With just four games remaining in the regular season, the Utah Warriors find themselves in a very good spot despite taking two consecutive losses.
After taking a tough 28-24 loss to the Seattle Seawolves this past Monday, Utah earned itself two critical bonus points to remain on top of the Major League Rugby Western Conference standings and just two points shy of the New England Free Jacks in the Eastern Conference.
It’s a great spot to be in, but it isn’t cause to celebrate yet or certainly to relax with the task at hand.
A big task awaits this coming Saturday as the Warriors (8-4) travel to take on the Houston Sabercats (8-4) in a game that may largely determine who rests on top of the Western Conference standings come the end of the season.
Houston is also the team that handed Utah a 37-17 loss during the second week of the season.
“We learned a lot from that Houston game early in the season,” recalled Utah Warriors Coach Greg Cooper. “We were off technically in that game and Houston was very good against us and they’re coming off a great win versus San Diego last week.”
Indeed Houston beat the San Diego Legion 37-20 and are certain to present a whole host of challenges come Saturday for the Warriors.
“Their line speed is a critical part of their game and they come hard at you with their big forwards,” Cooper assessed. “So nothing changes much with how we approach this game. It’s a physical confrontation where we need to be a bit more accurate and precise than we were during our first game with them.”
The good news is that Utah has become a lot more precise in its execution since, particularly in its line-out execution and scrum, both of which have played major roles in the team’s overall success. Ironically it was the line-out that failed Utah last week in taking a loss to Seattle.
“The effort was there, and we played outstanding rugby in the first half, but we let it slip in the second half,” Cooper said. “We’ve also battled through some injuries, but the beauty about this team is that we’ve had a lot of guys step up and fight for every opportunity to win the match.”
Cooper also mentioned the fact that Utah’s destiny lies in its own hands, which is a status any team would wish for with just four games remaining in the regular season.
Helping out big time along the way has been Utah’s exceptional forward play, led by standouts like Frank Lochore, Dylan Nel, Kalisi Moli, Liam Coltman, Tonga Kofe and Aki Seiuli, among several others.
“Our forward pack in general has been outstanding,” Cooper said. “We have the best scrum in the competition and our line-out has been very good, and we’ve done it with having some key players hurt recently. So I’m very happy with the work that’s been done there.”
Chief among those forwards who have been held out due to injury is team captain Gavin Thornbury. But Cooper is optimistic that Thornbury can return at least in time for the playoffs along with other standouts like Bailey Wilson and Tamarau McGahan.
But for now Houston is the task at hand, and it's certain to present a formidable one.
“Houston comes very hard at you defensively, so we need to be strong tactically against these guys,” Cooper said. “If you don’t win that breakdown collision then you’re going to have a very hard day at the office. So we’ve got to carry strong and we’ve got to carry clean. Those are the important factors in this one.”
Utah’s game versus Houston will begin at 6 P.M. MST time and will be televised on KJZZ.
.jpg)
