A Win for the Record Books
Published on April 20, 2021 under Major League Rugby (MLR)
Toronto Arrows News Release
Toronto got off to a winning start in its first 'home' game at its temporary base in Atlanta, showing no signs of weariness with the early kickoff time to defeat visiting Seattle by a resounding score of 52-7.
The victory was one for the MLR record books: at 45 points, the gulf dethrones the previous mark of 42 held by both the Seawolves (2019) and the now-defunct Glendale Raptors (2019).
The Arrows stormed out of the gates, with Joaquin Tuculet finding a gap in Seattle's defensive line in the opening seconds of the match; a pin-point pass from Tayler Adams beckoned the 56-cap Puma to stroll in for his first MLR try.
A near-identical play executed minutes later produced the Arrows' second try. Known finisher Manuel Montero turned provider, gliding through the midfield to spring Ben LeSage for the five-pointer.
Adams - perfect with his boot on the day - tacked on a penalty before a Toronto crossed the whitewash for a third try shortly after the first-half hydration break. A wave of Toronto backs contributed to a try-of-the-season-type score, with Ross Braude finishing a well-worked passing masterpiece to muscle the ball under the posts for his first try in North America's top flight.
The Arrows started the second half in a similar fashion to the first; a flat pass from Braude was corralled by man of the match Patrick Parfrey, whose dive between the posts put Toronto ahead by 31 points.
A try from Seattle's Mike Shepherd, followed by a subsequent conversion from Ben Cima, trimmed the Arrows' lead to 24, but that would be as close as the Seawolves would come to closing the gap. Minutes later, Montero broke Seattle's line to provide Jack McRogers with a clean road to the try zone. A Manuel Diana intercept turned into a try for substitute Jason Higgins, and Gaston Cortes completed the seven-try effort with a late barging tally.
Toronto enters Week Six of the 2021 season with an away clash against the Eastern Conference-leading Rugby United New York (3-1; 15 points) on Sunday, Apr. 25.
Toronto Arrows Stat Leaders
Ball Carries: M. Diana - 18
Carry Metres: G. Mieres - 114
Tackles Made: T. de la Vega - 18
Offloads: G. Mieres - 5
Seattle Seawolves Stat Leaders
Ball Carries: R. Hattingh - 11
Carry Metres: M. Turner - 104
Tackles Made: T. Clark - 12
Offloads: Eight Players - 1
Toronto Arrows Score Report
Tries: J. Tuculet (3), B. LeSage (9), R. Braude (28*), P. Parfrey (45*), J. McRogers (56), J. Higgins (61), G. Cortes (74)
Conversions: T. Adams 5 (4, 10, 57, 62, 75)
Penalty Goals: T. Adams (16)
* = seven-point try
Seattle Seawolves Score Report
Tries: M. Shepherd (53)
Conversions: B. Cima (54)
Toronto Arrows Lineup vs. Seattle Seawolves
Cole Keith
Jack McRogers
Tyler Rowland
Mason Flesch
Paul Ciulini
Tomas de la Vega
Lucas Rumball (C)
Manuel Diana
Ross Braude
Tayler Adams
Manuel Montero
Pat Parfrey
Ben LeSage (C)
Gaston Mieres
Joaquin Tuculet
Pat Lynott
Andrew Quattrin
Gaston Cortes
Adrian Wadden
Marcello Wainwright
Jason Higgins
Leandro Leivas
Spencer Jones
Major League Rugby Stories from April 20, 2021
- A Win for the Record Books - Toronto Arrows
- Geico XV: Week Five - MLR
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