tackles he made — stopping Seattle’s offense cold.
15. Fullback, Mat Turner (Seattle Seawolves) – Mat’s performance for the Seawolves on Sunday was significant. With a try-assist to Staller, Mat also took an offload for a try after slicing through the New Orleans backline.

Player of Week: Openside Wing, Brock Staller (Seattle Seawolves) – Brock executed excellent support running throughout the match. His work-rate put him in position to receive offloads for two tries early in the first half, establishing a convincing Seattle lead. Staller earned 25 of Seattle’s 55 points on Sunday, scoring 15 points from the tee, including a 6/6 conversion performance.